The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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76 ■ THE WOLFPACKER FOOTBALL PREVIEW 2017 OFFENSIVE LINE guys last year. He's a guy that we trust to play both positions." The tackles are both returning starters, a pair of redshirt juniors who have been starting games since their rookie seasons: Tyler Jones on the left side and Richardson on the right. Ledford was quick to note that Jones did not give up but one sack during the ACC slate despite playing against some of the country's best de- fensive ends at the marquee position up front. "That's something to be proud of," Ledford added. "He's worked hard at the things that we want him to be better at. He's focused on those during the spring and also you can see it during the summer workouts. He's added some good weight, really looks good." Richardson's upside though may top them all. "He's one of the best I've been around," Ledford said. "He's a tremendous talent, he's got great feet. He's really, really good. I was really impressed with his spring ball. He's been up here all summer now. Kid is going to have a real, real bright future, I think." One of the keys for Ledford in preseason camp will be finding his new sixth lineman, if not even more depth. He suspects redshirt freshman interior lineman Joe Sculthorpe could be a leading con- tender based on what he did this spring. "I feel pretty comfortable in him playing," Ledford said. "I thought that he did a good job, thought that he earned the opportu- nity to go in there and compete. He'll play guard or center for us." Collectively, Ledford feels good about his line relative to a year ago. "This spring was really fun to see the progression of our guys," he said. "If you went and watched the first spring when I got here until now, it's like a completely different group now." ■ ■ Preseason Analysis **** Among country's best; *** Among ACC's best; ** Solid or has potential; * Too unproven Starters *** At a minimum, NC State should have a solid offensive line simply because of the veteran experience it has accumulated over the years. Senior Tony Adams and redshirt juniors Tyler Jones and Will Richardson have multiple seasons as starters, and redshirt junior Garrett Bradbury was a full-time starter last year. Throw in redshirt junior Ter - ronne Prescod getting three starts and valuable reps as a reserve throughout the 2016 season, and it's an older group that has been through the wars in the trenches before. However, the group is still trying to prove it has the talent to be among the ACC's best. Adams should lead the way there. Several have touted him as a preseason All-ACC candidate. Experience ***½ It is hard to imagine many offensive lines having as much valuable experience as NC State. Adams, Richardson, Jones, Bradbury and Prescod have combined to make 89 career starts, with Adams leading the way with 35. If there is a question mark, it would be the lack of experience among those after the first five. The depth chart is littered with freshmen and sophomores still waiting on their first extensive reps. Depth *½ Depth is the question mark of the offensive line. Redshirt sophomore tackle Emanuel McGirt was a highly touted recruit who battled for a starting job in the spring of 2016, but was limited this past spring with a knee injury. Similarly, redshirt sophomore Aaron Wiltz has had to deal with injury issues that have slowed his expected development. Offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford, though, was pleased with what he saw from some of the redshirt freshmen, particularly interior lineman Joe Sculthorpe and tackle Justin Witt. Overall grade *** If there is a unit that is likely to take a nice jump forward and outperform its overall grade, it would probably be the offensive line. The veterans know what to expect and are old enough to handle themselves. There is no question the line will play hard and physical, which would explain why Clemson star defensive lineman Christian Wilkins said it was one of the two best offen - sive lines the Tigers faced in their national championship season along with Pittsburgh. Getting To Know: Terronne Prescod Being an offensive lineman comes naturally for NC State redshirt junior Terronne Prescod. For starters, he's always been big. His first position playing football was offen- sive line in the summer leading up to seventh grade. When he left middle school, Prescod was already 6-3 and 300 pounds. Thus he only continued to play offensive line while becoming a star for Columbia High School in Decatur, Ga. "I did play some snaps on defense my senior year and even played some running back also," Prescod said. "It was pretty nice to see other people blocking for me." There is also Prescod's natural protective tendencies. He is the older brother of three sisters ages 18, 17 and 12. That left Prescod to be the "man of the house." "It's a little stressful," he admitted. "I am protecting my girls all the time." Family is important to Prescod, especially his devotion to his mother. "Everything I do is for my mom," he said. "I know she's been through a lot. Most of my decisions go through her." Prescod first started picking up college interest during his sophomore season at Columbia. Two years later, he signed to enroll early at NC State despite being recruited heavily by Auburn. Prescod was one of the top recruits in Georgia. Rivals.com rated him as the No. 28 offensive guard nationally and the No. 64 player from his state in the 2014 class. He was one of five offensive linemen to sign with NC State. One, Eric Shute, left before playing, but his place among the five was taken by Garrett Bradbury, who signed as a tight end. Counting Bradbury, the other four besides Prescod were all starting by last sea - son, with Tony Adams getting starts as a true freshman, and Will Richardson and Tyler Jones receiving some as redshirt freshmen. Seeing his fellow linemen hitting the field helped Prescod come to a realization that he needed to step up. He reshaped his body to a leaner 6-5, 331 pounds and rededicated himself on the field. "I started going hard every practice regardless of me playing or not, whatever position I'm in," Prescod noted. "It just started clicking like that." Last fall, the work paid off. Prescod made three starts while carving out a role as a swing lineman capable of playing both guard and tackle. In the final eight games of the year, he averaged 38.6 snaps per game. "I'm pretty versatile out there," he said. "I know wherever I'm at, I give it all that I got." This spring, Prescod played with a chip on his shoulder while aiming to take over the starting spot at left guard. It's a similar attitude that he carries onto the field. "When I'm out there, I change into a different person," he said. "I get real, real competitive. I think that nobody can beat me. Nobody has been through what I've been through. I just get my hands on guys and maul them as much as I can." That's how you'd expect a typical offensive lineman to think. — Matt Carter Prescod started three games last year during his redshirt sopho- more season. PHOTO BY JACEY ZEMBAL