NC State football’s showtime offense

For the past few years, NC State football has been primarily known for its staunch defense, producing NFL talent like Dolphins edge rusher Bradley Chubb and Bednarik Award winner Payton Wilson. But this year, the Wolfpack looks as though it will be one of the top offenses in the conference.

Although just a few key skill players remain from last year’s squad, head coach Dave Doeren’s heavy work in the transfer portal brought a surplus of talent for second-year offensive coordinator Robert Anae to work with.

Quarterback

The biggest offseason acquisition for the Pack was graduate quarterback Grayson McCall. McCall spent the last five seasons at Coastal Carolina, where he became the first player to win Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year three times. As a redshirt freshman, McCall led the Chanticleers to an 11-1 record and a No. 14 finish in the AP Poll.

As a sophomore, he set the record for the highest passer efficiency rating in a single season, a record broken by Jayden Daniels at LSU last season. McCall’s senior season ended abruptly after suffering a concussion in mid-October. Now fully healthy and ready to return, McCall has an elite arsenal of weapons to throw to and could end up in Heisman conversations throughout the season.

Pass catchers

At this point, you can’t bring up Wolfpack football without mentioning sophomore wide receiver Kevin “KC” Concepcion. The 2023 ACC Rookie of the Year set the NC State freshman record for receiving touchdowns and receptions, recording 71 catches for 839 yards and 10 touchdowns. Concepcion was also a threat in the rushing game, turning 41 rush attempts into 320 yards for an average of 7.8 yards per carry. Expect to see Concepcion fully embrace the primary receiver role as he contends to be one of the top wide receivers in the nation.

Opposite Concepcion is Ohio State transfer receiver Noah Rogers. The redshirt freshman barely got playing time in 2023, but with such a talented wide receiver room at Ohio State, it’s rare to get playing time as a true freshman. Rogers can use his 6-foot-2 frame to give himself the advantage in contested catch situations. He recorded over 1,400 yards during his junior season of high school and averaged 20.5 yards per catch. Rogers is a big-time playmaker and will be used as such.

Another returning member of the Wolfpack receiving corps is redshirt junior Dacari Collins. The former Clemson transfer didn’t see the field much at the beginning of the 2023 season but saw his playing time skyrocket towards the end of the season, playing 168 of his 276 snaps in the final four games of the year. He made 14 catches for 212 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 15.1 yards a catch. Collins stands at 6-foot-4, making him one of the tallest wide receivers on the team and a huge target for McCall.

Rounding out the wide receiver corps is junior Wake Forest transfer Wesley Grimes. The Raleigh native started three games for the Demon Deacons last year, catching 20 passes for 339 yards and four touchdowns. Grimes averaged over 120 yards and two touchdowns per game as a senior in high school and was a four-star prospect. He is an excellent route runner and will be a shifty target for McCall.

The final pass catcher from the transfer portal is former UConn tight end Justin Joly. The four-star transfer was the number two ranked tight end in the portal and for good reason. The 6 foot, three-inch tank made 56 catches for 578 yards and two touchdowns last season, averaging over 10 yards a catch. Joly provides life to a tight end room that didn’t see as much action as originally expected last season.

Running back

After losing three running backs to the transfer portal, the Wolfpack secured Jordan Waters in the portal. The graduate running back ranked fourth in the ACC in rushing touchdowns with 12 and ninth in rushing yards with 753.

Waters is a North Carolina native and stays local after transferring from Tobacco Road rival Duke. Waters looks to revive an NC State rushing attack that hasn’t finished higher than 10th in the ACC in rushing yards per game in the last four seasons.

Offensive line

All four of NC State’s starting guards and tackles are returning and will be joined by graduate center Zeke Correll. Correll transferred from Notre Dame, where he started in 10 of the Fighting Irish’s 13 games last season and finished as a semi-finalist for the Joe Moore Award, given to the best offensive line unit in the nation.