Thus far we’ve previewed NC State Offense: Quarterbacks, Running Backs, Wide Receivers, Tight Ends, and the Offensive Line.

Now it’s time to move on to the Wolfpack Defense. As we continue previewing each position group leading up to NC State’s season opener against James Madison on Saturday, next up is the Defensive Ends.

The Starters

Senior Darian Roseboro (6’4″/283) mulled over possibly leaving for the NFL Draft after his Junior season, but he decided he had unfinished business to take care of.

Take a look go pack ‼️‼️ pic.twitter.com/1jh1fzPpHo

— Darian roseboro (@roseboro_45) December 18, 2017

Roseboro is a former 4-star recruit out of high school, that has been waiting in the shadows of Bradley Chubb. What Roseboro has done as a reserve the past three years is pretty astounding. His 23.5 tackles for loss and 13.5 sacks (15th in NC State history) over the past 3 seasons is more than BJ Hill, Justin Jones, and Kentavius Street, and that’s with 100’s of less snaps. (Roseboro – 1,132/Street – 1,474/Jones 1,549/Hill – 1,912).

He isn’t trying to take anyone’s place or fill anyone’s shoes. He’s looking the grab his own place in the NC State history books with his own shoes on.

Roseboro is explosive and always seems to be in the backfield.

With Chubb and the boys gone, Roseboro has become the vocal leader of the Defensive Line, and the whole entire Defense for that matter.

Roseboro is capable of having a “Chubb-esque” season in 2018. I expect him to record 10+ sacks and 15+ tackles for loss. If he does, I foresee him being drafted within the first three rounds of next years NFL Draft like his predecessors.

Redshirt Junior James Smith-Williams (6’3″/270) has transformed his body under Strength and Conditioning Coach Dantonio Burnette, gaining over 50 pounds since arriving on campus as a Freshman. In fact, The Athletic ranked Smith-Williams as the #27 “Freak” in college football heading into the 2018 season. He bench presses 415, squats 620, has a vertical of 38.5, and ran a laser 4.62 40-yard dash.

He played outside Linebacker at Millbrook High School (Raleigh, NC), and started at NC State as a Nickelback. Talk about transformation.

While Roseboro rotated quite a bit with Street and Roseboro, Smith-Williams only ended up seeing the field for 152 snaps.

Smith-Williams is a Raleigh kid (Millbrook High School) that the coaching staff has been impressed with this Fall, being one of the more consistent players. They have also praised his leadership on the D-Line.

There is a ton of potential in Smith-Williams, but it’s hard to know what to expect, due to a lack of experience. He has the tools to be a very special player to watch in 2018. With his speed, he could actually be the End that gets to the quarterback the most, but we will have to see if Smith-Williams lives up to his athleticism.

The 2’s

Unlike the Wolfpack Offensive Line, Defensive Line Coach Kevin Patrick implements more of a rotation between his 1’s and 2’s. With that being said, it’s never an even rotation. His more talented and solidified linemen always get more reps. The two starters at Defensive End have never been in question heading into 2018, and there doesn’t seem to be anyone in the 2’s that is going to push them and demand playing time like Roseboro did the past two seasons.

Redshirt Freshman Ibrahim Kante (6’4″/250) has had an interesting offseason. He arrived as a Defensive End from Harlem, New York, and worked at that position throughout his redshirt season last year. Then in the Spring, Patrick moved Kante to Defensive Tackle due to depth issues. Even though he seems undersized for an interior lineman, the coaches sung his praises. Last week the staff moved Kante back to End, and that probably points to the lack of solid 2’s at the End position.

Kante has put on 25 pounds of muscle in one year, and Patrick says that he thinks when he puts on even more mass, he is going to be a special player. He’s not scared of contact, and he’s fast, and has a 6’11” wingspan to go along with it.

NC State has had one reserve end that has received a majority of the reserve reps the past couple of years in Roseboro, and if someone were to fill those shoes, I think it would be Kante due to all the positive buzz about him in camp.

Redshirt Graduate Senior Deonte Holden (6’4″/247) has had an injury plagued time at NC State, but Dave Doeren has expressed his excitement on numerous occasions that Holden is finally healthy and ready to contribute and play. Whether or not his body can hold up is the question.

The 3’s

Freshman Joseph Boletepeli (6’4″/258) is another local kid in the Defensive End group, playing at Heritage High School in Raleigh. He was teammates in high school with Freshman Running Back Ricky Person, Wide Receiver Thayer Thomas and 2019 NC State Linebacker commit Drake Thomas. While the coaching staff has said next to nothing about the other third string End Joe Babros, they have spoken highly of Boletepeli throughout all of Fall Camp. There is definitely a scenario where Boletepeli could still redshirt this season, but with some of the question marks at the position, he might be needed.

Junior Joe Babros (6’4″/250) is slotted behind Roseboro and Holden. Joe is a Junior College Transfer that enrolled early in January, that has two years of eligibility. It can take awhile to adjust from JUCO football to Division-1 football, and with Babros sitting at 3rd string, things might be coming a little slowly. Depending on NC State’s needs in regards to depth at the End position in 2018, Babros could still redshirt this year if it would help him like it did with Defensive Tackle Larrell Murchison, who is now starting.