Noted college football reporter Bruce Feldman of The Athletic noted Tuesday afternoon that, “if you took a vote for nicest man in college football coach, [Ruffin McNeil would] be the toughest to beat.”

A wave of media members who have covered McNeill, including during his six seasons as the head coach at East Carolina, and former co-workers all went to Twitter to express their fondness of McNeill, who is now a special assistant to NC State head coach Dave Doeren.

What was more important, however, than the testimonies to the personality of McNeill, which as Doeren noted has an ability to make you smile whenever you hear him, is the voices of former players, including those who were with him at Oklahoma the past three years.

They vouched for something far more important: his authenticity.

Oklahoma corner Jaden Davis called McNeill, “one of the realest coaches” he’s ever been coached by. The word “realest” was also used by Bobby Evans Jr., a former Oklahoma offensive tackle who was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the third round in 2019. Former East Carolina standout receiver, five-year NFL veteran and Wilmington, N.C., native Justin Hardy said, “Congrats to a real one.”

We’ve seen this before around a recent Wolfpack hire.