NC State’s linebackers continue to grow as season’s end nears

NC State senior linebacker Jaylon Scott’s days in a Wolfpack uniform are numbered, and he is well aware that is the case. But the closer that he has gotten to the end of his collegiate career, the more his play on the field has taken a step forward. 

The Shelby, N.C., native has thrived in his fifth year of college football, and has more than doubled his previous career best in tackles. Scott has posted 64 total stops this season, up from the 30 he logged in the 2021 campaign.

Scott led the Wolfpack with eight total tackles in its 26-6 win at Wake Forest this past weekend, which was the third straight game out of NC State’s bye week that he had at least that many. He had 10 stops in the 24-17 win over Clemson three weeks ago, and recorded nine tackles in the 20-6 win over Miami after that. 

“He’s really playing well,” NC State coach Dave Doeren said of Scott. “Coming out of the bye week there were some things he wanted to improve on, and to his credit, he’s done that. He’s playing fast. … He waited his turn, and now he knows the clock’s running out, and he’s playing like that. It’s fun as a coach when your seniors play their best football as time runs out.”

Scott is one of four NC State linebackers that has seen the field on a consistent basis this fall, joined by graduate Payton Wilson, junior Devon Betty and redshirt sophomore Caden Fordham. The quartet has been an integral part of the Wolfpack’s defense, which is the 14th-best against the run in the NCAA this fall (100.3 yards per game allowed). 

Three of them are up there in experience, and then there’s Fordham, in his first season of meaningful snaps on defense. He had a breakout game at Virginia with a career-high 12 tackles, and has racked up at least three tackles in every game since except one. 

Fordham is the youngest of the four, and the trio of elder statesmen have worked to help him improve — and he has seen the fruits of the labor. 

“Those guys have been here, me coming in as a younger guy, they’ve really taken me under their wing,” Fordham said. “All four of us — me, [Devon] Betty, Payton [Wilson] and [Jaylon] Scott — we’ve all grown together very tight, very close-knit group. I love those dudes, and I’m happy to play with them.”

Fordham and Wilson have a close friendship, and he has leaned on the ACC’s leading tackler this season, especially when it comes to knowledge of the defense.

“He’s got great knowledge for the game,” Fordham said of Wilson. “He teaches me a lot of the smaller details within the game that I can see within formations before the ball’s snapped. Payton’s been really big helping me as I’ve started to come into this role, playing more.”

While Fordham has begun to catch up to the rest of the Wolfpack linebackers in terms of comfort on the field, NC State’s defense has been stout across the past three weeks. NC State has allowed an average of 9.6 points a game since its bye week, which has resulted in a three-game winning streak. 

The bye week allowed the defense to figure some things out, Scott said, and that has been noticeable since. 

“I feel like that reset came at a good time,” Scott said. “It was a time for us to go back and study ourselves, and see what we’re not doing so well that we may think out there on the field that we’re doing well. … Prebreak, I thought our communication wasn’t up to par. But after the bye week, I feel like we came back with a totally different mindset.”

That different mindset has been key, and the linebackers, specifically Scott and Wilson, have played at another level. 

As Scott’s NC State nears its end, Wolfpack defensive coordinator Tony Gibson was appreciative of how far he has come as a player. Gibson said Scott’s maturity “keeps getting better as a player.”

“Jaylon’s very smart,” Gibson said. “Jaylon has played all three positions at linebacker for us. He was kind of like my safety net for the last few years. Any time that Isaiah, Payton or Drake would go down, he would be the next man in. I give him a lot of credit. Not a lot of guys would have stuck out and stayed here for five years in a backup role, but man, he’s taking full advantage of his opportunities.”

Scott went from backup linebacker to a key difference maker for the Wolfpack, and pro scouts continue to ask Gibson about him. The next level has some interest in Scott, and his consistent play is a key reason why. 

But it is not time to think about that for Scott. He has three games left — two in the regular season and a bowl — with the Wolfpack first. And across this final trio of games, Gibson expects Scott to continue his upward trajectory. 

For Scott, the last three games are bittersweet. But he is taking them one at a time as he soaks up his final months as a college athlete. 

“I’m taking it one game, one day at a time,” Scott said. “I’m trying to enjoy it, take it all in. These are my guys. I love them, I’d do anything for them. I’m just trying to finish out the season strong with the guys that I love.”