NC State football stock report: Who's trending up after Week 2 of camp?

By Ethan McDowell

NC State football has made it about halfway through fall camp, and its Aug. 29 showdown with Western Carolina is creeping progressively closer. The Wolfpack played its first intersquad scrimmage last week, generating a lot of positive buzz around a few players.

Following a busy offseason full of portal movement, several of those transfers are standing out but a few returning players have also impressed sources over the past couple weeks. The Wolfpack defense is off to a strong start overall, while plenty of playmakers are showing off on offense.

Each week, TheWolfpacker.com will check in with sources to figure out who improved their stock during practice. Graduate running back Jordan Waters leads the list this week after putting together a great scrimmage performance.

Who’s trending up after 2 weeks of fall camp? 

Graduate running back Jordan Waters

Waters builds more and more hype around himself each week. The former Duke running back found the end zone a couple of times during last week’s scrimmage, and multiple sources have complimented his overall approach to fall camp. He’s a playmaker on the field and, by all accounts, a stand-up person in the locker room. People around the program are extremely bullish on his potential for this season, and he is expected to lead the resurgence of NC State’s rushing attack.

NC State’s defense

The Wolfpack went into fall camp motivated by the outside noise around the unit. NC State noticed the noise around a potential drop off from the unit following the departure of its core linebacker group over the past couple of years.

They responded last week by putting together a fantastic scrimmage. It sounds like that side of the ball definitely made things difficult on NC State’s offense. Led by linebacker Sean Brown and a few players who will be mentioned below, it sounds like the Pack defense is preparing to exceed external expectations.

Sophomore cornerback Brandon Cisse

The second-year defensive back played a great scrimmage and continues to impress the staff. Both publicly and privately, the praise around Cisse has been an extremely strong performer. At one point earlier this year, the battle for the second starting cornerback job opposite of Aydan White looked like one of the best competitions of fall camp. Now, anyone other than Cisse starting would be a pretty significant surprise.

Graduate defensive lineman Noah Potter

Potter generated a lot of positive buzz for himself last week. He made a few nice plays in the scrimmage and impressed multiple sources. At this point, he seems like the most likely candidate to take over a backup defensive end spot opposite Red Hibbler. TheWolfpacker.com has heard more about him than redshirt freshman Isaiah Shirley at this time.

Offensive tackles Anthony Belton and Jacarrius Peak

NC State’s offensive line appeared to improve as the 2023 season went along, especially when Peak took over at right tackle. The redshirt sophomore and Belton, a potential high NFL Draft pick next year, have both made significant strides this offseason, per a source. Expect their play to elevate this fall. Peak allowed 11 pressures over 238 pass-blocking snaps last fall. Belton conceded 22 over 489 plays in protection.

Freshman running back Duke Scott

NC State’s staff has been super high on Scott’s potential ever since he first committed to the program, and that positive buzz continued to grow exponentially over his first 8 months on campus. The running back had a great spring and is already garnering praise during fall camp. NC State’s running back room has plenty of depth, and Scott could redshirt this year, but the way the coaches talk about him makes it seem like he will contribute to the 2024 Pack in some fashion.

Graduate safety KJ Martin

Martin stood out during last week’s scrimmage and made a few key stops throughout the competition. The all-conference Akron transfer will likely be a backup behind DK Kaufman this fall, but NC State rotates its safeties, so he should play plenty. His experience in the secondary will be huge for the secondary this year — especially as graduate Devan Boykin continues to recover from his ACL injury.

Sophomore wide receiver KC Concepcion

Unsurprisingly, Concepcion is having a great camp. He’s ready to avoid any sort of sophomore slump and has practiced well so far. The receiver could also factor into the punt return game this fall based on Dave Doeren’s comments to the ACC Network earlier this month, which is something to keep an eye on.

Freshman wide receiver Keenan Jackson

Hype continues to build around the freshman receiver. Jackson has the most buzz around him compared to any freshman on the roster right now. He showed off a few nice routes during the scrimmage and continues to impress the staff after a strong first week. At 6-foot-3, Jackson appears physically ready to compete at the collegiate level, and he’s showing the skill necessary to potentially contribute as a first-year player.