Packed recruiting intel: Saturday morning OV updates, Jontae Gilbert notes
NC State is in the middle of its final summer official visit weekend right now. The recruits all arrived on campus Friday afternoon, went through photoshoots later in the day and spent time with their player hosts.
By all accounts, the weekend is off to a great start. NC State has already received some good news from a priority prospect. Wolfpack fans will not have to wait long to hear about it.
TheWolfpacker.com would be surprised if that is the only good news to come out of this weekend. After checking in with a few sources, here’s everything we are hearing on these key visits, plus the latest intel on elite four-star safety Jontae Gilbert.
NC State pulls into the lead for Jontae Gilbert
NC State needed to hit a home run on Gilbert’s visit. The Pack is competing with Georgia, a home-state program that is quickly ramping up its interest, Georgia Tech, UCF and Louisville.
It sounds like the staff hit this mid-week trip out of the park. Based on all of the intel coming out of the June 19-21 official visit, TheWolfpacker.com projects him to NC State and is very close to submitting an RPM pick in the program’s favor. The four-star prospect, ranked No. 131 nationally, said the trip went really well.
Gilbert started to express strong interest in the Wolfpack earlier this spring. His official visit moved around a couple of times, but he wrapped up his June travel schedule in Raleigh. The defensive back previously planned on visiting Georgia State but, per On3’s Chad Simmons, it looks like that trip is no longer happening.
Even if he does stop by the Sun Belt program, he narrowed down his recruitment to NC State, Georgia, Louisville, UCF and Georgia Tech. The rising senior also told Simmons he will make his decision Aug. 10. That’s the most notable decision of all.
Gilbert previously wanted to commit in October, which would have given him space to take more official visits. He had a trip to South Carolina scheduled for the fall, but the Gamecocks, the longtime perceived favorite for the Atlanta (Ga.) Douglass High star, are no longer in contention.
This looks like an NC State vs. Georgia battle and, based on TheWolfpacker.com’s intel and reporting from Simmons, it seems like the Wolfpack’s consistency and his bond with the coaching staff has the ACC program in first place with around six weeks until his announcement.
Keep an eye on his late-July visit plans. If he returns to Raleigh for the Alpha Wolf Showcase, that will be telling. TheWolfpacker.com will wait a little while to see where the momentum lies after the initial official visit excitement dies down, but NC State put itself in a great spot this week.
It’s also worth noting that four-star safety Jordan Young’s visit went well. Do not rule out the Pack for the nation’s No. 36 prospect. Clemson remains the team to beat though. He will spend this weekend with Michigan.
Saturday official visit updates
All 10 of the Wolfpack’s expected official visitors made it to campus yesterday. So far, everything seems to be going well. Photoshoots were popular once again. Last night, all of the parents spent some time together, and TheWolfpacker.com heard at least two of them stayed up until 2:30 a.m., hanging out and building a relationship. When the families click on these official visit, that always helps NC State.
Player hosts are always a huge part of official visits. Sophomore wide receiver Kevin Concepcion and sophomore tight end Juice Vereen were two of last year’s top recruiters. If a prospect stayed with them, they usually ended up committing.
This year, sophomore cornerback Brandon Cisse is absolutely crushing it. He hosted Cam Strong June 7-9. The three-star defensive committed to the Pack Friday night. Then, Cisse hosted Gilbert June 19-21 and helped establish NC State as the team to beat.
Cisse is on pace to emerge as one of the Wolfpack’s best players this fall, and having one of your stars recruit as vocally as he does will continue to pay dividends for the program.
Let’s take a look at the full list of hosts.
*** Four-star wide receiver Malik Clark— Cornerback Brandon Cisse*** Four-star wide receiver Shamarius Peterkin and three-star wide receiver Arrion Concepcion— Wide receiver Kevin Concepcion*** Three-star running back Kentrell Rinehart— Running back Hollywood Smothers*** Three-star offensive lineman Michael Gibbs— Offensive tackle Jacarrius Peak*** Three-star offensive lineman Isaac Sowells Jr.— Center Zeke Correll*** Three-star wide receiver Jerel Bolder— Wide receiver Jonathan Paylor*** Defensive lineman Omarian Abraham— Linebacker Kelvon McBride*** Quarterback commit Will Wilson— Quarterback Cole Wilson*** Tight end commit Gus Ritchey— Tight end Dante Daniels
Clark and Cisse are both from South Carolina, so that pairing makes sense. Last fall, Peterkin told TheWolfpacker.com that he looks up to Concepcion. Having the ACC rookie of the year host the four-star receiver seems like a smart choice.
Picking Paylor to host Bolder could be a good fit as well. The freshman wide receiver picked the Pack over pretty much every elite program in the country. Bolder is leaning towards Georgia, and Paylor is probably the best person to explain why NC State could be a better fit for him.
The post Packed recruiting intel: Saturday morning OV updates, Jontae Gilbert notes appeared first on On3.
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