State lands two Atlanta-area offensive linemen

Football Recruiting32

NC State’s football recruiting has been on a tear over the last couple of weeks as Coach O’Brien has been adding commitments and quickly moving toward a full class for the year.

It is no surprise that offensive line continues to be a primary need for the Wolfpack’s recruiting; and, tonight State added two three-star offensive linemen from the same school. (AJC article)

N.C. State picked up commitments from offensive linemen Duran Christophe of Woodstock and Camden Wentz of Lassiter Sunday evening.

The commitments were delivered following their official visit to N.C. State this weekend.

“We both loved Louisville, but we actually committed to N.C. State on our way home [from Raleigh],” Wentz said Sunday evening. “N.C. State and Louisville were kind of comparable in where they were headed.

Scout.com ranks Wentz the #11 center in the country among high school seniors; and Christophe one of the top Top 100 offensive tackles. As a point of reference, in addition to an offer from Louisville that both lineman had obtained, Wentz is academically gifted to the point of having an offer from Stanford.

These two offensive linemen join 5-star lineman, Denzelle Good from Gaffney, SC in as Wolfpack verbal commitments. Good is currently 6-6, 325 pounds and is ranked the #5 offensive guard in the country by Scout.com.

These three offensive lineman come into the NC State program on the heels of a strong offensive line class last year that was led by 4-star recruit, RJ Mattes. Mattes was joined by Sam Jones, Andrew Wallace and Zach Allen. A LOT of reports from practice this season have indicated that the coaches love what they’ve seen in Allen, Mattes and Wallace – and that all three will make immediate impacts with significant playing time next season.

In light of how well this year’s offensive line ultimately came together in the last half of the season even after the dismissal of the underachieving Curtis Crouch, an addition of three or four talented bodies only adds to the excitement building around next season. State is scheduled to lose only John Bedics and Meares Green from this year’s offensive line.

Related: A fantastic piece discussing how to fix NC State’s offensive line from last year.

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Football Recruiting

32 Responses to State lands two Atlanta-area offensive linemen

  1. SEAT.5.F.2 12/22/2008 at 6:48 AM #

    I saw Christophe standing next to Jones at the open on Sat and it looked like an easy 2 or 2 1/2″ on him. Wentz was also offered by Jim Grobe and WFU, which considers intelligence at their C position as critical to offense.

    If we can get Watson it would set us up with a full deck of passing weapons in the years to come, but our ability to land another DT with a big upside is citical.

    Andy Mac is on such a roll recruiting that I hope he’s not swayed back to a HC/ or DC job somewhere else in the near future. His success in the Deep SE combined with the former BC’s coaches inroads elsewhere and TOB’s emphasis on rebuilding our stature in NC is program building 101.

  2. Alpha Wolf 12/22/2008 at 8:38 AM #

    This is indeed good news. Good offenses start with good o-lines, and once again TOB is well on his way towards building a solid front end to plow its way down the field.

    Why was Crouch let go again?

  3. Dogbreath 12/22/2008 at 8:47 AM #

    The thing I like about the O’Brien approach is that he has signed a “team” each of the past two years, recognizing the glaring holes across key positions (OL, LB, DL) left from the previous staff. Amato was intent on signing twenty 6’1 195lb athletes every year.

    Here is how the 2009 class is shaping up:

    1 QB/Ath (Proctor)
    2 RB
    2 WR
    1 TE
    4 OL (including Sam Jones)

    3 DE
    3 DT
    4 LB
    4 DB

    1 Kicker

    Presumably, we have one scholarship left to award which is probably being saved for either Nixon or Bond, in which case we will have a full complement of positions.

    That is a balanced class.

  4. Sw0rdf1sh 12/22/2008 at 9:14 AM #

    Great Pickups. I love those smart big uglies on the Line.

    On the chance of getting Nixon or Bond, I think we have already been dropped from X’s final 3. We MIGHT have a chance with Bond, but I highly doubt he will decide to run with the Pack.

  5. Noah 12/22/2008 at 9:26 AM #

    Wentz is about 6-2 and Christophe is about 6-4. You could probably add or subtract an inch to either. I think we are pretty much done with OL recruiting and we will only be taking one or two more guys at any position. I know there are three DL that we like. There’s also a linebacker that we like. I honestly don’t know where we stand with Watson.

    You can forget about Nixon, he’s already committed to Florida. You can probably forget about Bond, he’s going to Carolina. And if, for some reason, UNC can’t boot any more people…I would guess his second choice is Michigan.

