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Thank God Payton Flipped His Commitment from UNC to NC State!

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Today is the last time NC State fans will have the opportunity to watch Linebacker Payton Wilson play football in Carter-Finley Stadium. It’s hard to imagine Wilson in any other jersey besides the Wolfpack’s Red & White, but he was awfully close to wearing UNC’s putrid baby Blue and White.

Wilson, out of Orange High School in Hillsborough, North Carolina, originally verbally committed to UNC on May 1st, 2017.

NC State’s coaching staff didn’t care that Wilson was verbally committed to UNC. They continued to pursue him.

Coach Dave Doeren shared the moment he thought they would flip Wilson’s commitment, was when then UNC Head Coach Larry Fedora flew a helicopter in to see Wilson’s game, while Doeren and then Defensive Coordinator Dave Huxtable drove up in a pickup truck playing country music.

Ultimately, Wilson decommitted from UNC on November 22nd, 2017.

Three days later, Wilson was at the NC State vs. UNC game in Carter-Finley Stadium, this time he was standing on the Wolfpack’s sideline.

Five days later, Wilson officially flipped his commitment, deciding to run with the Wolfpack instead of the Tar Heels.

On December 20th, Wilson made it official, signing with NC State.

Wilson was ranked as the #39 overall player nationally as a Senior in High School by 247Sports, making him one of the highest ranked recruits to ever commit to NC State.

NC State fans have to be eternally thankful that Wilson flipped his commitment from UNC to NC State. Over the past 5 years, he has cemented himself as one of the best defensive players in school history.

Career Tackle Leaders at NC State

1. Levar Fisher, 1998-01, 492
2. Dantonio Burnette, 1999-02, 476
3. Damien Covington, 1991-94, 457
4. Robert Abraham, 1978-81, 407
5. Earl Wolff, 2009-2012, 400
6. Payton Wilson, 2018-23, 387

Career Tackles for Loss Leaders at NC State

1. Bradley Chubb, 2014-17, 60
2. Mario Williams, 2003-05, 55.5
3. Drake Thomas, 2019-22, 46.5
4. Payton Wilson, 2018-23, 46.0

It’s surreal to think that 6 years ago almost to-the-date, Wilson had just decommitted from UNC, and was standing on NC State’s sideline, watching them beat the Tar Heels 33-21. Five days later, he would commit to NC State, and the rest is history.

The #11 should be honored or retired.

Thank you Payton!

 

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

Does the Addition of the UVA Series Equal the Elimination of NC State’s Series with App St.?

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Earlier this week it was announced that NC State and Virginia would play one another in a home-and-home series, with the Wolfpack hosting in 2025, and the Cavaliers hosting in 2026.

Prior to the announcement, NC State already had their non-conference slate booked for both of those seasons.

As a result of the addition of the Virginia series, a previously scheduled non-conference game from each season would need to be dropped. While it hasn’t been officially announced by the school, Joe Giglio and David Glenn seem to think that the series with Appalachian State is going to be dropped.

It would make the most sense, considering the Mountaineers were the only opponent the Wolfpack was scheduled to play in both 2025 and 2026. It would also make sense, considering the fact that ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips isn’t a fan of ACC teams playing Group of 5 schools on the road.

I will tell you this much. The Mountaineer faithful certainly believe NC State is dropping the series with App State, and it just takes a little scrolling on X (formerly Twitter) to get a read on their feelings on the situation.

This situation brings to mind the bill that has been proposed in the North Carolina House of Representatives that would force NC State and UNC to play App St., ECU and UNC Charlotte in Football, Men’s Basketball and Women’s Basketball.

If the addition of UVA means the elimination of App St. on NC State’s schedule, what are your thoughts? Share in the comments.

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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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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 vs. Tennessee Kickoff Time & TV Network Revealed

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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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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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