The Wolfpacker

July 2015

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

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16 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK The summer is always busy on the football recruiting trail, and by the end of June NC State had added five verbal commitments to its class of 2016 to bring the total number of pledges to 11. The first to commit was three-star offensive tackle Justin Witt from New Lenox (Ill.) Lin- coln-Way West High. Rivals.com rates the 6-6, 265-pounder as the No. 23 rising senior from the state of Illinois, and he also possessed power conference offers from California, Iowa State, Kentucky, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Syracuse. Witt made his verbal commitment May 18, the Monday after his weekend unofficial visit to NC State. He was recruited to NCSU by of- fensive line coach Mike Uremovich, a fellow Illinois native. "They were telling me how there were a lot of connections from Illinois. Two of the coaches at NC State are from Illinois. It helps that they have a connection there, and they were telling me how they have a family environment there," Witt said, also referring to receivers coach George McDonald. The next to commit was two-star linebacker Garrett Hooker from Thomasville (N.C.) Led- ford High. Hooker had reported an earlier offer from North Carolina. He showed up at NC State's summer camp June 11 at 6-1½, 227 pounds and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.78 seconds. He was about 15 pounds lighter and two-tenths of a second faster than his measurements a year ago. Hooker also reg- istered a 4.33-second shuttle time and nine-foot, six-inch standing broad jump. That led to an offer from NC State, and four days later Hooker was back on State's campus to commit. "I had already been there a couple of times on unofficial visits, and every time I go it feels like home," Hooker noted. "Everybody is so nice. It feels like family down there. With the guys that they are getting, it's going to be something special, and I wanted to be a part of it." As a junior at Ledford, Hooker piled up 207 tackles, including 64 solo hits, four for loss and a sack. He also had three quarterback hurries, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a blocked field goal. NC State safeties coach and co-special teams coordinator Clay- ton White recruited Hooker for the Pack. Three-star tight end Dylan Autenrieth from Dallas (Ga.) North Paulding High committed to NC State three days after Hooker. The 6-4, 215-pounder selected the Pack over offers from Pittsburgh and Marshall, among others. He had previously visited NCSU unofficially in June after getting offered by the Pack in May. "When I went up there, they had been at the top of my list," he said. "I didn't have my mind set on what I was doing, and then when I talked to Coach [Dave] Doeren, Coach [Matt] Canada and everybody, I got good vibes coming off of it. It's a beautiful place. "I talked to Coach [Eddie] Faulker, my posi- tion coach, and Coach Canada daily. Coach Doeren has my number and I have his number. If I ever need to call him, I can. It's awesome, — you can tell they respect me." Autenrieth caught 32 passes for 468 yards and seven touchdowns last year. Faulkner was the recruiter of record for him. On June 22, lineman Bryce Folsom (6-4, 265 pounds) also committed to NC State. He plays primarily defensive tackle for Alpharetta (Ga.) Chattahoochee High, making 33 tackles, four stops for loss and a sack last year, but the Pack recruited him to play offensive line. NCSU offered Folsom in May, and he visited in June, a trip that he acknowledged blew him away. "Not many people know truly what NC State has to offer," Folsom said. "I feel like it's a dia- mond in the rough. It's a school that not many people take the time to learn about. "When I went there and saw what NC State had to offer, it changed my entire opinion about the school. I did not know anything about the school. It's the best-kept secret in the ACC, by far." Folsom also had offers from Syracuse, Connecticut, Navy, Mid- dle Tennessee, Troy and Army, among others. Rivals.com rates him as a two-star prospect. Like Hooker, three-star athlete Bryce Dixon from Cary (N.C.) Green Hope cemented an offer from NC State after a strong perfor- mance at the Pack's summer camp. Dixon had played exclusively receiver at around 6-3, 205 pounds as a junior for Green Hope, catching 62 passes for 870 yards and 10 touchdowns. Despite an early offer from Boston College, Dixon committed to Old Dominion in the spring. That did not stop him from camping at State. He showed up in Raleigh almost 20 pounds heavier at 224 pounds. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.68 seconds, showcasing good athleticism for a potential tight end. NC State offered him, and he accepted June 26. "I could play mostly as a tight end or as a slot back," Dixon said. "I also do well on kick returns. With the flex offense they have, I can play inside or outside. I know I do really well against lineback- ers, who are stiffer. I can use wide receiver-type of moves and give them problems on defense." Canada served as the primary recruiter for Dixon, who is rated as the No. 32 player in the state of North Carolina by Rivals.com. — Matt Carter ■ 2016 NC State Football Commitments Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown (High School) Dylan Autenrieth TE 6-4 215 Dallas, Ga. (N. Paulding) Bryce Dixon TE 6-3 225 Cary, N.C. (Green Hope) Bryce Folsom OL 6-4 265 Alpharetta, Ga. (Chattahoochee) Harrison Gee OG/C 6-3 275 Burlington, N.C. (Williams) Tim Glass S 6-1 200 Danville, Va. (George Washington) Garrett Hooker LB 6-2 230 Thomasville, N.C. (Ledford) Dylan Parham QB 6-5 205 Raleigh (SE Raleigh) Joe Sculthorpe OG/C 6-3 285 Hampstead, N.C. (Topsail) Kobe Smith DT 6-2 315 Lawrenceville, Ga. (Archer) James Valdez CB 5-11 190 Orangeburg, S.C. (Orangeburg-Wilkinson) Justin Witt OT 6-6 265 New Lenox, Ill. (Lincoln-Way West) FIVE MORE JOIN FOOTBALL RECRUITING CLASS Three-star offensive tackle Justin Witt, who hails from New Lenox, Ill., is ranked as the No. 23 prospect in his home state by Rivals.com. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Linebacker Garrett Hooker, who recorded 207 tackles as a junior at Thomasville (N.C.) Ledford, committed to NCSU after earning an offer at its camp this summer. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN

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