    We have two players that are enrolling in January, so we should be able to take 27 players this year. I believe there will only be two players who won’t qualify, but there are still a couple of others who need to work to get their scores up (but they’re close).

    It’s a good class. It’s not great…it’s not even as good as last year’s. But it’s a good class.

    I remember hearing someone talk about elite prospects once. Back when Tennessee was always in the top-10, the guy referred to one player and said, “This is the kind of kid that you have to get if you want to beat Tennessee.”

    Last year, we landed a couple of those guys: Mattes, Barnes, Glennon, and (provided he’s healthy) Manning. I don’t think we landed any of those this year…but we landed the guys you SURROUND the “beat Tennessee” players with in order to beat Tennessee.

  6. bradleyb123 12/22/2008 at 9:32 AM #

    “Scout.com ranks Wentz the #11 center in the country among high school seniors; and Christophe one of the top Top 100 offensive tacklets.”

    What is a “tacklet” again? Never heard of that position. 😉

  7. Alpha Wolf 12/22/2008 at 9:41 AM #

    Noah’s right, those big names are probably off of our board. Thing is, it may not matter in the long run. Our guys have a good work ethic and are coachable. Give me the smarter, more dedicated athlete any day of the week.

  8. old13 12/22/2008 at 10:17 AM #

    I would think that Chandler would probably become an OT given his height. It could be a disadvantage as a DT I think as it makes him easier for OLs to leverage. Don’t shorter big players usually make better DTs than the taller ones?

    Oh, SFN, the two OL from GA are not from the same HS according to Scout:
    http://northcarolinastate.scout.com/a.z?s=178&p=9&c=8&yr=2009 They are both from the Atlanta area and apparently good friends, though. I like what TOB & Co. are doing in recruiting this year.

  9. ppack3 12/22/2008 at 10:23 AM #

    A Tacklet is the child of an Offensive Tackle.

  10. Sam92 12/22/2008 at 10:23 AM #

    This is shaping up to be a really decent class. of course the holes seem to be pulling in super talent, but i have to wonder about them – how will they really play out over 4-5 years. also, from this point forward, methinks butch davis recruiting may decline, and TOB’s may improve. who knows.

    one thing i think is certain – next years team will be more talented and deeper than this years (and i’m not counting all this crop who will redshirt)

  11. Noah 12/22/2008 at 10:34 AM #

    Chandler will definitely be an OL. There are two DTs that we are looking at.

    UNC is going to have a superb front seven in a couple of years. If they can get everyone qualified, they’ll have a defense that will rival the one from Mack Brown’s last couple of years.

    I really…really…really hope Butch Davis leaves soon.

  12. bradleyb123 12/22/2008 at 10:36 AM #

    From what I understand, Butch Davis promises immediate playing time to a lot of his freshmen recruits. TOB redshirts most of his. It may take a few years, but we will eventually see the fruits of that investment.

    We redshirted a lot of guys THIS year. Next year they get to make an impact, as redshirt freshmen. The best teams do this. It’s the right way to build a program. Jim Grobe does this at Wake, too.

    I just like the way TOB does things as opposed to Butch. It’s better for the long run as opposed to the short run.

  13. CaptainCraptacular 12/22/2008 at 10:40 AM #

    This is great news and adds to what looks like a solid class of glue, but I have to temper my excitement about christophe at this time. He’s listed at 6’5.5, 257lbs but only a 5.59 40. I have no concerns about him filling out his frame but 5.59 is pretty slow, even for a lineman, especially one projected at OT. Ah, TOB and staff know what they are doing with the O line, so we shall see how he turns out.

    Too bad Everett Proctor couldn’t talk his teammate Nixon into coming. That would have been nice. Dang gators stealing the best kids out of NC. Hopefully we can close off the state and keep guys like him, and Leak, and Massoquoa (sp?) in the future.

  14. old13 12/22/2008 at 10:45 AM #

    Anybody know if there is any interest from or toward Stephen Rivers (Philip’s younger brother) and TOB & Co? (Just curious. He seems to have doeg well as a starting sophmore QB in Decataur AL. And he’s about a inch taller than Philip!)

    http://northcarolinastate.scout.com/a.z?s=178&p=8&c=1&nid=4045247

    http://northcarolinastate.scout.com/search.aspx?s=178&p=19&q=site%3Ambd.scout.com+%22Stephen+Rivers%22&sitesearch=Scout.com

  15. SEAT.5.F.2 12/22/2008 at 10:58 AM #

    Noah^

    I can respect the idea that we in all likely hood we could see some athletic UNC D’s while Davis is around- that it’s what he does, it’s his one trick, and if he doesn’t recruit and develop elite players on the defensive side of the ball then he would be a complete fraud.

