Take Two: Has NC State surged past North Carolina in recruiting?
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Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling a handful of issues in the college football landscape. Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and an expert from the Rivals.com network.
THE STORYLINE
NC State is off to a fantastic start in this recruiting class and it might be the early stages of a power shift in the state - and against North Carolina in recruiting.
The Wolfpack currently possess the third-best recruiting class in the ACC behind only conference powerhouses Clemson and Florida State, and they have more four-stars committed than every team other than the Tigers, Seminoles and Miami.
What is particularly noteworthy is how well NC State has done with in-state recruiting. Three of the top seven prospects in North Carolina are committed to the Wolfpack in defensive end Savion Jackson and defensive tackles Joshua Harris and C.J. Clark.
This note is particularly hard to believe knowing how well the Tar Heels have recruited their home state: North Carolina has one pledge out of the top 50 in the state rankings. NC State has 15.
The last time NC State landed three of the top seven prospects in the state was 2015 but that was the year four-star defensive end Jalen Dalton picked North Carolina. NC State has not beaten North Carolina in the conference recruiting rankings since 2008 but it certainly looks like that streak will be broken this year.
Is this a one-year anomaly or has NC State taken an important step ahead of UNC?
FIRST TAKE: ADAM FRIEDMAN, MID-ATLANTIC RECRUITING ANALYST
“Am I surprised by NC State's success? No, but I am surprised North Carolina hasn’t put up more of a fight. The Wolfpack coaching staff has been working tirelessly to build strong relationships around the state and their success on the field last season seems to have jump-started in-state confidence surrounding the program. If Dave Doeren can keep his squad performing well on the field, don’t expect the recruiting momentum to slow down.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR
“They’re doing a really good job in the state and that’s a state other schools poach and steal kids away from all the time. North Carolina is coming off an abysmal year and recruiting momentum is not there for the Tar Heels at all. NC State is coming off a year where it was in the news early, got off to a very strong start and put one of its players (Bradley Chubb) high in the draft. The Wolfpack have one of the top quarterbacks in the country and their staff is energetic and aggressive. They’ve done a really good job.
“It doesn’t surprise me that they’re doing so well compared to UNC. I don’t know if they’ll get Quavaris Crouch, though. I think he’s destined for a bigger program.”
