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NC State Football Recruiting Update – February 21, 2019

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5 years ago

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NC State Football Recruiting Update – February 20, 2019

 

Upcoming Junior Day – February 23, 2019

Lots of marquee talent expected in Raleigh for our second Junior Day.

3* WR Antonio Barber is expected to attend – he has been committed to Tennessee for a while, but our staff is very high on him.

4* DE Myles Murphy is also expected to be in attendance.

 

Committed Elsewhere

Target 4* WR Josh Downs and Target 4* WR Ray Grier have both committed to UNC.

Both are on the smaller side – Grier is listed at 6’0, and Downs is listed at 5’10”.

Downs is a legacy recruit that we hated to miss on, but his cousin coaches at UNC (Dre Bly) and he was probably promised immediate playing time and lots of touches in each game.

Target 4* DT Demonte Capehart has committed to Clemson. As a kid from South Carolina, we were never in good shape for him, particularly against Clemson.

Target 4* S Cameron Rose-Sinclair has also committed to UNC. Keep an eye on him for a potential flip, he is from Myers Park – where 4* WR Porter Rooks (State commit) and 4* WR Mushin Muhammad, both top tier targets for State are going to HS.

Target 3* CB Jahquez Robinson has committed to Alabama.  He was committed to State since his sophomore season before decommiting before National Signing Day. We were his first offer during his sophomore season.

 

Quiet Period

Quiet Period is in effect for February 8 – April 14, 2019.

Quiet Period is: “The NCAA defines the quiet period as a time when “a college coach may not have face-to-face contact with college-bound student-athletes or their parents off the college campus and may not watch student-athletes compete or visit their high school.”

This would be the main reason why State is hosting Junior Day at the football facility on February 23rd, and should have another event before the Spring Game in early April.

 

New Intriguing Offers

DT Jaylen Smith from Hertford County HS in North Carolina. 6’4″, 265 with a reported 4.64 40. Reminds me a lot of BJ Hill on film, athletic, great footwork and extremely good size. He was just officially rated a 3* on 24/7 sports on Tuesday, 2/19. Another late blooming prospect which State was able to pounce on before other schools.

TE John Copenhaver from Roswell HS in Georgia, is another new offer to an outstanding prospect who can do a lot of things on the football field. He would definitely bring a lot more athleticism to our TE/H-Back position. At this point, it looks like our best competition for him is South Carolina. We were his first scholarship offer.

Scholarship Situation

With Shimko, Mimms, and Walker being blue shirts in the 2019 cycle, they will greatly impact our scholarship numbers for the 2020 class.

Before them, we had roughly 14 spots left in the 2020 cycle before attrition (Vernon Grier, Shug Frazier, and Joe Babros left the team) . With the blueshirts, it brings us down to 11 scholarships.  I fully expect there to be a little more attrition before next fall.

Hence, my guess is that we will take around 15 players in the 2020 cycle, with two current commits (3* QB Ben Finley and 4* WR Porter Rooks).

Best Guesses for 2020 Class

Based upon the current scholarship distribution for the team and current scholarships available, here’s what I am anticipating State taking in the 2020 class:

1 QB – Done – 3* QB Ben Finley committed.

1 RB – Highest Target is 3* Trenton Simpson from Mallard Creek, others include 3* Ahmani Marshall (East Forsyth), 3* Elijah Green (Roswell, GA), and 3* Kobe Pryor (Cedartown, GA).

2-3 WR – 4* Porter Rooks committed, Highest Target is 4* Mushin Muhammad from Myers Park HS, others include 4* Jahvante Royal (Fort Lauderdale, FL), 3* Jhari Patterson (AC Reynolds HS), 3* Aydin Henningham (Deerfield Beach, FL), 3* Anthony Barber (Rock Hill, SC), and  3* Bryce Dowdy (Deerfield Beach, FL).

1 TE – Highest Target is 3* John Copenhaver from Roswell, GA, others include 3* Kendall Karr (Cramer HS) and 3* Tommy Guajardo (Dearborn, MI).

2 OL – Highest Target is 4* OT Mitchell Mayes from Sanderson,  others include 3* Jimmy Christ (Sterling, VA), 3* Seth McLaughlin (Buford, GA), 3* OG RJ Adams (Woodbridge, VA), and 3* OG Anthony Carter Jr. from Matthews Butler HS.

2-3 DE/DT – 5* Desmond Evans from Lee County HS is the top target, others include 4* Myles Murphy (Southwest Guilford), 4* Jacolbe Cowan (Providence Day School), 4* Kendrick Bingley-Jones (Providence Day School), 3* DT Jaylen Smith (Hertford County HS), and 3* Will Anderson (Hampton, GA).

1 LB – Highest Target is 3* Mohamed Kaba from Clinton HS, others include 4* Zykevious Walker (Ellaville, GA) and 3* Jamari Stewart (Port St. Lucie, FL).

1 CB – Highest Target is 3* Devan Boykin from Ragsdale HS, others include 3* Davonte Brown (Fort Lauderdale, FL) and 3* Colby Dempsey (Fort Lauderdale, FL).

1-2 ATH – Highest Target is 3* Ja’Qurious Conley from Northside HS, others include 3* Jaheim Bell (Valdosta, GA), 4* Arian Smith (Mulberry, FL), and 3* Charles Toombs (Immokalee, FL).

 

New Recruiting Pitch

Our staff has been heavily involved in the “facts” not “hype” recruiting war with UNC in the last few weeks.

Here are a few examples of the “facts” based graphics being seen via social media:

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2002 NC State Graduate, School Administrator, Lifelong Pack Fan (Since my uncle graduated from State in 1937), Husband, Father, Workout Aficionado, Reader, Thinker, Recruiting Analyst in my spare time...

