The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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44 ■ THE WOLFPACKER WOLFPACK FOOTBALL He has to balance installing his offense while managing a quarterback battle at the same time. One thing he did not have to concern himself about? "I wasn't worried about snaps today, and that was the best thing," Drinkwitz said. Fifth-year senior center and South Ala- bama graduate transfer Joe Scelfo is the reason Drinkwitz felt at ease there. That was Scelfo's first practice for the Wolfpack, but he brings a wealth of experience to the offensive line. He started the last two seasons at South Alabama and was first-team All-Sun Belt Conference in 2015. He is on the preseason watch list for the 2016 Rimington Trophy, which is given to college football's best center. At the end of last season, Scelfo made the difficult decision to leave South Al- abama. The self-described homebody is typically not one to embrace change. But after arriving in Raleigh in June, it took only about two months for him to discover he likes his new home. "I like [offensive line] coach [Dwayne] Ledford a lot, and this summer we grew closer," Scelfo said. "The guys up front grew a lot closer throughout the whole summer. I just got comfortable. "I felt like I have been here for a while honestly. It's a good feeling." Scelfo had his reasons for leaving and admitted one was getting the chance to test himself at a higher level. He is proud that he did everything the right way, officially getting his release from South Alabama and doing thorough research on his options. "I just called Coach [Dave] Doeren and we spoke," Scelfo said. "He told me his situation, and I told him what I was looking for in a program. "He told me his beliefs and what he stands for, and what he preaches to his team. I agreed with it. There wasn't one thing I disagreed with." Despite learning a new offense with a new coach on a new team, Scelfo did not feel like a rookie when practice began. "I have been doing this a long time at this level," he pointed out. It probably helped that he grew up around football. His father, Chris Scelfo, is a longtime football coach, including a tenure as Tulane's head coach and most recently coaching tight ends for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. He also had at least some familiarity with NC State. South Alabama and the Pack played each other at USA last season. NCSU arguably played its best game of the year, winning 63-13. "I remembered the score," Scelfo admit- ted. Scelfo is glad that he had the chance to join his one-time foe. Count him as an endorser of the rule that allows college athletes that have graduated to transfer without penalty. "If you do it the right way, if you get your degree; that's the main reason you go to college," Scelfo said. "Obviously, I used it to my advantage. This is a bigger opportunity for me, not only for my foot- ball life but my personal life, my spiritual life. "I grew so much just from coming here. You see coaches take new jobs every year. If a player graduates and does what he needs to do, why can't he?" Count Drinkwitz as a fan of the rule, too, after it gave him one less thing to worry about during that first practice. "He's done a really good with that of- fensive line being a leader," Drinkwitz said of Scelfo. "We're very excited and very fortunate he is here with us." — Matt Carter Receiving Corps Takes A Few Hits Injuries have come in bunches at the wide receiver position thus far. Three play- ers are out for the season and two of them will redshirt because of various ailments. The most damaging was the loss of se- nior Jumichael Ramos, who led NC State wideouts last season with 34 receptions for 457 yards and three touchdowns. Ramos had a knee injury that required surgery. Since he has a redshirt year available to him, Ramos will sit out this season and return fully healthy in 2017 rather than play at less than 100 percent in 2016. Redshirt freshman Brian Sessoms tore his Achilles during the first week of fall practice. He is a speedster who won the 2-A state title in track as a junior in the 100- and 200-meter dashes while at Carver High in Winston-Salem, N.C. Sessoms caught three passes for 30 yards in the spring game in April and was expected to provide depth at slot receiver. Freshman C.J. Riley will redshirt this year after sustaining a knee injury prior to fall camp. Riley signed with NC State in February over offers from Duke, Geor- gia Tech, Kentucky, Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest, among oth- ers. He caught 40 passes for 1,047 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior at North Broward in Coconut Creek, Fla., and at 6-5, 198 pounds is NC State's tallest wide receiver. There is also a chance that junior Ger- maine Pratt, a converted linebacker after playing safety his first two seasons, will redshirt. Pratt had shoulder surgery in the offseason. He notched 62 tackles, an inter- ception, four passes broken up, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in his first two seasons. NC State also confirmed prior to the start of camp that promising redshirt fresh- man defensive end Emmanuel Olenga is no longer with the program for unspecified reasons, and reserve offensive guard Coult Culler, a redshirt sophomore, has retired from football for health reasons. — Matt Carter Scelfo was a first-team All-Sun Belt Confer- ence selection at center for South Alabama in 2015. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN Senior wide receiver Jumichael Ramos, who caught 34 passes for 457 yards and three touchdowns last year, will redshirt after un- dergoing offseason knee surgery. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN