NC State 2018 Football Position Preview: Cornerbacks

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

We’ve also knocked out the Defensive Ends, Defensive Tackles, and Linebackers. Next up is the Cornerbacks.

The Starters

Junior Nick McCloud (6’0″/186) played in all 13 games for NC State last season, starting in 7 of those (579 snaps). He had 34 tackles, and 7 pass breakups, which ranked second on the team. In fact, he ranks 13th among active ACC players in passes defended.

Doeren loves McCloud’s work ethic and his experience. He has the joy/nightmare of going against Kelvin Harmon, Stephen Louis and Jakobi Meyers everyday in practice. If you just go off of the eye test, McCloud always seems to be in position. With Johnathan Alston and Mike Stevens graduating, McCloud is now the leader of the cornerbacks.

Junior Kishawn Miller (5’9”/170) was healthy throughout Fall camp. Doeren said that he had been steady, plays the ball well, and is extremely competitive. Miller played his 1st two years at Georgia Military College, collecting 4 interceptions and 12 pass breakups in 2 seasons. Even though JUCO is not the same as Division-1 football, in a young cornerbacks room, Miller’s college football reps are a big deal. He’s the shortest cornerback on the 2-Deep by two inches, but Cornerback’s coach Barlow says that he is explosive and plays with a chip on his shoulder. While McCloud is a lock, we will have to see how Miller does, and how much Sophomore Chris Ingram pushes him.

The 2’s  

Backing up McCloud is Redshirt Senior Maurice Trowell (5’11”/195). Honestly, it wouldn’t have been shocking to see Trowell or Ingram starting instead of Miller. Trowell switched over from Wide Receiver in the Spring, so his biggest challenge is just finding consistency at a new position. He’s tied with CJ Riley as the fastest player on the team (4.48 laser 40-yard dash). Watching Johnathan Alston make the same transition last season has given Trowell confidence.

Backing up Miller is Sophomore Chris Ingram (6’0”/186). Ingram impressed the coaches so much in practice last season, that they moved Shawn Boone to Safety for the Wake Forest game, so Ingram could start at Nickel. The experiment didn’t work. Ingram struggled, but Doeren defended that he was the best player in coverage on the team. The coaches are still really high on Ingram, and had he not been dinged up some in Fall Camp, I think he would be starting instead of Miller.

Who else?

The NC State coaches have spoken highly of Freshman Taiyon Palmer and Teshaun Smith throughout Fall Camp. I’m also expecting big things from Freshman De’Von Graves in the future. Whether or not these guys play this year will be determined by the health and effectiveness of the guys in front of them. If they aren’t needed, then they could redshirt.