When NC State redshirt junior defensive end Ibrahim Kante went home for spring break in March, he figured it would be a short stay.

“I am thinking I am going home for three or four days,” Kante remembered thinking.

That was obviously not the case. For one, home was the epicenter of the global pandemic in the spring, and secondly there would be no return to campus regardless until mid-summer.

On GoPack.com, Kante documented how after a state of emergency was declared in New York City, residents had to hunker down in their homes except for necessities. For three weeks, Kante did not leave his apartment in Harlem for three weeks, and when he did for the first time he was donning gloves and a mask.

“It ended up being a whole like 2.5, three months I was stuck at home,” Kante said. “A couple of the gyms were closed and stuff like that, so I just had to find a way.”

Kante’s chief objective during the lockdown: try to stay in shape. He used Zoom meetings with old high school teammates and coaches to get a good workout plan, but he was also limited in what he could do.

“As far as lifting, it was different,” Kante admitted. “Because I wasn’t touching weights. I was doing body weight stuff.

“I was still strong, but I wasn’t as strong as I was before I left. It took a couple of weeks to get back to normal.”

Normal is a relative word these days, but Kante is getting back to focusing on football as the Wolfpack prepares for its season opener Saturday afternoon against Wake Forest. Instead of talking about COVID-19 precautions, Kante is talking about the defensive line stopping the run against the Demon Deacons, and how it might be an advantage that they have a week of game film to study on Wake Forest.

Kante knows that his unit is a focal point in the Wolfpack’s new-look 3-3-5 defense. “I feel like this defense, in order for it to work … it starts with us,” Kante said. “We are going to take pride in that this year.”

Kante is working with a new defensive line coach in Charley Wiles, and he has a new number after switching from No. 52 to No. 28.

“It’s been really good,” Kante said of the transition with Wiles. “I feel like he’s a good fit for us. He came here, and we liked his coaching style. I feel like we have a pretty good relationship with him.”

The 6-foot-4, 263-pound Kante is listed as a potential starter at right end along with sophomore Savion Jackson.

In 2019, Kante started seven games and had three tackles for loss, including assisting on a sack, and added two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

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