The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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MARCH 2020 ■ 29 Carter Jr. from Butler High in Matthews, N.C., joined Lane, Hill and three-star Pat- rick Matan from Chevy Chase (Md.) Gon- zaga Catholic. Carter was a Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas All-Star Game selection and an all-state choice. Rivals.com ranks Carter the No. 26 player in North Carolina. "You really love adding a big body like his, especially late in the process," Friedman noted. "Carter is touching 6-5 almost and about 300 pounds. He's got a great, long frame. He's somebody you can play on either side of the line or on the interior as a guard. "He's got great length and as long as he buys into the system he is somebody that you could see down the road being an impact player on that offensive line for NC State." Deep In-State Class In 2021 In a sign of how deep the talent pool in North Carolina's junior class runs, unof- ficially NC State has already offered 41 in-state prospects in the 2021 class, a num- ber that is sure to increase in the coming months. By comparison, the Wolfpack had scholarships out to just 27 different North Carolinians in the 2020 class. "It's really impressive," Friedman admit- ted of the rising seniors. "There's a lot of players in this class that have a lot of po- tential." The biggest name on the board belongs to running back Will Shipley, a four-star from Weddington High in Matthews, N.C., that rushed 188 times for 2,066 yards and 30 touchdowns as a junior while leading his team to a second straight state title. Both of Shipley's parents graduated from NC State, and he's visited Raleigh as much as anywhere thus far in the process. How- ever, Clemson and Notre Dame also loom large. "He's one of the top players in the class, just outside of five-star range and someone who could be a day-one starter at NC State," Friedman suggested. NC State, though, probably will have to go out of the state to land a big-name quar- terback, and it has its sights set on one-time Auburn commitment Aaron McLaughlin, a four-star from Denmark High in Alpharetta, Ga. As a junior, McLaughlin completed 134 of 220 passes for 2,018 yards with 17 touch- downs and seven picks while also rushing for 284 yards and nine scores in 10 games. The 6-5, 205-pounder is listed by Rivals. com as the No. 13 pro-style quarterback and No. 241 overall prospect nationally. ■ PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM 2 There were two four-star recruits in the Wolf- pack's 2020 class. When Davin Vann, a defensive lineman from Cary (N.C.) High, was awarded a fourth star in January, he and wide receiver Porter Rooks from Myers Park High in Charlotte combined to give head coach Dave Doeren his 22nd and 23rd four-star or better recruits since he began coaching the Pack in December 2013. That's a bit of a milestone. Doeren passes for- mer head coach Chuck Amato for the most sign- ings of four- or five-stars for the Wolfpack in the Rivals.com era (2002-present). Amato signed 22 such players from 2002 through his firing in the aftermath of the 2007 season. Tom O'Brien took over and added a four-star to that class, junior college defensive lineman Antoine Holmes. That would be the first of 14 four- or five-stars O'Brien inked from 2007- 13 before his dismissal. Minus-4 NC State ended up signing four recruits that initially committed to other schools, but also lost eight prospects that originally pledged to them before signing elsewhere for a net value of minus-four. The Wolfpack was able to land the following players who had been committed else- where: • Three-star defensive lineman NICK BOOKER-BROWN from Westfield High in Houston (Boise State) • Three-star defensive lineman Claude Larkins Jr. from Chaminade- Madonna in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Minnesota) • Three-star linebacker Jayland Parker from Westside High in Macon, Ga. (Colorado) • Three-star wide receiver Chris Scott from Dacula (Ga.) High (Eastern Kentucky) The following players ended up elsewhere after initially committing to NC State: • Three-star offensive lineman Jonathan Adorno (North Carolina) • Three-star offensive lineman Austin Blaske (Georgia) • Three-star wide receiver Stephen Gosnell (North Carolina) • Three-star cornerback Joseph Johnson (Penn State) • Three-star wide receiver Nate McCollum (Georgia Tech) • Two-star defensive lineman Pheldarius Payne (Nebraska) • Four-star cornerback Jahquez Robinson (Alabama) • Three-star defensive tackle Jaylen Smith (Oregon)