Cornerbacks Aydan White and Shyheim Battle both had the ability to return to NC State for their final year of collegiate eligibility in 2024. We found out this week that neither will be returning. White has entered the Transfer Portal, and Battle is entering the 2024 NFL Draft.

These are big shoes to fill. Battle is a 4-year starter, and White is a 2-year starter. White earned 1st Team All-ACC honors in 2022, and 3rd Team honors this season.

Who will fill those big shoes?

NC State returns Brandon Cisse (6’0″/180), who will be a True Sophomore next year. Cisse played in all 13 games as a True Freshman, logging 148 snaps. After playing only on Special Teams against UCONN, Cisse saw action on defense in every game thereafter. Cisse finished 2023 with 10 tackles and 1 interception, and recorded a PFF Grade of 68.7, which was the 8th best grade on the Wolfpack defense.

I expect Cisse to be in contention for one of the starting Cornerback spots.

The Wolfpack also picked up Maryland Cornerback Corey Coley Jr. (6’2″/180) out of the Transfer Portal.

Coley Jr. played in 11 games for Maryland this year, starting in 2, finishing with 9 tackles and 2 pass breakups. His PFF grade was 61.3 (305 snaps). In 2022, Coley Jr. played in 11 games, starting in 1, finishing with 14 tackles (291 snaps). He played in 11 games as a True Freshman in 2021, starting in 3, finishing with 14 tackles and 1 pass breakup (230 snaps). While Coley Jr.’s numbers don’t blow you away, he does bring a wealth of experience to the table, logging 826 snaps at Maryland over the past three seasons. Coley Jr. has 1 more year of eligibility.

Cisse and Coley Jr. both know that White and Battle’s exodus means opportunity for them.

💯

— Corey Coley Jr. (@CoreyColeyJr) January 4, 2024

Beginning tomorrow, Villanova Cornerback Transfer Devon Marshall (6’0″/200) will be on NC State’s campus for an Official Visit. Marshall played in 13 games for the Wildcats this year as a True Sophomore, collecting 47 tackles and 11 pass breakups. As a Freshman, he played in 9 games, with 13 tackles and 2 pass breakups. His PFF grade this season was a solid one 76.4, and his Coverage grade was an even more impressive 78.8.

Marshall has already taken Official Visits to West Virginia and Tennessee, but it’s likely NC State is the last one. I expect that he wants to make a decision in the next couple of days, so he can begin classes at his new school next week. With NC State getting the last visit, and considering the timing, I believe the Wolfpack are in a great position to land Marshall. If Marshall is a member of the Wolfpack in 2024, I expect him to compete with Cisse and Coley Jr. for one of the starting jobs. He has 2 years of eligibility remaining.

The Wolfpack also returns Rente Hinton (6’3″/212), who was a JUCO transfer in NC State’s 2023 recruiting class. ON3 ranked him as the #36 overall Junior College prospect in the 2023 recruiting class, and the #7 Cornerback. It was a rough first year in Raleigh for Hinton, posting a PFF Grade of 46.0, which was the lowest grade by a player on the Wolfpack defense with 100+ snaps (101 snaps). He has 2 years of eligibility remaining.

Jackson Vick (6’0″/182) will be a Redshirt Sophomore for NC State next season. He was listed as the 3rd string Cornerback on the Wolfpack’s Depth Chart for the Pop-Tarts Bowl. Vick only played 3 snaps on defense this season (against VMI), and the rest of his snaps were on Special Teams.

Isaiah Crowell (5’11″/182) was listed as the 3rd string Nickel in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. Tamarcus Cooley, who transferred in from Maryland, told me that he is expecting to play Nickel next season.

As we saw with Cisse this season, NC State is willing to play True Freshman in the secondary. The Wolfpack are bringing in some talented Freshman Defensive Backs in 4-Star Ronnie Royal III, 4-Star Asaad Brown and 3-Star Jivan Baly. Brown and Baly were listed as Cornerbacks in most recruiting databases, while Royal was listed as an Athlete or as a Safety, but I think Royal could play Corner if needed.

I would expect for NC State to try to go get some more help at the Cornerback position in the Portal if possible.

As things currently stand, I would expect Cisse and Coley Jr. to be the most likely players currently on the roster to vie for the starting spots, and if Marshall ends up committing, throw him in the battle with the two of them.