NC State linebacker Payton Wilson named consensus All-American
It is a short list of NC State legends, but graduate linebacker Payton Wilson became the 11th Wolfpack player to be named a consensus All-American in the program’s 118 seasons on Monday morning.
Wilson, who earned first team honors from the Walter Camp Foundation last week, added first team nods from the Football Writers Association of America and the Associated Press on Monday to earn consensus All-America honors.
The Hillsborough, N.C., native is the fifth NC State player to be named a consensus All-American under coach Dave Doeren, and the first linebacker in program history to earn the honor.
Wilson joined defensive lineman Dennis Byrd (1967), offensive lineman Bill Yoest (1973), running back Ted Brown (1978), offensive lineman Jim Ritcher (1978, 1979), kicker Marc Primanti (1996), wide receiver Torry Holt (1998), defensive lineman Bradley Chubb (2017), center Garrett Bradbury (2018), offensive lineman Ikem Ekwonu (2021) and kicker Chris Dunn (2022) on the storied list.
The ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year led the conference with 138 tackles and led the league with 17.5 tackles for a loss. Wilson also logged six sacks, six passes defended, three interceptions — including a pick-six — and a forced fumble this fall.
Wilson posted the third-highest Pro Football Focus coverage grade of any player at his position that played more than 700 defensive snaps this fall with a 90.4 mark. He led the Pack with that grade, and he paced NC State in every defensive category, according to PFF.
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The linebacker also has 402 total tackles in his NC State career, which makes him the sixth player in program history to eclipse the four century mark. He joined Levar Fisher, Dantonio Burnette, Damien Covington, Robert Abraham and Earl Wolff in accomplishing the historic feat.
Wilson’s consensus All-America nod is the latest honor to his laundry list of awards that he has earned for his dominant play this fall. Wilson won the Bednarik (best defensive player) and the Butkus (best linebacker) awards this month, while he was a finalist for the Nagurski (best defensive player). He is the first player in program history to win the Bednarik and Butkus Awards.
In addition to the major All-America honors, Wilson has also been recognized as one by a multitude of media outlets, including CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, The Athletic and USA Today among others.
Wilson has also been selected to play in the Reese’s Senior Bowl in February as he prepares for the NFL Draft.
