5/5/2021 football Edit

Defensive end Daniel Joseph selected No. 4 overall in the 2021 CFL Draft

Justin H. Williams • TheWolfpackCentral

Staff Writer

NC State fifth-year senior defensive end Daniel Joseph was selected by the British Columbia Lions with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 CFL Draft Tuesday.

The Wolfpack pass rusher will still get to wear the red and white on Saturdays this fall, however. Players from the NCAA selected in the CFL Draft will still be able to return to school, a decision Joseph already made several months ago

The BC Lions will retain Joseph's rights if he decides to go to the CFL after the conclusion of the 2021 college football season. He will also have the ability to explore the NFL Draft waters if he chooses.

NC State Wolfpack football Daniel Joseph — Fifth-year senior defensive end Daniel Joseph finished tied for eight in the ACC with 6.5 sacks in 2020. (Ethan Hyman, The News and Observer)

The native of Toronto, Ontario, was projected to be the No. 1 overall pick of the CFL Draft according to Marshall Ferguson of CFL.ca on Tuesday.

"The brother of former top pick Faith Ekakite and cousin of Wilfrid Laurier drafted pass rusher Ese Mrabure-Ajufo, Daniel Joseph has the combination of size, speed and raw pass rush ability you expect in a player worthy of landing near the top of draft boards," Ferguson said in his latest mock draft.

"Joseph spent 2020 at NC State after transferring from Penn State and started eight of the eleven games he played in 2020 while leading the Wolfpack with 6.5 sacks on the year.

"Here the Ticats solidify depth behind 2020 CFL first round draft pick Mason Bennett, while adding ratio flexibility, make no mistake. The play here is for pure talent to place opposite Ja’Gared Davis."

Joseph, a former Penn State transfer and the lone senior defensive starter last fall, played a big role in NC State's 8-4 2020 campaign. The 6-3, 265-pound pass-rusher led the Pack and finished the season tied for eighth in the ACC with 6.5 sacks.

Starting in eight of his 11 appearances during his debut season in Raleigh, Joseph produced 37 tackles, 10 for loss and three quarterback hurries.

The graduate transfer led the defensive line in tackles and finished second on the team in tackles for loss behind only redshirt sophomore linebacker Payton Wilson, who became the first Pack player to lead the ACC in tackles since Levar Fisher in 2000.

Joseph is the cousin of former BC Lions defensive lineman and 2015 1st Round Draft Pick Ese Mrabure-Ajufo and brother of Faith Ekakitie, a defensive lineman selected 1st overall by Winnipeg in the 2017 CFL Draft.