Many would argue that the recent offseason was the most thrilling time to be an N.C. State football fan in ages. The team’s NIL efforts successfully rallied fan support for funding, leading to the addition of several top players from the transfer portal.
Nc State successfully signed Grayson McCall, one of the most sought-after transfer quarterbacks, along with other notable players like Noah Rogers from Ohio State, Jordan Waters from Duke, and Justin Joly from Connecticut. They also retained key players KC Concepcion and Aydan White, who would have commanded high salaries elsewhere. On paper, the team looked strong, and expectations shot up. Head coach Dave Doeren, entering his 12th season, was confident enough to speak highly of the team’s prospects. At the ACC preseason media days, State was selected to finish fourth among a competitive group that included Florida State, Clemson, and Miami—teams seen as contenders.
However, the Wolfpack’s season quickly turned disappointing, culminating in a 29-19 loss to Duke at Carter-Finley Stadium. While there was still a faint hope of redemption with the possibility of a strong finish, that hope has now faded. Looking ahead, State is likely to be the underdog in their remaining games against Georgia Tech and North Carolina, and even winning one of those would offer little comfort.
So where did it all go wrong? It started right from the beginning when lofty expectations were built on the supposed “success” found in the transfer portal. This N.C. State season should serve as a cautionary tale for fans everywhere: recruiting from the portal has become essential, but it comes with no guarantees. There’s no way to know how a player who thrived elsewhere will perform in a new setting, especially against tougher competition. Similarly, it’s uncertain whether a highly-touted recruit will live up to expectations after transferring.
Most importantly, there’s no assurance that all these new players will mesh well together, forming a cohesive team instead of a disjointed collection of talents. This is something that many State fans can probably relate to. In college football today, outside of the most elite programs, the idea of a stable “program” is becoming outdated. The focus has shifted to assembling the best team on a year-by-year basis, which can be frustrating and maddening. It can also be exhilarating when all the roster changes work out perfectly, as we’ve seen at some programs like Indiana and Miami this season.
A lot of the time, though, it’s just going to be frustrating and confounding. The worst part for fans is that NIL collectives are never going to be satisfied. Major college athletics operate like pro sports now, but unlike in pro sports, there’s little accountability regarding how the money is spent and who benefits. In professional sports, it’s clear which underperforming players are overpaid; in college, that clarity is lacking.
Yes, we know that coaches in college athletics, particularly in football, are overpaid, and that coaching staffs are excessively large. We also know that athletic directors and various levels of their staff have been profiting from the influx of lucrative television deals that have enriched college sports. But when it comes to players, who really knows? Those in charge of the collectives continue to demand more, and fans—bless them—keep giving. It raises a fair question: why?
Major financial contributors to college sports aren’t foolish. They must realize by now that there are far better investments than funding NIL payments for players who may or may not succeed. State is a prime example of this reality. How much money did State raise last offseason for football NIL? It might not compare to the sums brought in by Georgia, Ohio State, or Texas, but it was likely still a respectable amount. What has been the payoff for the Wolfpack? Losing to Tennessee and Clemson is one thing, as they have more resources and financially invested fans, but losing at home to teams like Syracuse, Wake Forest, and Duke raises serious concerns.
This isn’t a knock of any of those schools, but it’s safe to say State fans are more passionate about football than any of them. When it comes to NIL payments, we don’t know how much was raised, exactly, or how it was distributed. And maybe that’s OK, if and when the results are there. But the results haven’t been there for the Wolfpack this season. The donations were there.
The alleged “success” in recruiting the portal was there. The fans did their part, and the reward is a 5-5 record, with home losses to those aforementioned programs that did not enter the season with expectations anywhere close to those that surrounded State. Maybe those expectations were unfounded and maybe they weren’t. What’s clear, though, is that fans will be asked, again, to pony up. Why anyone would, after this season, is a mystery.
ONE BIG THING The Wolfpack’s pain is Duke’s gain. There was a lot of woe-is-me surrounding State and its disappointed fans on Saturday but, remember, Wolfpackers: State just did beat Duke twice in that other sport last March, amid a pretty memorable run. As for Duke football, Manny Diaz continues an excellent debut season. While State was picked to finish fourth in the preseason, Duke was picked to finish 11th. Instead, nine wins is within reach.
Heartbreak for Wolfpack: Promising Recruit Flips to Michigan, Leaving NC State’s Class Shaken
NC State football head coach Dave Doeren and his staff received a verbal commitment from a senior wide receiver at Santaluces Community High School (Fla.) in early June. However, during a late September visit to Michigan, the 6-foot-4, 205-pound three-star hinted that his commitment was not entirely firm after receiving an offer from the Wolverines.
On Friday, he officially announced his commitment to Michigan, as reported by On3’s Hayes Fawcett. He is currently ranked No. 800 nationally, No. 120 among wide receivers, and No. 105 in Florida in the 247Sports 2025 Composite.
Besides another four-star recruit from Forest Hills High School in North Carolina, he was NC State’s top wide receiver commit for the 2025 class, ranking No. 10 among all of the Wolfpack’s pledges this recruiting cycle.
With this decommitment, NC State’s class, now at 18 commits, dropped three spots to No. 46 nationally and is currently ranked No. 10 in the ACC.
However, the Wolfpack could be in line for a new commitment following their home game against Duke on Saturday. Over a dozen recruits, including several highly-rated high school seniors, are scheduled to attend the game at Carter-Finley Stadium. The player who flipped his commitment is Jamar Browder.
Big NC State Football Target Decommits From Another ACC Team
The NC State football staff appears to be trending for one of its recent visitors.
The 2025 NC State football recruiting class, currently ranked No. 46 in the nation with 18 recruits, could really use a boost after three-star wide receiver Jamar Browder from Santaluces Community High School in Florida decommitted and chose Michigan instead. That much-needed lift might come from 300-pound defensive lineman Josiah Victor from Grayson High School in Georgia.
Earlier this month, the 6-foot-2 Victor visited Raleigh to watch Dave Doeren’s Wolfpack in action, just as they secured a 59-28 victory over Stanford at Carter-Finley Stadium. This official visit signaled that the three-star prospect might be ready to decommit from his June commitment to Boston College.
And sure enough, Victor made that decommitment official on Sunday with a letter addressed to the Boston College coaches, announcing his plans.
Although the 247Sports Crystal Ball remains empty for Victor’s recruitment, the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine now gives the NC State football coaches a 93.3 percent chance of coming out on top.
Josiah Victor checks in at No. 175 among defensive linemen and No. 169 in Georgia on the 247Sports 2025 Composite.
For now, the 2025 Wolfpack class includes only one listed defensive lineman in American Heritage School (Fla.) three-star Omarian Abraham, a 6-foot-2, 295-pounder stacking up 21 spots above Victor at their position in the cycle.
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