Over the past couple of weeks in the NFL, Philip Rivers tied Dan Marino for fifth place all-time in the league’s history for career touchdown passes. Meanwhile, Russell Wilson continues to be among the top signal callers in the NFL, even if his early-season MVP candidacy has faded.

Mike Glennon got another start for the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Ryan Finley was a bit of a viral sensation after leading the Cincinnati Bengals to an upset win over the Pittsburgh Steelers and seemingly smiling at every play along the way.

Watching those former Wolfpack QBs in the NFL as his team prepares for Saturday’s TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against Kentucky in Jacksonville, Fla., a noon kickoff on ESPN, was NC State redshirt junior Bailey Hockman.

“It’s awesome,” Hockman admitted. “I got to know Ryan a little bit when I came in. I talked him, and he’s really intelligent, really on top of things. It was awesome to see him do it at the next level.

“For [freshman quarterback] Ben [Finley], it cheers him up knowing his older brother’s doing well in the NFL. It’s awesome to see, and obviously you’ve got Russell and Phil and those guys that are doing it week in and week out for years.

"It’s awesome to see that.”

Obviously it is Hockman’s dream to some day join the former Pack players in the NFL, but before that become a possible reality, he needed to establish himself in college. This season has afforded Hockman that opportunity.

He went 5-3 as a starter, including the only game that Liberty lost this season. Overall, he has completed 63.7 percent of his passes for 1,810 yards and 12 touchdowns with eight interceptions, has rushed for two more TDs and even caught a 31-yard scoring pass.

Hockman’s success can largely be attributed to a new approach that was the product of the natural maturation of a former high school star having gone through the trials and adversity that Hockman has experienced in college. That included transferring, losing a battle for a starting job and being benched on multiple occasions.

“My mentality has changed a lot from thinking, ‘You’re just a baller, just go out there and ball,’ to being extremely detailed in what I’m doing and everything I do. Making sure I have those details on point,” Hockman said. “That’s the only way you can play well in this league and play fast and be able to progress and keep getting better.

“I’ve grown a lot, but it wasn’t an overnight success. I’ve been working for years, and to finally be able to put all the pieces together has been really good.”

Hockman’s partner in the quarterback room this season, redshirt sophomore Devin Leary, has been a helping hand, even after Leary broke his leg in his third and final start of the year. Hockman noted that Leary recently rejoined the quarterbacks room after being in the long-term injury group.

“He’s in meetings, and he’s out at practice and just around a lot more,” Hockman noted. “It’s been good to have him around, just getting an extra pair of eyes that really knows the game and knows what you’re supposed to be doing.

“It’s like having another coach out there,”

Hockman has achieved a lot this season, but he still has one more objective left before he heads into an important offseason for all the quarterbacks at NC State: beat Kentucky.

“It would just be really good for us to go out, execute, play well, and win the game,” Hockman said.

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