Pair of transfers highlight NC State ACC Kickoff attendees
NC State will take its annual trip to Charlotte July 25 for the ACC Kickoff— the official start of the 2024 football preseason. The conference announced the Wolfpack’s attendees Monday afternoon.
Senior defensive lineman Davin Vann, graduate running back Jordan Waters and graduate quarterback Grayson McCall will accompany head coach Dave Doeren to media day.
All three of the Wolfpack’s players have never experienced the ACC’s kickoff event, but the program is will still bring 14 combined years of college football experience to the event. Waters and McCall are both transfers, marking the second-consecutive year NC State will bring a first year player to the event. Quarterback Brennan Armstrong attended ACC Kickoff in 2023.
Vann’s inclusion on the list comes as no surprise as the defensive lineman returns for his second season in the Pack’s coveted No. 1 jersey— an honor that signifies himself as one of the program’s foremost leaders.
By all accounts, Vann has continued to grow his presence in the locker room over the past year. The disruptive defensive lineman received All-ACC honorable mention recognition after recording 42 tackles and 5.5 sacks in 2023, and he leads the team off the field as well.
“We need him on this football team for our success,” defensive line coach Charley Wiles told TheWolfpacker.com. “I love being around the kid, I like coaching him. Obviously I’ve had a lot of guys in my room over the years, but he’s certainly going to be in that top portion of favorite people to coach.
McCall is in his first season with the Pack after putting up huge numbers with Coastal Carolina over the previous five years. He comes into his graduate season with 10,005 passing yards and a long list of accolades that includes 3 Sun Belt Player of the Year awards.
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He committed to the Wolfpack over UCF in the transfer portal and moved to Raleigh in January. McCall will be NC State’s starting quarterback this year and has clearly taken on a leadership role as well.
“He’s done a really good job learning the new offense, new terminology and connecting with a new skill set of players,” offensive coordinator Robert Anae told TheWolfpacker.com “[He’s] the best first year guy in the offense that I’ve been around.”
Waters also transferred to NC State after the 2023 season. The powerful running back spend five seasons at Duke and emerged as one of the conference’s top running backs last fall. He scored 12 touchdowns and rushed for 819 yards with the Blue Devils.
NC State running backs coach Todd Goebbel effusively praised Waters in a recent interview with TheWolfpacker.com. The Pack’s starting running back job is a wide open competition, but Waters is the player to beat.
“We knew we were getting a good person,” Goebbel. “I didn’t know we were getting an elite person.”
The ACC scheduled the Wolfpack’s media day for Thursday, July 25, joining UNC, Clemson and Syracuse on the final day of the event.
