The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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18 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER N C State football recruiting continued its impressive stretch during the summer, adding five more touted in-state prospects to give it 21 overall pledges. As of Aug. 8, the Wolfpack's class was ranked No. 17 nation- ally by Rivals.com. Here are the newest NCSU commits: CORNERBACK SHYHEIM BATTLE Rocky Mount (N.C.) High Battle's plan had been to pick a college Dec. 15. That changed rather suddenly July 25 when he announced his verbal commitment to NC State over Clemson. He also had offers from Duke, LSU, North Carolina, Ohio State, Tennessee and Virginia Tech, among others. "NC State has been on me for a long time, and I sat down and realized where I really wanted to be," Battle said. "I knew where I was more of a need and not just going for the big name." As a junior, Battle made 31 tackles and broke up three passes. He also caught 17 passes for 361 yards and four scores on the offensive side of the ball. The 6-2, 170-pounder is rated by Rivals.com as a four-star talent, the No. 9 prospect in the state, and the No. 26 corner - back and No. 220 overall recruit nationally. "For his size at 173 pounds or so, you'd think he was a cover kid, but he's actually a tough, physical kid," said Rocky Mount head coach Jason Battle (no relation). "He does a good job filling the run, and he's a pretty good open field tackler." DEFENSIVE END TERRELL DAWKINS Concord (N.C.) Cox Mill The 6-4, 240-pound Dawkins announced his verbal commitment to NC State Aug. 2, the day before preseason camp began for the Wolfpack. It represented a fitting end to a big summer of recruiting. D a w k i n s h a d n a r ro w e d h i s choices to a powerhouse final five of NC State, Florida, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Tennessee. He visited all finalists except Notre Dame, and toured Ohio State on two occasions, but Cox Mill head coach Craig Stewart was not surprised by the outcome. "The NC Stat] coaches did a great job of recruiting him," he said. "They were there, they spoke with him, talked with him — but it wasn't overkill. He's a real quiet kid. I think a lot of people maybe did too much, sending him stuff over and over and over. "They sent him enough to show the interest, and I think they were upfront with him and told him what their thought process and expectations were, and what they would want him to do when he got up there. "That came across as really being genuine and wanting to help him." Dawkins had 59 tackles, nine sacks and an interception as a junior, and was named All-Region by The Indepen - dent Tribune. Rivals.com ranks him as a three-star prospect and the No. 44 player in the state. His father, Tommy Dawkins, played at Appalachian State and had a stint in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers. His older brother, Tommy Dawkins Jr., is a redshirt sophomore defensive end at Appalachian State. DEFENSIVE TACKLE JOSHUA HARRIS Roxboro (N.C.) Person Harris, a four-star prospect, is one of the more highly regarded 2019 pickups for NC State. Rivals.com ranks the 6-3, 320-pounder as the No. 4 recruit in North Carolina, and the No. 7 defensive tackle and No. 146 overall player nationally. Harris made his commitment to NC State July 9 as part of a 26-hour span in which NCSU landed three commits. He had narrowed his list to five schools: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia Tech, in addition to NC State. The final decision came down to the two in- state rivals. "It was very hard, but this is where I feel like I belong," Harris said. "They were my first offer. … I felt this is where I fit the best." Harris played primarily offensive line until last season when Person head coach David Kleine moved him to defense. His stock soared at that point. Kleine noted that in one day while he was teaching a class, he had five different coaches landing at Per - son County Airport, a group that included Ohio State's Urban Meyer, Georgia's Kirby Smart and Tennessee's Jeremy Pruitt. "Joshua has a great demeanor about him," Kleine said. "He's willing to be coached. He takes direction well. He wants to be better every day. "A lot of times, a player can rely on their athleticism, strength and size, and not work on skills. He tries to get better every day, and that's something that's very special." RUNNING BACK ZONOVAN KNIGHT Bailey (N.C.) Southern Nash Knight started the hat trick of sorts for NC State with his verbal commitment July 9, hours before Harris' an - nouncement. The 5-11, 175-pound Knight rushed 142 times for 1,877 yards and 27 touchdowns as a junior for a team that finished 12-2. He also ran on the 400- and 800-meter relay teams that reached the 3-A state championships. Wolfpack Football Adds Five More In-State Stars To Recruiting Class TRACKING THE PACK ■ NC State's Class Of 2019 Commitments Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown (High School) Shyheim Battle CB 6-2 170 Rocky Mount, N.C. (Rocky Mount) C.J. Clark DT 6-3 300 New London, N.C. (North Stanly) Terrell Dawkins DE 6-4 240 Concord, N.C. (Cox Mill) Ikem Ekwonu OL 6-4 290 Charlotte (Providence Day) Jalen Frazier DB 5-10 180 Cornelius, N.C. (Hough) Jamious Griffin RB 5-10 205 Rome, Ga. (Rome) Jakeen Harris DB 5-11 180 Savannah, Ga. (Benedictine Military School) Joshua Harris DT 6-3 320 Roxboro, N.C. (Person) Savion Jackson DE 6-3 260 Clayton, N.C. (Clayton) Zonovan Knight RB 5-11 175 Bailey, N.C. (Southern Nash) Keyon Lesane WR 6-0 185 Matthew, N.C. (Butler) Zovon Lindsay OL 6-4 270 Fayetteville, N.C. (Trinity Christian) Khalid Martin S 6-1 195 Kernersville, N.C. (East Forsyth) Timothy McKay OL 6-4 290 Raleigh (Wakefield) Dylan McMahon OL 6-3 270 Savannah, Ga. (Savannah Christian) Triston Miller OT 6-6 275 Charlotte (Country Day) Jaylon Scott LB 6-1 230 Shelby, N.C. (Shelby) Joe Shimko LS 6-0 210 Wall, N.J. (Wall) Drake Thomas LB 6-1 235 Wake Forest, N.C. (Heritage) Chris Toudle WR 6-3 215 Wilmington, N.C. (Hoggard) Kam Walker TE 6-5 235 Canton, N.C. (Pisgah) NC State's 2019 class includes four Rivals250 commits, including cornerback Shyheim Bat- tle of Rocky Mount (N.C.) High. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN