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Savion Jackson Needs to Prove He Deserves the #9

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2 years ago

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Back in June, it was announced that Junior Defensive End Savion Jackson was being honored with the #9 jersey, replacing the #90 he wore his first three seasons in Raleigh.

The #9 isn’t a number anyone just gets to select as their number of choice. It is a number at NC State that the coach honors a player with. It is a number at NC State that carries a legacy.

The #9 was worn by consensus All-American Defensive Ends Mario Williams and Bradley Chubb after him.

When Chubb was honored with the privilege of wearing the heralded #9 jersey that Mario Williams wore, he had just come off a Sophomore campaign in which he 10.5 tackles for loss and 5 sacks.

Before wearing the #9 in a game, Wolfpack Head Coach Dave Doeren required that Chubb call Williams to discuss with him what it meant to wear the #9 at NC State.

Whether it was being honored by his coach, the conversation with Mario, or some sort of magic with the #9, Chubb broke out as a Junior, tallying 21 tackles for loss and 10 sacks as a Junior. He followed that up with 23 more tackles for loss and 10 sacks as a Senior, earning consensus All-American honors, the ACC Defensive Player of the Year Award, as well as the Nagurski Trophy as a Senior.

Jackson had asked to wear the coveted #9 earlier in his career at NC State, but Doeren informed him that he wasn’t ready. With that being said, Doeren believes that he is now, but he did require Jackson to call Chubb before putting the jersey on.

Last time Doeren put the #9 on a player, he put it on Chubb, and his instincts proved to be brilliant.

Are Doeren’s instincts going to strike gold two times in a row?

Only time will tell. Jackson was a much more highly sought after prospect out of high school than Chubb. Coming out of Clayton High School right down the road, Jackson was a 4-star recruit, ranked by ESPN as the #50 overall player in the 2019 recruiting class.

With that being said, Jackson hasn’t put up numbers anywhere close to what Chubb did his Sophomore season. In 2021, Jackson had 1.5 tackles for loss and 0 sacks in 9 games. Those numbers don’t scream potential legacy.

To be fair, Jackson is playing in a 3-3-5 defensive scheme, which isn’t one where the Defensive End is as likely to end up in the backfield. In a 3-3-5, the defensive line more often that not sets up the linebackers to pad the stat sheet. Chubb on the other hand played in a 4-3 scheme, setting him up to be the primary pass rusher in the Wolfpack defense.

I’m a believer in Dave Doeren and his staff’s ability to develop talent. I’m also a believer in Director of Strength and Conditioning Dantonio Burnette’s ability to transform a player’s body. Jackson has putt on 25 pounds since arriving at NC State.

There are many things interesting about the Wolfpack heading into the 2022 season, but whether or not Jackson lives up to the number on his jersey is one of the most interesting in my book.

Jackson needs to produce on the field what Doeren has seen in him to deserve the #9.

 

 

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Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Football

NC State vs. Tennessee Kickoff Time & TV Network Revealed

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8 hours ago

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May 15, 2024

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Kickoff time and TV Channel details have been revealed for NC State and Tennessee’s game in the Duke Mayo Classic in Week 2 of next season.

The game will be a primetime game on Saturday 7th, at 7:30pm on ABC.

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This game has the makings to be a Top-25 matchup.

Here’s a look at some of the Way-Too-Early Preseason rankings for the Wolfpack and the Volunteers:

Action Network: NC State #24/Tennessee #17

ON3: NC State #22/Tennessee #15

247: NC State #21/Tennessee #11

ESPN: NC State #17/Tennessee #15

DraftKings released their way-too-early odds for the game, and Tennessee is currently a 5.5-point favorite.

Here’s the deal, as NC State fans, if we want to be a big time Football program, NC State fans need to gobble up tickets to this game. Let’s do our part and make sure that Bank of America Stadium is painted RED. Buy Tickets HERE.

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NC State Football

NC State and UVA Agree to Home-and-Home Non-Conference Games

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13 hours ago

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May 15, 2024

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NC State announced this morning that the Wolfpack and UVA will play in a home-and-home non-conference series, with the game in 2025 being in Raleigh, and the game in 2026 being in Charlottesville.

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To reiterate, despite the fact that both teams are in the ACC, these games are considered non-conference games, and won’t count toward conference records. This is similar to what UNC and Wake Forest did a few years back.

Here’s what’s interesting about the addition of these games in 2025 and 2026. Prior to the announcement, NC State already had 4 non-conference games scheduled for both years.

It would be my assumption that one of the previously scheduled non-conference games for each season will not take place now.

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NC State Football

NC State’s 2024 Transfer Class Rankings After Carter Commitment

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2 days ago

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May 14, 2024

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NC State Football

NC State’s Current 2024 Football Scholarship Breakdown

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2 days ago

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May 13, 2024

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Here’s a look at NC State’s current Football scholarship breakdown.

