Recently NC State running back Reggie Gallaspy tweeted that once the season began, he would be off of social media for the entire season. I talked to him after the first official practice of the 2015 football season yesterday, and I asked him what led him to that decision.
“I just want to stay focused. Social media can sometimes become a distraction,” said Gallaspy. “Sometimes it isn’t a distraction, but I don’t want anything to lead me to distraction. It can also lead to suspensions if you say the wrong things, so I just want to eliminate all of that.”
Another thing that can be a distraction for a college football player, especially during the Fall training camp, is where you rank on the depth chart. Gallaspy, a true freshman who enrolled early in January, made sure the Wolfpack fans knew about him early, rushing for 131 yards on 21 carries in the annual Kay Yow Spring Game. A player of his talent and potential might be higher than 3rd on the depth chart at another school, but he obviously comes into the season behind Senior Shadrach Thornton and Junior Matt Dayes. Gallaspy said that it has actually been the veteran running backs that have tried to help the younger guys not think about where they are on the depth chart.
“Right now we’re not really paying attention to who’s where on the depth chart. We’re all family. We’re all brothers,” said Gallaspy. “We get that a lot from the older guys. They try to embed that in us and make sure we aren’t worrying about where we’re at. They try to keep us focused on making one another better.”
Gallaspy, a 4-star prospect from Greensboro, North Carolina, chose to stay in-state. He chose to join a very talented and crowded NC State running back core. Throw in the fact that true freshman Johnny Frasier, the #53 overall player in the 2015 recruiting class, is also a member of the backfield, and you realize that the Wolfpack running attack is loaded. But Gallaspy feels like he made an incredible decisions and is a part of an incredible backfield.
“It’s the greatest decision I’ve ever made in my life. I’m somewhere where I’m comfortable and where I’m supported,” said Gallaspy. “I’m able to go home if I feel like I need to go home. It’s going to be really good. I think our run offense is going to be even better than it was last year.
Prior to the announcement, NC State already had their non-conference slate booked for both of those seasons.
As a result of the addition of the Virginia series, a previously scheduled non-conference game from each season would need to be dropped. While it hasn’t been officially announced by the school, Joe Giglio and David Glenn seem to think that the series with Appalachian State is going to be dropped.
State swaps out a home-and-home with App State for one with Virginia
Given the ACC’s stance on road G5 games, that was going to happen
NC STATE BACKS OUT OF FOOTBALL SERIES WITH APPALACHIAN STATE…. David Glenn Weighs in on Required #NCPOL Scheduling Bill per UNC, NC STATE, ECU, CHARLOTTE AND APP https://t.co/5sfWzmRa93 via @YouTube
— NORTH CAROLINA SPORTS NETWORK (@TheNCSportsNet) May 16, 2024
It would make the most sense, considering the Mountaineers were the only opponent the Wolfpack was scheduled to play in both 2025 and 2026. It would also make sense, considering the fact that ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips isn’t a fan of ACC teams playing Group of 5 schools on the road.
I will tell you this much. The Mountaineer faithful certainly believe NC State is dropping the series with App State, and it just takes a little scrolling on X (formerly Twitter) to get a read on their feelings on the situation.
CBS Sports released their Top-25 Power 4 Coaches in College Football, and NC State’s Dave Doeren came in at #16. Heading into last season, he went into the season ranked #25.
16) Dave Doeren: The NC State coach finally gets some overdue credit. He’s always hovered around the bottom of our top 25 or just outside it, and now he finds himself firmly entrenched in it thanks to all the changes at the top. Coaches who take mid-tier programs and overachieve never get enough credit, in my estimation, and the consistency Doeren has established at NC State — where he spent most of his time in a division with Clemson and Florida State — is one of the most impressive things any coach in the country has done. I’m glad to see Doeren getting closer to the top 15. 2023 rank: 25 (+9) (CBS Sports)
Numerous CBS Sports’ analysts voted in the poll, and Tom Fornelli actually ranked Doeren #8.
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.
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.
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.