The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1249704
MAY/JUNE 2020 ■ 49 LARRELL MURCHISON Football Larrell Murchison took a winding path to NC State, but it turned out to be the per- fect fit for the Elizabethtown, N.C., native. Despite three years as a starter at East Bladen High School, the big man had to make a stop at Louisburg (N.C.) Junior College before winding up in Raleigh. Though he played well enough at his first collegiate stop to be named an honorable mention National Junior College Athletic Association All-American, he had to redshirt his first year with the Wolfpack, once noting: "My stance was so bad when I first got here, and I didn't know what I was doing. It was so bad." That quickly changed after a year of refinement. He started every game of the 2018 season at defensive tackle and was not only named the team's Most Improved Player, but also its top defensive lineman. Despite the switch to a 3-3-5 alignment and breaking his fingers during fall camp, Murchison was even better this fall — going from 34 tackles, eight tackles for loss and four sacks to 48, 12 and seven, respectively. Those numbers earned the 6-2, 297-pounder second-team All-ACC honors and put him squarely on the NFL's radar. After being selected in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, with the 174th overall pick by the Tennessee Titans, Murchison has seemingly found another perfect fit, all the way down to his preferred celebration of strumming an air guitar after making a play. "He's going to help the Titans win football games," former NC State defensive line coach Kevin Patrick told MusicCityMiracles.com after the draft. "He couldn't have landed in a better spot. He couldn't have landed with a better defensive line coach. It's a perfect fit. Even his celebration screams Nashville to me." — Ryan Tice/Photo by Ken Martin wolfpacker spotlight