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NC State RB Kendrick Raphael to enter transfer portal

image_6483441 (3)by:Noah Fleischman•04/13/25•

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Kendrick Raphael
Nov 21, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack running back Kendrick Raphael (0) runs the ball against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the fourth quarter at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Spring practice has come and gone, and the transfer portal is set to reopen on Wednesday. NC State will have at least one entry when it resumes. Rising junior running back Kendrick Raphael plans to put his name in this week, he told On3’s Hayes Fawcett.

Raphael has two years of eligibility remaining.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound tailback emerged as a starting running back for the last three games of his freshman season. He logged 67 carries for 309 yards and a touchdown in his first year of college football.

This past season, however, he split carries with Jordan Waters and Hollywood Smothers to log 78 attempts for 425 yards and three scores as NC State’s No. 2 back.

Raphael posted a career-best performance in the Wolfpack’s Week 4 loss at Clemson this past fall as he logged 10 carries for 90 yards and a touchdown. But after that game, Raphael had just one other outing — at Georgia Tech in the penultimate regular season game (nine carries, 78 yards) — where he eclipsed more than 50 rushing yards in the Pack’s by committee running back room.

With Raphael off to the transfer portal, NC State’s primary running back position seems to be up for grabs. Smothers is in line to be the Pack’s starter, while redshirt freshmen Duke Scott and Isiah Jones, and freshman Deandre Desinor will battle for that role. It’s also likely NC State looks to bring in another tailback through the transfer portal to strengthen the room — and possibly add veteran experience to the group.

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