    Let us imagine that there is a “Bizarro Noah” over on the non existiting quality sports blog for the Tar Heels. They would be saying, “Damn that front five TOB is building at State is building up a lot faster then expected. They are going to be good at blocking up front as long as he’s there.”.

  16. Noah 12/22/2008 at 11:24 AM #

    Oh, I’m excited about what TOB is doing as well. But I don’t want to simply beat UNC. I want them to go 0-12 every year and be the biggest laughingstock in all of sports.

    That will not happen with Davis there.

    But, if we are to confine this simply to NC State sports, yes, we are building a hell of an OL.

  17. Big Worm 12/22/2008 at 11:32 AM #

    Butch Davis is Chuck Amato, and TOB is Dick Sheridan.

    Davis’ classes will look great on paper, but his teams will consistently underperform their recruiting rankings. TOB will do the opposite – he will have solid classes ranked in the high 20’s-low 40’s and be fielding top-25 teams with consistency.

    And it doesn’t matter how many staaaaaas UNC recruits – until they get a dynamic QB they won’t be able to do shit on the field.

  18. PackerInRussia 12/22/2008 at 11:37 AM #

    I hadn’t seen that latest ranking for Good. He hadn’t even been evaluated by scout.com when he when he committed had he? And then he was given a 3-star ranking. I guess he’s proven to be even better than initially thought by recruiting experts.

  19. bradleyb123 12/22/2008 at 11:56 AM #

    Big Worm, I agree.

    Something that you don’t see on the recruiting sheets for players are intangibles like character, etc. TOB recruits certain types of players, not just players with talent. I think Butch gets the most talented players he can get with less regard for other intangibles. He gets players like that Paulus (who sucks!) that I think would not come to Carolina if they recruited another QB in the same class. He didn’t want the competition, and I think that actually had a lot to do with TOB getting Russell Wilson. Seems like Carolina was recruiting him, but let him go because of Paulus’ “demands”.

    Someone correct me if I’m wrong. I’m going strictly by memory of things I have read.

    This just speaks of the character of TOB’s players. I believe 100% that TOB would have told a kid like Paulus to take a hike!

  20. happypackdad 12/22/2008 at 12:26 PM #

    TOB is building a program. Butchy is trying to build his resume. He wants quick improvement & doesn’t care if it fails later, he’ll be gone.

  21. Zen Wolf 12/22/2008 at 1:36 PM #

    This is just the right mix of players so far. Guys with character who will be around 4 or 5 years. I love that Wentz has good grades I want my center too out smart other teams Dline. Give me 50 Russel Wilsons and Wentzes over 4 and 5 star athletes who are more concerned about getting drafted sooner than later. I love it when Russel gives an interview. The IQ of our whole university jumps by 20 points at least. Win with character and pride. Good job TOB thanks for bringing class and character back to our program. Oh yeah and thanks for the bowl game this year as well. Go pack beat them yankees!!!!!!

  22. Wolf Dog 12/22/2008 at 1:38 PM #

    I like what I see in what TOB and staff are doing. We building and recruiting very much in VA Tech fashion. Butch at UNX certainly can recruit he did at Miami. What he hasn’t proven is that he can coach them. Butch left Miami and Coker coached them to the championship. Adn Butch didn’t prove his coaching skills with the Browns either although he didn’t have the most talented team either.

    I am looking forward to watching our OL go against their DL one day. Butch needs lineman bad. UNX got beat real bad on the line as the season progressed. I think we got more coming back than UNX this year so Butch needs to recruit. But rankings mean little at this point. We don’t know who will quailfy, who will actually enroll, who will stay in school, who will get injured, etc. I feel we are focused on recruting kids that are more likely to stay in the program for years and I see that as a great thing!

  23. highstick 12/22/2008 at 7:17 PM #

    TO just keeps on impressing me and I think, everyone else, in the area! Can we clone his brother as a BB Coach?

  24. Greywolf 12/23/2008 at 12:28 PM #

    “The IQ of our whole university jumps by 20 points at least.”

    I think you mean “the *perception* of the IQ of our whole university jumps by 20 points.”

  25. SouthernWolf 12/23/2008 at 12:59 PM #

    does anyone think Denzelle good could contribute next year at guard or will they redshirt him?

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