Connect with us

Football Recruiting

Rivals: Can NC State Flip these Two 2023 Verbal Commits?

Published

on

Adam Friedman of Rivals wrote a piece on Monday highlighting numerous verbally committed players in the 2023 recruiting class who could possibly flip their commitment to another school. Two of the players he highlighted were candidates to possibly flip to NC State.

4-Star Ohio State Wide Receiver Commit: Noah Rogers

There are other players on this list more likely to flip than Rogers but he is worth keeping an eye on. Rogers had a difficult time making his choice back in the summer but Ohio State landed his commitment despite the strong ties he has to NC State and North Carolina.

Rogers has a brother that plays for the Tar Heels but the team that nearly got him to commit was NC State. 

NC State was in Rogers’ Final 5 schools back in May, before verbally committing to Ohio State on June 22nd. Rogers is right down the road from NC State, playing at Rolesville.
Rogers took an Official Visit to Ohio State on June 17th, and then took one with NC State the following weekend. On June 22nd, he verbally committed to the Buckeyes, but that didn’t stop him from taking an Official Visit to UNC on June 24th.
ON3 ranks Rogers as a 5-star recruit, the #17 overall player nationally in the 2023 recruiting class, and the #1 player in the state of North Carolina.
3-Star Florida State Defensive Tackle Commit: Keith Sampson 

Sampson was one of the first players to commit to Florida State’s 2023 class but he spent a lot of time visiting other schools in the offseason too. NC State is the big one to watch here. The Wolfpack have targeted Sampson for a long time and brought him in on a couple visits earlier this year.

The Florida State coaches are staying close with Sampson but it still seems like there is a chance Sampson flips at some point down the road. (Rivals)

Interestingly, Florida State wasn’t even in Sampson’s Top-5 when he released it in January. That list included Clemson, Ohio State, South Carolina, NC State and Georgia. Sampson is also a North Carolina high school standout, playing for New Bern.

Back in May of last year, NC State offered Sampson 1 day after Florida State did.

ON3, 247Sports and ESPN all rank Sampson as a 4-star recruit, and 247 ranks him as the #145 overall player nationally in the 2023 recruiting class, and the #4 player in the state of North Carolina.

Matthew is Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He writes for all sports, with a focus on football and recruiting, and is in charge of business strategy. He is an NC State alum who majored in business. Matthew is also the lead pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

Click to comment
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Football Recruiting

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

Published

on

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).

Continue Reading

Football Recruiting

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

Published

on

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.

Continue Reading

Football Recruiting

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

Published

on

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.

Continue Reading

Football Recruiting

NC State Football Recruiting Update

Published

on

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.

Continue Reading