The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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8 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER T o close out its 2021 recruiting class, NC State football is turning to the NCAA's transfer portal to find older players that can fill in some of the gaps on the roster. On Nov. 18, McNeese State graduate trans- fer cornerback Darion Dunn announced he was going to be a Wolfpacker. Dunn revealed in September that he was entering the transfer portal, following the Football Championship Subdivision's (FCS) decision to postpone its football season until the spring. The 6-1, 192-pounder from Oakdale, La., also competed in track for McNeese State, and set a Southland Conference record in the 60-meter indoor hurdles while winning the event at the conference meet in 2020 with a time of 7.89 seconds. In football, Dunn was a preseason FCS All-American this fall after earning first- team all-conference honors in 2019, when he compiled 42 tackles, five interceptions and 11 passes broken up. Prior to the fall, Dunn was put on the watch list for the 2021 Reese's Senior Bowl, a post- season college all-star game which offers players a chance to showcase their talents for NFL scouts. In addition to Dunn, NC State is targeting Northern Iowa defensive back transfer Xavior Williams, a 5-11, 190-pounder and three-year starting safety. Williams earned FCS Freshman All-America honors from Phil Steele and HERO in 2017, when he reeled in an interception in each of the final four games of the season. In 2018, Williams once again had four interceptions along with 42 tackles en route to earning first- team All-Missouri Valley Confer- ence honors. He tallied 50 stops, two fumble recoveries and a pick in his final season with UNI in 2019. "They could see me coming in and competing for a spot right away," Williams said. "They want some lead- ership, an older guy to come in and just kind of help out." Along the offensive line, NC State landed Fairmont State graduate transfer Chandler Za- vala — a 6-5, 325-pound guard from Wood- bridge, Va. — on Dec. 2. Zavala was an honorable mention All- American in 2018 for Fairmont State, a Divi- sion II school in Fairmont, W.Va., and he was a two-time first-team all-conference and an all-region selection. He was the first offensive lineman for Fairmont State to be named an All-American since 1994. In 2019, the he helped Fairmont State rush for 231.8 yards per game while allowing only 19 sacks. The year before — Zavala's first season starting — the program had its first 1,000-yard rusher in 11 years and allowed only eight sacks. The Pack is additionally targeting An- thony Belton, a 6-6, 315-pound offensive tackle and native of Midway, Fla., who is now playing at Georgia Military College. In September, Belton committed to TCU over offers from South Carolina, West Vir- ginia and Houston, among others. He decided to decommit in November, shortly after NC State offered. Syracuse has also recently joined the chase. JCGridiron.com had named Belton to its preseason All-America first team before their season was postponed to the spring, and Bel- ton is a likely spring enrollee with three years of eligibility remaining. One more name on the transfer board is Garner, N.C., native and Old Dominion de- fensive lineman Keion White. The 6-4, 265-pounder moved from tight end to defensive end before the 2019 season, his redshirt sophomore campaign, and was named second-team All- Conference USA after tying the program record with 19 tackles for loss and sharing the team lead with 3.5 sacks. His tackles for loss tally tied for 10th nationally that year. White decided to transfer after Old Dominion declined to play football this fall due to the CO- VID-19 pandemic, making them one of the few FBS programs not to participate this season. Because the NCAA froze eligibility this fall, White would have two seasons remaining. The Wolfpack is also expected to sign 19 high school commit- ments on Dec. 16, the first day of the NCAA's early signing period. ■ T R A C K I N G THE PACK NC State Football Seeking Older Players In Recruiting Incoming graduate transfer cornerback Darion Dunn was named a preseason All-American for McNeese State, but when the Football Champi- onship Subdivision postponed its season to the spring, he entered the transfer portal. PHOTO COURTESY MCNEESE STATE ■ Class Of 2021 Commitments Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown (High School/Last School) Jakolbe Baldwin WR 6-1 175 Rockingham, N.C. (Richmond Senior) Sean Brown S 6-1 190 Charlotte, N.C. (Hough) Lyndon Cooper OL 6-3 315 Carrollton, Ga. (Carrollton) Micah Crowell WR 6-2 205 Kernersville, N.C. (East Forsyth) Jaleel Davis OL 6-5 300 Rockingham, N.C. (Richmond Senior) Darion Dunn* CB 6-1 192 Oakdale, La. (McNeese State) Nate Evans CB 6-1 175 Virginia Beach, Va. (Cox) Caden Fordham LB 6-1 205 Jacksonville, Fla. (Bolles) Thornton Gentry OL 6-5 290 Chapin, S.C. (Chapin) Julian Gray WR 5-11 175 Huntersville, N.C. (Hopewell) Chase Hattley S 6-3 205 Cary, N.C. (Panther Creek) Mario Love Jr. CB 5-9 170 Cornelius, N.C. (Hough) Aaron McLaughlin QB 6-5 220 Alpharetta, Ga. (Denmark) Jordan Poole LB 6-0 215 Oakboro, N.C. (West Stanly) Travali Price DL 6-4 260 Lincolnton, N.C. (North Lincoln) Zyun Reeves DE 6-7 265 Kernersville, N.C. (East Forsyth) Cedric Seabrough TE 6-4 215 Swainsboro, Ga. (Swainsboro) Fredrick Seabrough TE 6-4 215 Swainsboro, Ga. (Swainsboro) Demie Sumo RB 6-0 200 Willingboro, N.J. (Willingboro) Jayden Tate DT 5-11 250 Lincolnton, N.C. (North Lincoln) Chandler Zavala* OL 6-5 325 Woodbridge, Va. (Fairmont State) * Graduate transfer