Where NC State football stands with uncommitted official visitors from first batch of trips

By Noah Fleischman

After hosting back-to-back weekends worth of official visitors, all is quiet inside NC State’s Murphy Center this weekend. The Wolfpack won’t resume hosting priority recruits until the marathon starts back up June 5, but it made strides with several prospects this month. 

Let’s take a look at where the program stands with each uncommitted visitor — it earned four pledges that have been announced since their visits — at this stage of the recruiting process in this iteration of TheWolfpacker.com’s stock report. 

Note: Players are not listed in any particular order within each subsection

Stock rising

Dunnellon (Fla.) three-star EDGE Kaiden Robinson-Vickers: After taking an official visit during the Wolfpack’s first batch on May 1, Robinson-Vickers noted the program was inside his top two coming off the trip. The pass rusher has a “very close” relationship with defensive tackles coach Elisha Shaw, who has taken the lead in this recruitment, while Dave Doeren was able to impress Robinson-Vickers during his stay on campus. Other official visits on Robinson-Vickers’ radar are UCF (May 29), Miami (June 5) and UNC (June 12). 

Watertown (Tenn.) Friendship Christian three-star offensive lineman Kaden Buchanan: The 6-foot-5, 345-pound prospect has NC State inside his top three with Kentucky and Virginia Tech. These three programs have plenty of overlap in offensive line recruiting this year, and Buchanan is just one example. His official visit seemed to put the Wolfpack in a positive spot with Buchanan, who was intrigued by the opportunity to grow closer with his faith at NC State. Buchanan still has two more official visits on his schedule with Virginia Tech (June 5) and Kentucky (June 12) before making a decision. 

Gainesville (Ga.) three-star offensive tackle Carter Mathis: Speaking of battles with Virginia Tech, Mathis is also a part of that group. He enjoyed his time on campus for a May 8 official visit at NC State, which continued to strengthen the Wolfpack’s position in his recruitment. Mathis wants to have some urgency in his decision-making and is only focusing on these two programs. Mathis is set to officially visit the Hokies on June 5 before choosing a college destination. This is a neck-and-neck race, but NC State has set the pace in Mathis’ recruitment to this point.

Albany (Ga.) Westover three-star offensive lineman Kyson Mallard: A former Georgia commit, Mallard said official visit moved the needle for the tackle prospect. He wasn’t sure what to expect going into the trip, but his May 8 trek to Raleigh appeared to give NC State all of the momentum in his recruitment, at the moment. Mallard, who is also being pursued by the likes of Georgia Tech, Louisville and UNC, plans to make a decision around June 10. And as it stands now, the Pack is viewed as the team to beat for the 6-foot-5, 310-pound recruit. 

Fort Mill (S.C.) Catawba Ridge EDGE Alex Johnson: One of the fastest-rising players in the nation, Johnson has seen his recruitment blow up over the past month. The unranked prospect has picked up offers from all over the country, including Georgia and Michigan, leading to the pass rusher becoming a coveted prospect in the 2027 class. NC State’s official visit led Johnson’s father to fall in love with the program, vaulting it to the top of his list. This will be a tough recruitment to win currently with Johnson’s interest being piqued by the Georgia offer. The Wolfpack did what it could in the official visit, leaving Johnson to have a lot to think about, but there’s a long way to go in this one. Johnson has visits set to Charlotte (May 29), Boston College (June 5), Vanderbilt (June 11) and Virginia Tech (June 19). It’s likely that Georgia will be added to that list in the coming weeks.

Springfield (Ohio) three-star linebacker Jahmiere Daniels-Portis: NC State recently entered the mix for Daniels-Portis, and it was quickly able to get him on campus for an official visit. The Wolfpack has a lot of ground to make up on the likes of Cincinnati and Illinois, while Colorado is also a late-arriving contender in this race. Wolfpack inside linebackers coach Isaiah Moore is doing everything he can to keep the program in a solid position for Daniels-Portis. NC State made a positive impression on the linebacker, but he has three more visits on the books before thinking of a decision to make. 

Holding steady

Clayton (N.C.) three-star cornerback AK Crumel: One of the longest-tenured targets on NC State’s Class of 2027 recruiting board, Crumel holds the Wolfpack near the the top of his recruitment. He left his official visit uncommitted and is taking visits to Georgia Tech (May 29) and Virginia Tech (June 5). Viewed as an NC State lean at this stage, Crumel is set to make his college decision on July 24. Wolfpack cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell will continue to hammer the program to Crumel, who has developed a tight-knit bond with him, for the next two months. 

Southern Durham (N.C.) three-star wideout Jonathan Dillon: Like Crumel, there was nothing that Dillon could have seen on his May 1 official visit that he hadn’t seen before on his countless trips to NC State over the years. Dillon has held a Pack offer for the past two years and is a priority for wideouts coach Joker Phillips. The route runner is taking his time in his recruitment, though NC State sits in the leader spot at this time. Dillon has trips to Rutgers (May 29), Wake Forest (June 5), Duke (June 12) and Virginia Tech (June 19) on tap before making his college commitment later this summer. 

Southern Durham (N.C.) three-star safety Lance Henderson: Henderson also falls in the boat of local talent that has seen the Pack more times than he can count. The safety has a standout relationship with co-defensive coordinator Charlton Warren, who has made Henderson a priority throughout the recruiting process. NC State leads for the defender, but he plans to take official visits to Rutgers (May 29), Virginia Tech (June 5) and Duke (June 12).

East Orange (N.J.) three-star EDGE Esa Wittingburg: NC State defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot likes to recruit the Mid-Atlantic for talent, and Wittingburg is the perfect example of that. He projects to play at the JACK spot if he were to pick the Pack, and while the program set the tone for his summer during his official visit, there’s a long way to go. Wittingburg has a tour of the country on tap with trips to Virginia (May 29), Vanderbilt (June 5), Notre Dame (June 12) and Wake Forest (June 19), while he already saw Northwestern (May 8). Eliot’s relationship with Wittingburg will go a long way here, but there’s a lot of time to continue to recruit the EDGE before he makes a commitment decision later this summer.

Stock declining

Charlotte (N.C.) Corvian Community four-star defensive lineman Nate Kamba: Kamba started his official visit schedule at NC State with a May 8 trip, but this recruitment will be an uphill battle for the Wolfpack. The standout defensive lineman has a top five of Auburn, Georgia, NC State, Ohio State and South Carolina. He’s not in any rush to make a college commitment decision, but the SEC programs appear to be the leaders in this recruitment. If recent history is any indication, South Carolina will be a stubborn team to beat in this race.