Anonymous opposing ACC coach says NC State landing Brennan Armstrong was 'surprising'

Losing Devin Leary to the transfer portal left NC State without an identity under center. It wasn’t long before they picked their own quarterback out of the portal, snagging Virginia transfer Brennan Armstrong for his final season of eligibility.

Leary and Armstrong are the No. 2 and No. 3 quarterbacks in the transfer portal this season, which makes Armstrong’s commitment a fair return on the Wolfpack’s investment. Still, the move has been surprising to some on the outside — including one ACC coach that remains anonymous.

“The move was surprising to a lot of other staffs because Dave Doeren’s offense is all about running the stretch and trying to grind on you,” the ACC coach said, via Athlon Sports. “If he lets these guys go, they’re gonna be throwing it downfield a lot more. Armstrong can stretch defenses; you have to think they’re gonna use that ability.”

“They’ve got a lot of younger guys on defense we think they’ll rely on, so they might need to score as much as they can. This might look like a very different NC State team than you’re used to.”

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Armstrong was a reserve for Virginia during his first two seasons in the collegiate ranks. He would burst onto the scene after earning the starting nod in the COVID-shortened 2020 season and would not look back. He had 2,117 passing yards and 18 touchdowns in nine games during the COVID season.

He followed up that season with an even better on in 2021, throwing for 4,449 yards and 31 touchdowns on his way to capturing the Dudley Award, which is given to the best player from the state of Virginia. Last season, Armstrong suffered through multiple injuries under first-year head coach Tony Elliott.

He would finish the year with 2,210 yards while completing 185 of his 338 pass attempts but had seven touchdowns compared to 12 interceptions.

Under the guidance of Armstrong, the Wolfpack is set to get their 2023 college football campaign underway when they travel to Connecticut to face the Huskies on Saturday, Sept. 2. They will presumedly be heavy favorites entering the matchup, but will have a quick turnaround the following week when they host to Notre Dame.