Football Recruiting
Signing Day: NC State Football Ranks 32 Nationally
Today is the day that the fax machine becomes relevant once more, as players pledge their alliance for the next 4 years to the program of their choice. NC State Football has hit the recruiting trails hard as they have looked to keep top local talent from leaving the state. Headlining the class are a couple of big time recruits from North Carolina. Johnny Frasier a running back who was originally committed to FSU is the highest rated prospect of the incoming class according to ESPN. Frasier brings outstanding size at 5-10 227 pounds to the running back position, he also has great vision and burst to compliment his size. In his high school career Johnny gained over 7,100 yards while maintaining a 10.3 yards per carry average. The running back position will continue to be a strength for the Pack for years to come.
Joining Frasier are 24 other recruits to finish up the 2015 class. Other top recruits include Nyheim Hines out of Garner. In his senior season alone he rushed for over 3,000 yards and added 50 touchdowns. Standing at 5-9 185 pounds Hines is like lightning on the field running a sub 4.4 40. There is lots of talk that State will use Hines in the slot as a receiver and a specialist on the jet sweep. His speed is a game changing factor and has to have Coach Doeren excited about the possibilities he will bring to the offense.
On the defensive side of the ball the Pack signed Darian Roseboro DT out of Lincoln, NC. The 6-4 285 pound tackle will be a great addition up front and will get a head start on the other freshmen as he is already enrolled in school. This will pay huge dividends for Roseboro as he will have access to spring workouts and extra time to become acclimated to coaches as well as classes. Even more impressive is that State was able to land this trio despite all three having suitors in the SEC, most notably Alabama and Auburn.
Overall Coach Doeren and his staff did an excellent job of improving the talent level on this team. His staff also did a great job of keeping the best talent in the state. I cannot express how important it is to win the local recruiting battle against other top collegiate programs. North Carolina has produced high quality players for a long time, but all too often we have allowed these recruits to be picked off by the SEC. Just look at Georgia as they were able to have Todd Gurley for the past 3 years. Gurley was a standout at Tarboro High yet chose to play for the Bull Dogs.
Look for the Wolfpack to make great improvements this season and build off of the momentum of the big wins over UNC and Central Florida. It’s early for predictions but I see no reason why this team can not improve upon last season. The biggest questions lie with the offensive line as they lost a a couple of starters due to graduation. It will be important that guys step up early up and accept new roles as spring practice is a few weeks away.
What are your expectations for the upcoming season? Who are you most excited about in the recruiting class?
You have to be excited about the recruits and the fact we are keeping top talent in the state. Tom O’Brien was a great coach and a good guy but this is where he was truly lacking his recruiting classes we always weak. He and his staff always did a great job of coaching up talent but you can’t always make two star kids into four or five star college players. The key will be if coach D can continue this success. If he does then we may be in the verge of seeing something really special in Raleigh.