The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545830
TRACKING THE PACK 14 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY NOAH FLEISCHMAN Three years ago, quarterback MJ Mor- ris walked into Dave Doeren's office in early November and asked to sit out the rest of the season. Due to Devin Leary's injury, Mor- ris hadn't had a chance to redshirt as a true freshman in 2022, appearing in five games. When Virginia transfer Brennan Armstrong arrived in Raleigh ahead of the 2023 season, the plan was to start the veteran and let Morris use the redshirt he had been forced to forgo the year before. But when NC State got off to a 3-2 start, Doeren found himself looking for a spark and promoted Morris to the starting job. The Carrollton, Ga., native went 3-1 as the starter, including wins over Clemson and Miami, but elected to shut himself down after his fourth game to preserve a year of eligibility. It was an unprec- edented move, one that appeared to be aimed at saving a season's worth of NIL earnings on the back end of his career. While Morris' example was an unusual case, there won't be any such drama moving forward because the four-game redshirt threshold has been scrapped as part of a major overhaul of the NCAA's eligibility rules. In June, college sports' governing body approved a new age- based eligibility model that allows ath- letes in all sports to play five seasons in five years. Redshirts, both developmental and medical, are gone. So are waivers to extend one's clock. Doeren publicly advocated for the rule change last September, and he welcomed its recent passage. "I'm happy it happened," he said. "It's good to see something positive happen in the sport." In NC State's case, 19 football players stand to benefit from the added year of eligibility. Most notably, junior quarter- back CJ Bailey, sophomore quarterback Will Wilson and senior linebacker Popo Aguirre all have the option for a fifth year that they wouldn't have had before the rule change passed. While the Wolfpack has the chance to hold onto some of its critical players for a season longer than the program might have expected going into this year's ros- ter-building process, the biggest impact of the new eligibility rules appears to be within the special teams unit. In the past, special teams coordinator Todd Goeb- bel had to balance how many games he used freshmen or sophomores that were looking to redshirt on his kicking units. It led to a revolving door at certain spots, with the staff looking to keep each player at their four-game limit for as long as possible. Now, however, that math equation won't be needed since each player will use the same amount of eligibility in a year, whether they appear in one game or 12 in a given season. The same can be said for a blowout victory when the backups are inserted into a game to earn critical experience. "It helps a lot," Doeren said. "Say you're in Week 8 of the season and you've been able to play guys that were ready to play without thinking about how this impacts the next week, you're just playing the guys that are most capable of helping you win. … Any plays in the game are good for a freshman or a guy who hasn't played at all. I think it allows us to do what's best for the kids and for them to maximize their window of op- portunity." NC State prides itself on developing homegrown talent. Doeren is excited that he and his staff now can reward players who have proven themselves on the practice field by putting them in games without jeopardizing their eligi- bility status. At the same time, he's also happy that the four-game redshirt rule is disappear- ing since it can't be used as a negotiating tactic to extend players' careers. "They should be going to college for a lot of reasons, but one of them should be to play as fast as they can and get on that field," Doeren said. "When the oppor- tunity is presented for them to do that, sitting out shouldn't even be in consid- eration. I'm excited to be able to utilize the entire window that they're here." There won't be another Morris situ- ation, no matter how rare it may be. In- stead, Doeren and the rest of the college coaching community around the coun- try have a clear understanding of how to manage their rosters going forward. In a rare occurrence, it appears the NCAA made an adjustment that the coaches can get behind. "It's nice to see a rule change that helps coaches for once," Doeren said. "It's been a while." ■ Doeren has been a longstanding advocate of the new eligibility rules, noting that they will help with player development. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS Dave Doeren Applauds Changes To NCAA's Eligibility Model