NC State quarterback Brennan Armstrong on how receptive Raleigh has been

This offseason, former Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong transferred to NC State. With that, he’s had to adjust to a new program while the fanbase adjusts to him.

While at the 2023 ACC Football Kickoff, Armstrong explained the kind of reception he’s gotten so far in Raleigh.

“I feel like it’s been good,” Brennan Armstrong said. “I mean, it’s a big city. It ain’t like Charlottesville. Charlottesville is more college town, but yeah, Raleigh seems to be — it’s a great place, I think. I could see myself living there.”

For as much as Armstrong likes the city of Raleigh, he admitted that he still might have to win over some fans.

“But, it feels like they’ve been receptive of me and I think I’ve still got to earn my stripes there. You know, I don’t think the past really does it for them. I think I’ve got to throw the Wolfpack uniform on and show them what I can do,” Armstrong said.

“And that’s fair enough. That’s my job, to go out there and win games. I think I’ll win them over, I think I’ll win them all over after that.”

While Brennan Armstrong admitted that NC State fans probably don’t care about what he’s done in the past, he has already proven that he can thrive both in the ACC and under the tutelage of offensive coordinator Robert Anae. He did so for years at Virginia, after all.

In 38 games at Virginia, going back to 2018, Brennan Armstrong has a career 60.6 completion percentage. He’s also thrown for 9,034 yards and 58 touchdowns to 35 interceptions. On the ground, he has 1,267 yards rushing for 20 touchdowns.

An anonymous ACC coach said NC State landing Brennan Armstrong was surprising

For many people, it wasn’t all that surprising to see Brennan Armstrong reunite with offensive coordinator Robert Anae once he hit the transfer portal. Still, at least one anonymous ACC coach was surprised by the move.

“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. 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,” the coach told Athlon Sports.

“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.”