Starting CB Mike Stevens Out Against South Carolina

According to Joe Giglio of the N&O, starting NC State Cornerback Mike Stevens will not be available to play against South Carolina this Saturday. Stevens suffered a knee injury earlier in training camp this month, and is expected to miss more than one game.

This is a huge blow to the one area of NC State’s team that was already a question mark. Stevens, a Senior, started 22 games over the past two seasons.

True Sophomore Nick McCloud, who played only 184 snaps as a true freshman was already expected to start opposite of Stevens. Redshirt Senior Johnathan Alston will probably step in to fill Stevens shoes opposite of McCloud. Alston spent his first three seasons at NC State as a wide receiver, and redshirted last season as he switched to play Cornerback. The defensive side isn’t completely foreign to Alston, who also played Safety in high school as well.

The loss of Stevens is a big blow, but NC State head coach Dave Doeren, and Strength and Conditioning Director Dantonio Burnette, have spoken highly of Alston this offseason.

The Wolfpack Defensive Line has received a lot of glory this offseason. Now it’s time to live up to the hype. They need to get to Gamecock Quarterback Jake Bentley early and often, not allowing him to take advantage of an inexperienced Wolfpack secondary.