ESPN’s David Hale talked with NC State head coach Dave Doeren specifically about freshman running back Johnny Frasier this week, to see if he thought he was ready for action this season.

“He’s a guy that has to get in college shape,” Doeren said. “From a diet standpoint, everything’s new.  Twelve months from now, Johnny’s going to look like Tarzan.  He’s going to have no body fat. He’s going to be giant.” (ESPN)

Running back Shadrach Thornton had similar things to share with Hale.

“He’s at a stage of information overload,” senior tailback Shad Thornton said. “He can’t really play fast and be as physical as he needs to be because he’s always second-guessing if he’s doing the right thing.” (ESPN)

Frasier was a 4-star prospect in the 2015 recruiting class, and was the #53 overall player according to Rivals.  He is easily the top recruit of the Doeren era, and is one of the Top-10 recruits of the past 15 years to commit to NC State.

Every freshman wants to play when they show up on campus.  Frasier made that clear to us at Media Day this past Sunday.  Doeren is in a place where he has to decide what is best for the team and Frasier…in the present, and in the future.

“It’s just a matter of do we need him or not?” Doeren said. “I just want to make sure we’re making a good decision with his eligibility.” (ESPN)

Personally, unless Shadrach Thornton or Matt Dayes get injured in the next couple of weeks, I would be shocked if Doeren didn’t decide to redshirt Frasier.  It’s not an insult to his talent.  I just think it would give him the best opportunity to get the most out of each of his years of eligibility, and actually fill more of a void for the team in the future.