The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1318516
44 ■ THE WOLFPACKER When Angeline's name popped up in the transfer portal, NC State immediately took notice. "We recruited Cary in high school," head coach Dave Doeren noted. Angeline recalled it, too, and specifi- cally noted he had a good relationship with former Wolfpack tight ends coach Eddie Faulkner. At NC State, any time a player of note appears in the transfer portal, the recruit- ing staff will notify the position coach. It did not take long for Angeline's name to be elevated to Doeren's desk. "Eddie came to me right away and said, 'You remember Cary?'" Doeren said. "And I did. We reached out to him immediately because we had a prior relationship with him. We knew he was from the East Coast and was obviously a long ways from home. "We felt like getting somebody like him in our offense would be a perfect fit for what we wanted to have. It just came down to recruiting him. He had Boston College. He had Syracuse. There was some East Coast competition for him." Yet NC State being proactive stood out to Angeline. "After you transfer you know what you are looking for," Angeline noted. "Coach Doeren, I think he was the first school or first coach to reach out to me after I trans- ferred, and it definitely meant a lot to me. Having a coach reach out kind of shows that they still believed in me." A former four-star recruit leaving a pres- tigious brand-name program like Southern Cal can make headlines, and expectations were immediately high for Angeline when he arrived at NC State. The young tight end, though, had differ- ent thoughts about it. For one, he was going to have to sit out the first two games of the 2018 season before he could play. That meant he did not get a lot of reps outside of scout team work early in the fall. "I was a redshirt sophomore playing with a very experienced team and a very good team," Angeline added. "I know people probably had huge expectations for me, but whatever the team needed me [to do] was my goal. "That first year was very good for me just being around [quarterback] Ryan Finley and [wideout] Jakobi Meyers, guys like that." Year two with the Wolfpack saw Angeline gain his full comfort level. The transition to Raleigh was an easy one for him, because the city reminded him more of his home- town. More importantly, now the offense was coming more natural. "Last year was when things started click- ing, I started getting in better rhythm," An- geline explained. Angeline finished 2019 with 25 recep- tions for 369 yards and five touchdowns, within shouting distance of Jaylen Samuels' school record of seven scoring catches in a season by a tight end. Angeline was named honorable mention All-ACC at the end of the campaign. Through 11 games in 2020, Angeline had 27 catches for 412 yards and six scores. In his mind, the ability to be a sure- handed, red-zone threat comes from being a former two-sport star. When it comes to the end zone, it's a matter of just getting open, like you do on a basketball court, Ange- line noted. Only Samuels (20) and George Bryan (17) among former Pack tight ends have more career scoring receptions than Angeline's 12. "[Offensive coordinator] Coach [Tim] Beck and the quarterbacks just believe in me in the red zone," Angeline said. "It's definitely been nice." This offseason was not an easy one for seniors like Angeline. He admitted there was a point where he wondered if they were even going to play. He tried his best during the lockdown to stay in shape and get game- ready, catching passes back home with for- mer high school teammate Kyle Lauletta, who is now a quarterback on the Cleveland Browns' practice squad. Having the opportunity to play football for a full regular season in Raleigh was not unappreciated. Things like the postgame chat with his father and brother about the contest, analyzing and breaking down what went down, mean even more now to the soft-spoken Angeline. "During that COVID lockdown when we couldn't be here, just being away from the football facilities, gives you a different perspective and appreciation of things," he said. ■ Angeline finished the 2020 regular season tied for the team lead with six touchdown catches. Through Dec. 5, his six scoring grabs were the fourth most by a tight end nationally and were tied for 30th overall. PHOTO BY ETHAN HYMAN, THE NEWS & OBSERVER/COURTESY ACC MEDIA