NC State football countdown to kickoff: 26
The NC State football season opener for 2023 is at Connecticut on Aug. 31 — or 26 days away. TheWolfpacker.com’s countdown for the season looks at the significance of the number 26 in Pack history.
NC State Football And The No. 26
• There are two defenders on the NC State football roster who wear No. 26.
Fourth-year junior Devon Betty is the headliner of the two. After being groomed the past two years, Betty is in line to take over as middle linebacker. In 2021, Betty (6-foot-1, 232 pounds) started the final four games of the year after injuries cost the unit two first-stringers. The Carver Ranches, Fla., native had 21 tackles in those starts, including four for loss and a sack. Betty additionally added a quarterback hurry and a pass breakup.
He also had a safety at Boston College, and after Isaiah Moore went down with a knee injury at Miami, Betty came in and had seven tackles, including 2.5 for loss. Overall, he finished the year with 39 tackles, including 7.5 for loss and a sack, for NC State.
This past season, Betty was primarily a reserve as the starters stayed largely healthy, and he concluded with 12 tackles, including one for a loss. With Moore and Drake Thomas moving on to the NFL, the door is open for Betty to claim his full-time starting role.
• The other No. 26 on the defense for NC State is redshirt freshman cornerback Jackson Vick. On3 rated Vick as a four-star recruit in the 2022 class, the No. 227 prospect overall in the country and the No. 5 player in the state of North Carolina.
The 5-foot-11, 172-pounder from Bailey, N.C., played primarily running back at Southern Nash High, rushing 138 times for 1,211 yards and 16 touchdowns and adding four scoring receptions in 10 games as a senior.
However, NC State always targeted Vick at cornerback. He chose the Pack over offers from Duke, Syracuse and Wake Forest, among others, and enrolled early. Last year, Vick redshirted, and his likely path to the field this fall is special teams.
• Former NC State football defensive back Art McMahon wore No. 26 for the Pack. He was one of two team captains on the famous 1967 team that went 9-2 and challenged for a national title and was a leader on the “White Shoes” defense. That squad started 8-0 and rose to No. 3 in the national poll before losing a heartbreaking 14-8 game at Penn State.
A year before, McMahon was a first-team All-ACC selection for NC State. After college, McMahon played four seasons in the NFL, intercepting three passes.
• On the 26th day of the month, NC State football is 4-2 under head coach Dave Doeren, including bowl wins over Central Florida in 2014 and Vanderbilt two years later. However, by far the most memorable victory came on Nov. 26, 2021.
That’s when NC State rallied for a thrilling 34-30 win over archrival North Carolina at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, scoring two touchdowns and recovering an onside kick while also intercepting a Hail Mary in the end zone, all in the final two minutes.
There are no games on the 26th this season for NC State football.
