The Wolfpacker projected NC State depth chart: Defense

NC State Wolfpack football temporarily paused workouts on Monday after a cluster of of COVID-19 cases were reported within the athletics department.

Nevertheless, the Pack is roughly three weeks away from its season opener against Wake Forest Sept. 19 and NC State has been practicing since the beginning of the month. Here is a look at The Wolfpacker's current projected depth chart on the defensive side of the football. (Click here to read our offensive predictions).

There are multiple possibilities that make projecting a two-deep on the defensive line challenging.

The safest bet is McNeill will be back at nose tackle, where he started eight games last year and finished the season with 28 tackles, including 7.5 for loss and 5.5 sacks, plus two pass breakups. PFF graded McNeill at 79.4, highest on the Pack defense a season ago. The same organization made McNeill a preseason All-American.

We went with Martin backing up McNeill. The former junior college transfer actually started three contests a year ago and had 11 hits, including 1.5 for loss. Head coach Dave Doeren noted that Martin, who has slimmed down to 288 pounds, has worked at both nose tackle and defensive tackle.

Another option at nose tackle is redshirt freshman Joshua Harris, a former four-star signing and heavily recruited prospect in the 2019 class. Harris' ability to see the field will depend on how well the 344-pounder is conditioned.

The guesses at the other two defensive line spots are just that: guesses. We gave Joseph an edge based on his experience. The 6-foot-3, 265-pounder played in 32 games at Penn State before transferring to NC State, giving a boost to the defensive line that was hit hard by attrition, losing two starters to the NFL and three potentially key contributors this year to transfer.

Jackson joined Clark and Harris as the three highly touted defensive line signees in the 2019 class that had a who's who offer list. He was the only one of the three to play as a true freshman, and at 6-2, 285 pounds, he could be well suited for the 3-man front. Like Harris, the four-star Clark redshirted.

Kante (six starts in 2019, with 15 tackles, three hits for loss and a sack assist) is another name that could potentially be a starter.

Not listed on our two deep but a strong bet to figure into the equation is Terrell Dawkins, who redshirted last season and has been awarded the chance to wear No. 0, a first in Wolfpack history.

It's been assumed that there has been some good competition going on at linebacker.

Moore, for instance, started 11 games last season and was third on the team in tackles, so it's quite possible he gets a starting job back in 2020.

It is hard to ignore the promise Wilson, a former four-star signing, showed as a rookie when he led NC State in tackles (69) and had one of the team's four interceptions on the year despite starting only one contest.

When healthy, Acceus was one of the Wolfpack's better-performing defensive players. He finished with 50 tackles in eight games and would have challenged Wilson for the team lead had he played a full year. PFF graded Acceus as the third-best defensive player for NC State in 2019.

While those three get our starting nods, others could easily get into the mix, especially Jones. The transfer from Southern Cal and highly prized four-star prospect coming out of high school was universally praised as a likely instant impact player during his NCAA-mandated sit-out year.

It's also not out of the equation that Hart and/or Thomas could build off nice rookie seasons and get into the mix for starting nods. Hart had 35 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and a sack, in 11 games last year while starting twice. Thomas was one of the few defensive players who played all 12 contests and made three starts. He had 34 tackles, including four for loss and 2.5 sacks, and added an interception.

Due to the massive amount of injuries, how this position will shake out is a great question mark.

Doeren said last week that Ingram, who would be the most likely bet to start, is still working his way back from a season-ending knee injury last fall. Thus, we included him as a reserve for now. Ingram started all six games he played in 2019 before getting hurt and still ended up leading NC State with two interceptions. Despite missing half the season, he graded out as NCSU's best corner per PFF.

Smith has starting experience and the 6-3, 186-pounder showed exciting potential as a true freshman in 2018 before injury cut his sophomore campaign short. We went with Powell alongside Smith. Powell played on both sides of the ball last fall (receiver and corner), but could blossom now that he is focused on one position. The 6-0, 210-pounder is well-regarded for his athleticism.

Powell recorded 19 stops in 2019, while Smith had 14 tackles, including one for a loss, and a pass breakup.

It is easy to envision Dunlap as a starter, too. He took his lumps when forced into action due to the injuries sustained last year, but made five starts and led NC State with eight pass breakups.

There are also young options like former four-star recruit Shyheim Battle, who redshirted last year and has been praised by Doeren in preseason camp, and redshirt sophomore Taiyon Palmer, who also had his 2019 cut short by an injury but is considered a promising prospect that had one pass breakup in five appearances last fall.

Ingle is a safe bet to return to a starting role. He started all 11 games he played in last year and finished with 68 tackles (including five for loss) and broke up four passes. The question is, who joins him?

Harris logged fairly significant snaps in 2019, playing in 11 games and finishing with 31 tackles. Martin was pushed into a starting role due to injuries in the season finale against North Carolina. He had seven tackles in that contest and held up, considering the circumstances, reasonably well.

Depth is a pretty big question mark at safety. Ashford's decision to enroll early from Jones College in Ellisville, Miss., was a positive development. Ashford was an all-conference performer at one of the premier junior college leagues in the country.

Baker-Williams joins Ingle as the two most logical assumptions for starters in the secondary. He played all 12 games a year ago and made three starts, tallying 39 tackles and three pass breakups. PFF dubbed Baker-Williams the top performing defensive back for the Wolfpack, and Doeren used the word "special" to describe how Baker-Williams has performed this offseason.

Boykin is a versatile defensive back prospect who is listed on the roster as a corner, but we project the quickest way for him to get on the field may be at nickel. Doeren has already hinted that Boykin is likely to play this fall. The athletic son of his head coach at Ragsdale High near Greensboro, N.C., was voted his conference's offensive player of the year as a junior and then defensive player of the year as a senior.

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