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PFF: NC State’s Top 5 Graded Returning Offensive Players

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4 years ago

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Before the 2020 NC State college football season commences, here’s a look at the Wolfpack’s Top-5 highest graded returning offensive players from last season according to ProFootballFocus.

  1. Sophomore Left Tackle Ikem Ekwonu (80.5) – Ickey was NC State’s highest graded player in 2019 on either side of the ball, with a grade of 80.5. That grade ranked 3rd in the ACC amongst Guards. His grade of 85.0 on Run Blocking ranked 16th nationally, and 2nd in the conference. The True Freshman earned 2nd Team All-ACC honors from PFF, and was named to their Freshman All-American Team.
  2. Redshirt Senior Left Guard Joe Sculthorpe (72.0) – Sculthorpe stands beside Ekwonu filling out the solid left side of the Wolfpack Offensive Line, recording a grade of 72.0 in 2019, which was slightly down from the year before (73.8). Sculthorpe actually improved in pass blocking in 2019, improving his grade from 63.7 to 67.5. Really, the area that docked his grade down a notch in 2019 were his 7 penalties, compared to only 2 the year before. Sculthorpe’s overall grade ranked 8th in the ACC amongst Guards, and his 77.0 grade on Run Blocking ranked 3rd.
  3. Junior Running Back Ricky Person (71.5) – Person battled injuries in 2019, playing in only 7 games, but when he was on the field, he graded out well, with an overall grade of 71.5, which was up from his Freshman season (67.8). Person actually improved in every area except a drop in his grade on passing plays, dropping from 75.3 to 66.2.
  4. Redshirt Junior Center Grant Gibson (68.9) – After arriving in Raleigh as a Defensive Tackle (earning Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year during his Redshirt year), he was then moved to Offensive Guard, and found a good landing spot at Center last year, earning an overall grade of 68.9, with Run Blocking as his strong suit (73.0). To put this in perspective, Gibson was the 3rd best Center in the ACC according to PFF in his first year at the position, and ranked 1st in Run Blocking.
  5. Sophomore Running Back Jordan Houston (66.9) – If Houston would have been graded on his rushing ability alone (69.2), his overall score would have been higher. He struggled in pass blocking (46.0) and run blocking (38.0). With that being said, Houston proved to be one of the most elusive backs in the ACC in his first year in Raleigh, ranking 9th in Elusive Rating ((Missed Tackles Forced) / (Designed Run Attempts + Receptions) * (Yards After Contact Per Attempt * 100)). In his 115 touches, he avoided 29 tackles.

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Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Football

CBS Sports Ranks Dave Doeren as 1 of the Top-20 Coaches in College Football

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12 hours ago

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May 16, 2024

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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.

ACC Coaches that made the Top-25

3. Dabo Swinney (Clemson)

8. Mike Norvell (FSU)

16. Dave Doeren (NC State)

19. Jeff Brohm (Louisville)

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NC State Football

NC State vs. Tennessee Kickoff Time & TV Network Revealed

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2 days ago

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May 15, 2024

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Kickoff time and TV Channel details have been revealed for NC State and Tennessee’s game in the Duke Mayo Classic in Week 2 of next season.

The game will be a primetime game on Saturday 7th, at 7:30pm on ABC.

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This game has the makings to be a Top-25 matchup.

Here’s a look at some of the Way-Too-Early Preseason rankings for the Wolfpack and the Volunteers:

Action Network: NC State #24/Tennessee #17

ON3: NC State #22/Tennessee #15

247: NC State #21/Tennessee #11

ESPN: NC State #17/Tennessee #15

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.

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NC State Football

NC State and UVA Agree to Home-and-Home Non-Conference Games

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2 days ago

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May 15, 2024

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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.

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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.

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NC State’s 2024 Transfer Class Rankings After Carter Commitment

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3 days ago

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May 14, 2024

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