Offense

Quarterback 
Redshirt Senior Grayson McCall
Redshirt Freshman Lex Thomas
4-Star Freshman Cedrick Bailey

Transferred Out: MJ Morris
Transferred In: Grayson McCall

Running Back
Redshirt Senior Jordan Waters
Redshirt Senior Running Back Demarcus Jones
Redshirt Junior Jordan Poole
Sophomore Kendrick Raphael
Redshirt Freshman Daylan Smothers
3-Star Freshman Jayden Scott
3-Star Freshman Isiah Jones

Transferred Out: Jordan Houston, Michael Allen, & Delbert Mimms III
Transferred In: Jordan Waters & Daylan Smothers

Wide Receiver
Redshirt Junior Jalen Coit
Redshirt Junior Jakolbe Baldwin
Redshirt Junior Dacari Collins
Junior Wesley Grimes
Sophomore Kevin Concepcion
Redshirt Freshman Noah Rogers
4-Star Freshman Jonathan Paylor
4-Star Freshman Terrell Anderson
4-Star Freshman Keenan Jackson
4-Star Wide Receiver Jimmar Boston
3-Star Freshman Christian Zachary

Transferred Out – Porter Rooks, Anthony Smith, Terrell Timmons, Josh Crabtree, Christopher Scott & Julian Gray
Transferred In – Wesley Grimes

Tight End
Junior Justin Joly
Junior Dante Daniels (JUCO Addition)
Sophomore Juice Vereen

Transferred Out – Christopher Toudle, Cedd Seabrough & Fred Seabrough
Transferred In – Justin Joly

Offensive Line
Redshirt Senior Dawson Jaramillo
Redshirt Senior Timothy McKay
Redshirt Senior Anthony Belton
Redshirt Senior Zeke Correll
Redshirt Junior Sean Hill
Redshirt Junior Anthony Carter Jr.
Redshirt Junior Matt McCabe
Redshirt Junior Patrick Matan
Redshirt Sophomore Rylan Vann
Redshirt Sophomore Jacarrius Peak
Redshirt Sophomore Valen Erickson
Redshirt Freshman Obadiah Obasayui
Redshirt Freshman Kamen Smith
Redshirt Freshman Darion Rivers
Redshirt Freshman Rico Jackson
4-Star Freshman Tyler West
3-Star Freshman Robby Martin
3-Star Freshman Trent Mitchell

Transferred out: Lyndon Cooper & Jaleel Davis
Transferred In: Zeke Correll & Valen Erickson

Defense

Defensive Line
Senior Defensive End Davin Vann
Senior Nose Tackle Chazz Wallace
Redshirt Senior Defensive End Noah Potter
Redshirt Senior Defensive End Red Hibbler
Redshirt Junior Defensive End Travali Price
Junior Nose Tackle Brandon Cleveland
Redshirt Sophomore Nose Tackle DJ Jackson
Redshirt Freshman Defensive End Isaiah Shirley
3-Star Freshman Defensive Lineman Chase Bond
3-Star Freshman Defensive Lineman Justin Terrell
3-Star Freshman Defensive Lineman Joshua Alexander-Felton

Transferred Out: Nose Tackles C.J. Clark & Nick Campbell
Transferred In: Nose Tackle Chazz Wallace

Linebackers

Redshirt Senior Devon Betty
Redshirt Junior Sean Brown
Redshirt Junior Caden Fordham
Redshirt Junior Jayland Parker
Junior Wyatt Wright (JUCO Addition)
Redshirt Freshman Kelvon McBride
Redshirt Freshman Kamal Bonner
4-Star Freshman Elijah Groves
3-Star Freshman Cannon Lewis
3-Star Freshman Zane Williams
3-Star Freshman Joshua Ofor

Transferred Out: LB’s Daejuan Thompson & Torren Wright

Defensive Backs

Redshirt Senior Safety Kerry Martin Jr.
Senior Safety Ja’Had Carter
Senior Cornerback Aydan White
Senior Defensive Back Corey Coley Jr.
Senior Safety Devan Boykin
Senior Safety Bishop Fitzgerald
Senior Safety Donovan Kaufman
Junior Cornerback Devon Marshall
Junior Cornerback Rente Hinton
Redshirt Sophomore Cornerback Jackson Vick
Redshirt Sophomore Defensive Back Isaiah Crowell
Sophomore Cornerback Brandon Cisse
Redshirt Freshman Defensive Back Tamarcus Cooley
Redshirt Freshman Safety Zack Myers
Redshirt Freshman Safety Daemon Fagan
4-Star Freshman Safety Ronnie Royal III
4-Star Freshman Cornerback Asaad Brown
3-Star Freshman Cornerback Jivan Baly
3-Star Freshman Safety Brody Barnhardt

Transferred Out: Safety Jakeen Harris, Defensive Back Nate Evans, Defensive Back Darius Edmundson, Nickel Cecil Powell
Transferred In: Tamarcus Cooley, Corey Coley Jr., Devon Marshall, Donovan Kaufman, Kerry Martin Jr. & Ja’Had Carter.

Specialist

Redshirt Junior Caden Noonkester

That’s 84 players on scholarship, with 1 available.

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