The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1190316
58 ■ THE WOLFPACKER DEFENSIVE END ART NORMAN (2011-14) A few weeks before signing day in 2010, Norman was a 6-1, 225-pounder looking at Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) offers. Former Pack cornerbacks coach Mike Reed ran into Norman while visiting Chamblee High in Stone Mountain, Ga., and Norman persuaded him to look at his senior film. NC State took a chance on Norman, and it paid off. He finished his career fourth all time in sacks (23.5) and tied for 11th in tackles for loss (36.5) in school history. DEFENSIVE TACKLE B.J. HILL (2014-17) Hill showed up at NC State's summer camp in June 2013 with just an East Caro- lina offer to his credit, but the 260-pounder, who missed essentially his entire junior season of high school with an injury, im- pressed Wolfpack coaches enough to give him a scholarship that afternoon. After enrolling early, Hill blossomed into a 300-pound specimen who started 44 games and became a third-round draft choice of the New York Giants in 2018. He finished his Wolfpack career with 23.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks. DEFENSIVE TACKLE JUSTIN JONES (2014-17) The four-star signee lived up to his hype, starting three years for the Wolfpack and finishing his career with 22.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks while playing alongside Hill. Together, Hill and Jones led the way on a defensive line that was one of the hardest to run against in school history. In 2016, NCSU finished eighth in the country in rushing yards allowed per game, and it ranked 26th in 2017. Jones was selected by the Chargers in the third round of the 2018 draft, 15 picks after Hill. LINEBACKER TERRELL MANNING (2009-11) Manning was considered by some to be the top recruit in the state of North Carolina coming out of Scotland High in Laurin- burg, but a major knee injury during his senior year forced him to redshirt in 2008. Manning began to reach his potential dur- ing his sophomore season in 2010. He had 75 tackles, including 10.5 for loss and 4.5 sacks, that year. In 2011, he was named BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYERS FROM 2010-19 DEFENSIVE END BRADLEY CHUBB (2014-17) Arguably the greatest defensive player to ever suit up for the Wolfpack, Chubb won the Bronko Nagurski Award in 2017 as the nation's top college defender. He was also the 2017 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, and finished his career with 60 tackles for loss and 26 sacks, both of which are tops in school history. Chubb was selected with the fifth overall pick in the first round by the Denver Broncos and in 2018 broke the franchise's record for sacks by a rookie, with 12, just 2.5 shy of the NFL's all-time mark. FILE PHOTO [ ] T E A M OF THE DECADE FOOTBALL'S BY MATT CARTER LINEBACKER NATE IRVING (2007-10) Technically, Irving only played one year in this decade, but his one campaign in 2010 was good enough to justify his inclusion on the team. He had 92 tackles that season, including an impressive 20.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks. His eight tackles for loss against Wake Forest remain a college foot- ball record. Sports Illustrated named him a first-team All-American, while he was a second-team choice by Walter Camp and a third-team pick by the Associated Press. The season was even more remarkable than the raw numbers, coming after he missed the 2009 season while recovering from a near-fatal car accident. Irving was picked in the third round by the Denver Broncos, where he played four seasons. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN