ESPN’s David Hale Ranks NC State’s LB’s 3rd in the ACC

ESPN’s David Hale is rolling out his Preseason ACC Position Rankings, and he ranks NC State’s Linebackers 3rd in the ACC.

For perspective, looking back at 2023, Hale ranked NC State’s Linebackers 1st in the conference.

Notes from Hale’s Thread:

-PFF’s top graded returning ACC LBs Ahmad Walker, SMU Teddye Buchanan, Cal Branson Combs, Wake Jahsiah Galvan, Stan Liam Johnson, Cal Power Echols, UNC DJ Lundy, FSU Kobe Wilson, SMU Dylan Hazen, Wake Kiko Mauigoa, Mia Kam Robinson, UVA Barrett Carter, Clem Marlowe Wax, Cuse Sam Brumfield, VT TJ Quinn, Lou

-Payton Wilson recorded a run stuff (tackle at/behind LoS) on nearly 10% of the designed runs he was on the field for. That’s an insane number — double the No. 9 player in the ACC in that stat. NC State LBs recorded a run stuff on 18.5% of designed runs faced — 5 percentage points better than any other ACC team (Miami). Sean Brown may be a hell of a player but filling Wilson’s role is an impossible task.

-NC State LBs have racked up 194 TFL and 66.5 sacks since Tony Gibson arrived as DC in 2019. In the 5 years before that they had 91.5 TFL and 19 sacks. The man is a genius as a DC.

-Per @ESPN_BillC, no ACC team returns a higher % of its LB snaps in 2024 than Virginia (86.6%) and none fewer than NC State (42.2%). Georgia Tech also returns just a shade over 42% but that might be a good thing.