NC State football roundtable: Who will lead NC State in sacks?

Bradley Chubb has been NC State's premier pass rusher for the past two seasons, but he is now pressuring quarterbacks for the Denver Broncos. Last season, Chubb had 10 sacks for NC State. The next nearest Wolfpack defender was Kentavius Street with 3.5, and like Chubb he's in the NFL after being drafted in the fourth round by the San Francisco 49ers.

Thus someone has to step up and get after the opposing QBs. Who will it be? We take our guess. You can add your opinion through our poll on the Wolves' Den message board:

Who will lead the team in sacks?

Previous roundtables:

• Who leads NC State in receptions and receiving yards?

• Who leads the Pack in tackles?

Matt Carter

The natural guess is Darian Roseboro. Somewhat quietly Roseboro has 13.5 career sacks, and with nine sacks he would tie Carl Reeves for fifth-most all-time in school history.

However, Roseboro did not have as much success in 2017, recording just 2.5 sacks, lower than the four sacks he had a freshman and seven as a sophomore. That's understandable though when considering Roseboro was dealing with personal issues off the field with the passing of his father in the middle of the season.

Roseboro from all accounts is geared up for a strong senior season. He entered his junior year with chatter that perhaps he would be an early entrant into the NFL Draft. That faded by the end of the year, but Roseboro is a former four-star, Michigan commit who was one of the prized recruits of the Dave Doeren era.

The bet here is that Roseboro will live up to the hype this fall and lead NC State in sacks.So I am going with that natural guess.

Jacey Zembal

Roseboro had seven sacks, five quarterback pressures and 11 tackles for loss during his sophomore season, when he shared time with Kentavius Street. The latter has gone on to become a fourth-round NFL Draft choice.

Roseboro is back for his senior year after an emotion-filled junior year. He flirted with the concept of entering the NFL Draft, but that would have only made sense if his family absolutely need financial help in light of his father passing away from a lengthy health battle last October. Instead, his inner circle urged Roseboro to return for his senior year, where he tried to resemble an improved version of his 2016 campaign.

There was a time where the gap between Roseboro and star defensive end Bradley Chubb was narrower. Chubb kept striving and building on his abilities and it paid off with him being the fifth pick in the NFL Draft this past spring. Roseboro has the athleticism of a former prep running back star at Lincolnton (N.C.) High — he probably could have been a terrific tight end — but is also supersized for a defensive end at 6-foot-4 and 283 pounds. He originally was projected to be a defensive tackle, but instead has held off gaining the 15-20 pounds that position needed.

NC State had 37 sacks and it’s not likely the Wolfpack will approach that number with a rebuilt front four, but Roseboro needs to reach double figures this season.