NC State LOI No. 13: Wide receiver C.J. Riley
Wide Receiver
Coconut Creek (Fla.) North Broward Prep
6-foot-5, 188 pounds
Measurables: At the Nike Opening in Miami, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.64 seconds (laser-timed) and the shuttle in 4.6 seconds. Also had a 35.1-inch vertical leap and 32.5-feet power ball throw. His total SPARQ score was 83.01.
Stats:
• Senior: Caught 40 passes for 1,047 yards and 13 touchdowns.
• Junior: Hauled in 35 receptions for 679 yards and 11 scores.
Ratings:
• Rivals.com: Three stars, No. 98 in the state.
• Scout.com: Three stars, No. 147 wide receiver in the country.
• 247Sports: Three stars, No. 127 wide receiver in the country, No. 111 in the state.
• ESPN: Three stars, No. 173 wide receiver in the country, No. 188 in the state.
• Miami Herald: No. 27 prospect in talent-rich Broward County, Florida.
Honors/accomplishments:
• Named first-team All-Broward County for the 2-A through 5-A classifications as a senior.
• Picked second-team all-state for 4-A classification in 2015.
• Played in the Florida North-South All-Star Game.
• Also runs sprints and does jumps (long and triple) in track, advancing to the state finals in the triple jump after registering a personal-best 42-3 leap in the regionals.
Recruitment:
• During an extensive summer tour, visited Duke, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, NC State, Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Vanderbilt and West Virginia, all of whom had offered.
• Narrowed his three favorites to Duke, NC State, Nebraska and Pittsburgh, and officially visited NCSU (Nov. 20) and Nebraska (Oct. 9).
• Verbally committed on the Pack tendered Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving.
Recruiter of record:
• Receivers coach George McDonald
Quotable:
“For opposing defenses, Riley’s presence is dominating. His 6’4,” 180-pound stature gives opposing defensive backs nightmares, forcing major mismatches in the secondary. Out of Riley’s 24 receiving touchdowns, at least ten of them were corner fades into the end-zone, in which Riley snatched the ball from the defender … Riley has also shown breakaway speed after the catch, making even tougher to stop him.” — FloridaHSFootball.com
Scouting report:
• Tall receiver with good speed for his size.
• Shows the ability to be both a deep threat or make defenders miss in the open field and pull away from them.
• Will need to adjust to higher level of competition than what he faces at the prep level and also get stronger.
2016 projection:
Riley has the physical tools that the Wolfpack coaches were craving to add to their receiving corps. He’s a tall target who can run and get over the top of the defense. The key for him is how quickly he can adjust to the speed at this level. If he can do so quickly, he is a dark horse to get on the field quickly.