The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/73006
2012 FOOTBALL PREVIEW most experienced player on the defense, and head coach Tom O'Brien has called him "the heart of the defense." The 6-0, 207-pound safety is now ready to lead the unit he was once lost in, along with fellow safety Brandan Bishop, All-American cornerback David Amerson and three-year starter C.J. Wilson. "I know we are ready to lead this defense," said Wolff, a fifth-year senior. "We're all try- ing to take on a leadership role. We're all trying to take that captain role, where young guys can come up to us and talk to us about anything — offensive players, defensive players, anybody. I'll go up to the younger guys and tell them, 'We really need you to step up, keep working hard and everything will pay off.'" Wolff speaks so confidently because he was in those same shoes not too long ago as the youngster trying to find his way. He started play- ing football in the third grade, but always gravitated toward the offensive side of the ball. He first played defense when he got moved up to the varsity squad at Raeford (N.C.) Hoke High during the playoffs as a sopho- more. The team needed him to play safety, so that's what he did, and he continued to play on both sides of the ball during the rest of his prep career. "Since I first played safety, I've always like, 'I don't think I can go anywhere else,'" he remembered. "My last name is Wolff; my high school's colors were red, NC State's colors were red; and my high school was the Bucs, but we used the same hand sign as the Wolfpack sign. It all made sense. "I didn't really know anything about the recruiting process, so I just kind of committed off the bat. I called Coach and said, 'I com- mit,' even though I didn't really know what that meant." The learning process would continue for "I feel like I can be one of the best safeties in the nation, and I plan on showing that this year." ■ Wolff loved defense, but in high school — and even my freshman year here — I always thought I was an offensive player," he remembered with a smile. "Now, it's all strictly defense." Wolff came to NC State's camp as an un- known in the summer of 2007, before his senior year. He was not on the Wolfpack's radar as a prospect when he came to camp, and no other college — at any level — had much interest in the athlete. "I was just going out there, trying to learn Wolff, a fifth-year senior, ranked second on the team with 113 tackles last season, and he also intercepted three passes and forced three fumbles en route to honorable mention All-ACC laurels. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN recalled. "It wasn't a lot of fun for me and it wasn't a lot of fun for anybody here, but it was what it was. The head coach was very patient, he knew what we had; we threw them out there and we just bit the bullet. "They took their lumps three years ago, now it should be a strength of our team." Wolff, a veteran of 38 games, is tied for the something new, so I could go back and teach it at my high school," he said. "I didn't think I could go out there and get a scholarship, I had no clue that was going to happen. I didn't have any offers, not even Division II schools. There were some I-AA schools at camp, so they were all offering me during camp." Wolff split out wide and played receiver during seven-on-seven drills, although he was mostly a running back in high school, and he was catching everything thrown his way, which led some to start playfully calling him Randy Moss because his long dreadlocks re- sembled the professional receiver's hair. The unknown prospect impressed enough that NC State extended a scholarship offer after his performance. "When NC State came with the offer, I was Wolff after he arrived on campus. He red- shirted and then was thrown into the fire in his first year of eligibility, appearing in all 12 games during the 2009 season. He started four contests at boundary safety, and finished 10th on the team with 51 tackles. The next year, he took hold of the position, although he admits that he still didn't have the defense down and didn't feel comfortable until midway through the season. By the end of the campaign, though, the days of coaches having to simplify the defense to accom- modate the youngster were gone. Wolff finished third on the team with 91 tackles, and also had 3.5 tackles for loss, four forced fum- bles, two sacks, an interception and a fumble recovery en route to being named the team's Most Valuable Defensive Back. Last year, the safety — as well as the rest of the defensive backfield — continued to make strides, while the secondary helped the Pack lead the nation with 27 interceptions; the defense as a unit ranked second in the land with 39 forced turnovers. Wolff — who graduated last December with a higher grade-point average than he earned in high school — ranked second on the team with 113 tackles, including two for loss, and he intercepted three passes and forced three fumbles en route to honorable mention All-ACC laurels. However, those gaudy numbers are just making the second- ary, and Wolff, set their goals higher for 2012. "I know I can do way better than three interceptions," he said, referring to his career total. "We're all looking to raise last year's numbers — David is looking to get more than 13 [interceptions], Brandan is looking to get more than five, I'm looking to get at least six. I want to get at least five forced fumbles this year. Our goal is to raise the standard we set last year. "I really think we can be great, I'm talking a top-five defense in the nation. I'm going to try to do as much as I can to help the team. I feel like I can be one of the best safeties in the nation, and I plan on showing that this year." ■ JULY 2012 ■ 87