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Pack in the Pros

4 Former NC State Players Taken in XFL Draft

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5 years ago

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4 former NC State football players were taken in the XFL Draft the past two days.

Cornerback Jack Tocho was taken in the first round of the Secondary phase by the Los Angeles Wildcats.

Tocho is a well put together cornerback who carries a notable presence on the boundary. With good awareness and route recognition skills, Tocho will meet the requirements of an outside cornerback in the XFL and provide the Wildcats with a heady defender and a reliable tackler out on the edge. Tocho doesn’t necessarily possess top end explosiveness or short area agility, but his anticipation and technique will help him continue to be a plus starter at the XFL level while providing no shortage of plays on the football. He may need a bit of help in turn and run coverage over the top, but Tocho’s work in zone should have Wildcats fans excited about seeing him keying opposing quarterbacks in the backfield. (XFL)

Tocho was drafted by the Vikings in the 7th round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and played 1 year in the league. He spent the 2018 season on the Redskins Practice Squad, and played for the AAF in 2019 before it shut down.

Former All-ACC Offensive Guard Tony Adams was taken by the Tampa Bay Vipers in the 7th Round of the Offensive Line phase.

An impressive NC State product in the 2018 NFL Draft, they don’t come much stronger than Tony Adams. At the Shrine Game, Adams impressed with his ability to uproot interior defenders in the running game and stonewall their bull-rushes as a pass protector. Primarily a guard prospect who also spent time at center, Adams had NFL-caliber traits that the Jaguars took a long look at following the 2018 NFL Draft: his foot quickness, hand power, and core strength all illustrate that of a Day 1 starter at guard for the Vipers, who will likely make a killing running right through the holes Jones bulldozes open. (XFL)

Adams went undrafted in 2018, but was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars, and ultimately finished the year on the Patriots Practice Squad.

Cornerback Mike Stevens will be teammates with Tocho once again, being drafted by the Wildcats in the 9th round of the Secondary phase.

Former Offensive Guard Terronne Prescod was taken by the DC Defenders in the Open phase.

The XFL season will start in February after the NFL Super Bowl.

 

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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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Pack in the Pros

Former NC State Punter Trenton Gill Signs with Denver

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2 days ago

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May 16, 2024

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Former NC State Punter Trenton Gill has signed with the Denver Broncos after he was released by the Bears this offseason.

Gill was drafted by Chicago in the 7th round of the 2022 NFL Draft, and has averaged 46.1 yards per punt through his first two NFL seasons.

Heading into the 2024 season, Gill will compete with Riley Dixon for the starting Punter job. Dixon was the Broncos’ starter in 2023, averaging 46.3 yards per punt.

Gill’s career average of 45.8 yards per punt in college is the best in NC State history. In 2019, Gill averaged 47.6 yards per punt, which led the ACC, and earned him a spot on the All-ACC Third Team. In 2021, he was on the All-ACC 1st Team. All 3 of his seasons as NC State’s Punter rank in the Top-6 in school history for best punting average in a single season.

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Former NC State G Lorenzo Brown Named to All-EuroLeague 2nd Team

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4 days ago

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May 14, 2024

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Former NC State Guard Lorenzo Brown was named to the All-EuroLeague 2nd Team.

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Lorenzo Brown, Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv

After injuries sapped Lorenzo Brown of his best form during the regular season, the Maccabi playmaker snapped back to health just in time and, as one of the stars of the postseason, has been recognized by the voters his second consecutive All-EuroLeague Team selection. Brown was the MVP of the Play-In Showdown after he erupted for 29 points on 7-for-8 three-point shooting – both Maccabi postseason records – plus 5 assists against Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz to send Maccabi to the playoffs. He then led the Israeli champs with 17.2 points and 5.8 assists for a PIR of 19.2 in the five-game series against Panathinaikos. Brown ranked third in scoring for the playoffs, with 17.2 points per game, and was third for the full season in assists with 6.1. (Link)

This is the 2nd time that Brown has earned All-EuroLeague status, earning 1st Team honors in 2022-23.

Brown plays for Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv in Israel, and this was his 2nd season with the squad.

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NC State is Tied for the 2nd Most Defensive Tackles in the NFL

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1 week ago

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May 9, 2024

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ProFootballFocus released this infographic this week, revealing which College Football Teams had the most Defensive Tackles on NFL rosters, and NC State was tied for 2nd with 7.

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Defensive Tackles on NFL Rosters who Played at NC State

B.J. Hill – Bengals (2018-23) – Career Stats: 285 Tackles, 22 TFL’s and 20.5 Sacks
Justin Jones – Cardinals (2018-23) – Career Stats: 219 Tackles, 34 TFL’s and 12 Sacks
Alim McNeil – Lions (2021-23) – Career Stats: 112 Tackles, 15 TFL’s and 8 Sacks
Kentavius Street – Falcons (2019-23) – Career Stats: 89 Tackles, 17 TFL’s and 7.5 Sacks
T.Y. McGill – 49ers (2015-23) – Career Stats: 45 Tackles, 10 TFL’s and 5.5 Sacks
Larrell Murchison – Rams (2020-23) – Career Stats: 37 Tackles, 5 TFL’s and 2 Sacks
Cory Durden – Rams (2023) – Career Stats: 3 Tackles

All 7 of the above players played regular season games for an NFL team in 2023. We will have to see how many of the 7 make 53-man rosters this Fall.

Junior Wolfpack Nose Tackle Brandon Cleveland tweeted with confidence that he will be #8 sometime soon.

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Mike Tomlin’s Thoughts on the Steelers Drafting NC State’s Payton Wilson

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3 weeks ago

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April 29, 2024

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Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin was ecstatic that NC State Linebacker Payton Wilson was available for Pittsburgh to pick up with the 98th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft.

“We had to get comfortable with his medical and we brought him in on a pre draft visit. We allowed our medical experts to really get a good evaluation of him. We talked to him about his injury history. We were at a place of comfort. And so from that perspective, man, we’re really excited about having him.” (Link)

“Man, we’re really excited about Peyton. When we turn his tape on, we see him making all the type of plays you need linebackers to make. He’s a volume tackle player. He makes plays in the passing game from a coverage perspective via interception and pass breakup. He gets after the quarterback in the blitz game. He’s got a very well-rounded skillset. He’s a fluid mover. He can run. Had an opportunity to lay some real up close eyes on him down there in Mobile at the Senior Bowl, we’re thankful we had an opportunity to get him. He’s got all the hardware that comes with some of those things that I described being a Butkus Award winner and so forth. We had to get comfortable with his medical and we brought him in on a pre draft visit. We allowed Our medical experts to really get a good evaluation of him. We talked to him about his injury history. We were at a place of comfort. And so from that perspective, man, we’re really excited about having him.” (Link)

“I think you could characterize it as surprised. I mean, he is an award-winning linebacker, Butkus Award winner. Had an opportunity to get really familiar with him down in Mobile as well. But the linebackers themselves weren’t coming off the board at that juncture. So sometimes they make runs on positions at different times and it hadn’t been a lot of linebackers to that point. I think what he was number five or so.” (Link)

“We’re really excited about Payton. When we turn his tape on, we see him making all the types of plays you need linebackers to make. He’s a volume tackle player. He makes plays in the passing game from a coverage perspective via interception and pass breakup. He gets after the quarterback in the blitz game. He’s got a very well-rounded skill set. He’s a fluid mover. We had to get comfortable with his medical, and we were. We brought him in on a pre-draft visit to allow our medical experts to really get a good evaluation of him. We talked to him about his injury history. We were at a place of comfort, and so from that perspective, we’re really excited about having him.” (Link)

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