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Football Recruiting

3-Star LB Cameron White Has NC State Official Visit Set

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1 day ago

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April 23, 2024

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3-Star 2025 Linebacker Cameron White (6’1″/225) will be taking an Official Visit to NC State on June 19-21, according to a source.

NC State offered White back on March 1st.

While White hasn’t officially released a Top-8, he did say that the 8 schools that are standing out are NC State, Louisville, Tennessee, West Virginia, UCF, Syracuse, Georgia Tech and Utah.

This Spring, he has taken unofficial visits to Tennessee, UCF, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Louisville, Miami. He’s expected to take an Official Visit to Louisville as well.

Rivals ranks White as the #37 Outside Linebacker nationally in the 2025 recruiting class, and the #79 player in the state of Florida.

This past year, White had 81 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and 5 sacks for Sumner (Riverview, FL).

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Football Recruiting

3-Star Edge Nik Alston Has Locked in an Official Visit to NC State

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2 days ago

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April 22, 2024

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According to a source, 2025 3-Star Edge Nik Alston (6’3″/260) has locked in an Official Visit to NC State for June 7-9.

Alston plays for Thompson High School in Birmingham, Alabama, and is ranked as the #40 overall player in the state in the 2025 class according to 247Sports.

Back on April 6th, Alston was in attendance for NC State’s 2024 Spring Game, and he walked away with an offer. He also holds offers from Minnesota, Washington, Liberty, Georgia Tech and Tulane.

He also has Official Visits scheduled for Washington, Minnesota, Liberty and Tulane. Honestly, some of the dates that I have found overlap at this point, but these were all reported at one time.

This past season, Alston had 37 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries.

When I spoke with Alston in the past, he said NC State would be at the top of his list.

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Football Recruiting

3-Star CB Robert Jones III Includes NC State in His Top-10

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2 days ago

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April 21, 2024

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2025 3-Star Cornerback Robert Jones III (6’2″/170) recently revealed his Top-10 schools, and NC State made the cut along with Auburn, Kentucky, Miami, Louisville, Illinois, South Florida, UCF, Missouri and Florida.

ON3 ranks Jones III as the #59 overall player in the state of Florida in the 2025 recruiting class.

You can watch his highlights from the 2023 season here. He only played 7 games due to injury. Jones III had 9 pass breakups and 2 interceptions as a Junior.

Jones III has a commitment date set for May 28th, with an Official Visit to Illinois scheduled in June.

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Football Recruiting

NC State Football Recruiting Update

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4 days ago

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April 20, 2024

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Here’s a rundown of some of the happenings in the world of NC State Football Recruiting recently.

Thursday Visitor

4-Star 2026 EDGE Zavion Griffin-Hayes (6’6″/225) took an unofficial visit to NC State Thursday.

ON3 ranks Griffin-Hayes as the #78 overall player nationally in the 2026 recruiting class, the #9 EDGE, and the #7 player in the state of North Carolina.

Griffin-Hayes plays right down the road from NC State at Rolesville, where NC State’s Isiah Jones, Tamarcus Cooley & Noah Rogers played. The Wolfpack have yet to offer Griffin-Hayes yet, but he does hold offers from South Carolina, App St., Auburn, UCLA and others.

Griffin-Hayes has been a frequent visitor to NC State.

This past season as a Sophomore at Rolesville, Griffin-Hayes had 50+ tackles, 20+ tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.

4-Star RB Kentrell Rinehart is taking an Official Visit

4-Star 2025 Running Back Kentrell Rinehart (6’2”/205) is taking an Official Visit to NC State on June 21-23. He also has Official Visits scheduled to Minnesota and Syracuse.

Back on February 10th, Rinehart revealed his Top-5 schools, and he included NC State, along with Syracuse, Indiana, Kentucky and Minnesota.

Rivals ranks him as the #24 Running Back in the 2025 recruiting class, and the #14 overall player in the state of Ohio.

His Junior stats this past season (at Bishop Ready) were video game numbers, rushing for 2,837 yards (8.3 yards per carry) and 42 touchdowns.

Yesterday’s Visitors

3-Star 2026 Wide Receiver Nyqir Helton (5’11″/180) was on an unofficial visit to NC State.

Rivals ranks Helton as the #7 overall player in the state of New Jersey in the 2026 recruiting class. He holds offers from Penn St., Rutgers, UCONN, Maryland, Pitt, Syracuse, Boston College, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

As a Sophomore, Helton had 33 receptions for 606 yards and 7 touchdowns for Winslow Township (Atco, New Jersey).

4-Star 2026 Running Back Jaylen McGill (5’10″/185) was on an unofficial visit to NC State.

Rivals ranks McGill as the #238 overall player nationally in the 2026 recruiting class, the #17 Running Back, and the #2 player in the state of South Carolina.

McGill holds offers from Tennessee, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Coastal Carolina and Indiana.

As a Sophomore last year, McGill 1,602 yards rushing (9.1 yards per carry) and 24 touchdowns for Broome (Spartanburg, SC). He also had 88 yards receiving and 2 touchdown receptions.

3-Star 2026 Interior Offensive Lineman Steven Pickard Jr. (6’5″/300) was in Raleigh for an unofficial visit.

ON3 ranks him as the #10 overall player in the state of South Carolina in the 2026 recruiting class.

Pickard Jr. plays for Phillip Simmons in Charleston, SC.

4-Star 2025 Wide Receiver Braswell Thomas (6’2″/185) was also on campus.

Rivals ranks Thomas as the #8 player in the state of New Jersey in the 2025 recruiting class.

Thomas holds offers from Penn St., Rutgers, Tennessee, Georgia, and Nebraska.

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