One of the fun things about basketball in the Triangle is that there are three teams that all woof at each other. The common element is that Duke and NC State historically hate UNC, while Carolina hates Duke and likes to condescend to State fans as if they're the infamous little brother.
Take this article from KeepingItHeel.com, which mocks the Wolfpack after Darrion Williams announced he would transfer back to Texas Tech.
Like most players this past spring who ******* umed their eligibility was up, Williams had made other plans. He entered the NBA Draft but was not selected. When the recent court decision came down that gave all members of the class of 2022 a fifth year, Williams took advantage and returned to Lubbock, which makes sense.
Why would he have stayed with the Wolfpack? The team he was recruited to is scattered to the winds. The coach who brought him to Raleigh is gone. There isn't anything holding him there.
The writer takes glee in what he calls an "NC State collapse," but is it?

#state #wolfpack #triangle #texas

As more players pursue a fifth year of college eligibility following temporary court injunctions allowing certain athletes to compete for an additional season, schools are beginning to add experienced players to their rosters.
That trend continued with former NC State transfer Darrion Williams, who recently committed to Texas Tech for his fifth and final season, provided the current eligibility ruling remains in place.
Kentucky showed interest in Williams last month, according to Ben Roberts of the Lexington Herald-Leader, but the Wildcats ultimately missed out on the 6-foot-6, 225-pound wing.
Williams spent last season at NC State, averaging 14.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 ****** ists per game while shooting 40.4% from the 3-point line.
Before joining the Wolfpack, Williams spent two seasons at Texas Tech, where he started 67 games. He began his college career at Nevada, averaging 7.3 rebounds per game and earning Mountain West Freshman of the Year honors.

#williams #year

For a few weeks now, we have heard about Pat Fitzgerald's plans to bring in a new tradition to Michigan State football that he's done throughout his career. He's calling it 'The Spartan'. The team voted on the player that best exemplifies what it means to be a Spartan, and that player will earn the right to wear No. 1 as his jersey number this season. On Thursday evening, we found out that the team selected Kenny Soars Jr. to be the inaugural Spartan.
The selection of Soares as The Spartan tells us a few things. One, this clearly had nothing to do with who has been in the program the longest. Soares is a graduate transfer who will only play one season for Michigan State after starting his career with Northwestern, where he was recruited by Fitzgerald before Fitzgerald was fired. Soares then transferred to NC State, where he played one season for the Wolfpack. It also tells us that Soares is already incredibly respected by his teammates and coaches.
Soares will go down in history as the first player to start this new legacy at MSU.
Contact/Follow us The SpartansWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter IAmBrewster.
This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Michigan State football EDGE named 'The Spartan', earns No. 1 jersey

#spartan

Football is finally here. We are only a few days away from the Virginia Tech Hokies opening fall camp. We recently began our preview of fall camp with five offensive players to know. Now, we'll do the same for the defensive side of the ball.
The 6-foot-3, 245-pound edge rusher was an elite recruit out of Cocoa, Florida, only one year ago. He signed with Missouri, appearing in three games before choosing to redshirt. However, he entered the transfer portal and quickly became an in-demand player. Hilson chose the Hokies. He is one of several new edge rushers on this season's roster. Hilson, Mylachi Williams and Samuel Okunlola have the best chance to make an impact this fall.
Hilson's combination of size, length and speed gives him the highest upside of the group. He has the potential to make the same type of impact as Antwaun Powell-Ryland did a few years back. That's not saying Hilson will reach 16 sacks or more, but the potential is there. He can easily be a double-digit sack guy this fall.
We are double dipping at defensive end here. When head coach James Franklin was asked to name one player on each side of the ball who stood out this spring, he named Stevens. At 6-foot-5, 260 pounds, Stevens has excellent size. After redshirting his freshman season, he's appeared in all 25 games over the last two seasons. Now, it's time for him to enter the starting lineup and never look back. Stevens will win at the point of attack with brute strength. It will be fun to watch him take the next step in his career.
The 6-foot-1, 228-pound sophomore didn't play over the first few games last season. Once he entered the lineup on Sept. 27 against N.C. State, he never looked back. Chambers had six tackles and one sack in that surprise road win over the Wolfpack. He kept getting better throughout the remainder of the season and became a priority to retain. Now, the Hokies have their middle linebacker, and he still has plenty of room to grow. His former head coach, Brent Pry, is now his defensive coordinator and position coach.

#games #coach

A former Spartan will reportedly explore a return to college basketball following the recent injunction that allows a fifth year of eligibility for players in the 2022 class.
Former Michigan State guard Tre Holloman could return for another season with the Spartans this upcoming season. Jamie Shaw of On3 reported on Saturday that Holloman will be "exploring college options" for next season following the notable injunction that was approved on Friday.
Holloman played his first three years of his collegiate career with the Spartans before transferring to NC State for this past season. He appeared in 106 games during his three years with the Spartans, averaging 9.1 points and 3.7 ****** ists per game during his final season in 2024-25.
In his lone year with NC State, Holloman appeared in 32 games (27 of which were starts). He ended the season averaging 9.2 points and 2.1 ****** ists per game with the Wolfpack.
Holloman has been back in the East Lansing, Mich. area in recent weeks, playing in the Moneyball Pro-Am event and presumably hanging out with Spartan players. It'll be interesting to see if Michigan State would welcome him back to the program as a reserve point guard or if Holloman will look elsewhere for a starting role in his final year of college hoops.

#spartan

NC State stayed patient, stayed consistent and ultimately kept one of its top in-state defensive targets home.
Three-star cornerback AK Crumel has committed to Dave Doeren and the Wolfpack over Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.
The 6-foot-2, 165-pound defensive back from Clayton (N.C.) has been a priority in Raleigh for over two years. NC State offered Crumel during his freshman season after evaluating him at practice, and from that point forward, the Wolfpack never let up.
"They've been recruiting me since I was a freshman," Crumel told Rivals. "They're in my backyard. They're close to home, and I love them. There are a lot of reasons I chose NC State."
That consistency ultimately separated NC State from the rest of the field.

#stayed #freshman

After suffering an injury during the Crimson Tide's "A-Day" spring game, the status of new Alabama football wideout Noah Rogers has been one of the program's biggest storylines over the summer months.
A transfer from NC State, Rogers' status was updated Wednesday at 2026 SEC media days by Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer, doing so during an interview with The Game's Ryan Fowler.
"Yeah, he's doing a great job," DeBoer said. "I think early on, when he first was injured, probably a timeline that he's surpassed. I would expect him to still miss some games early in the season, and I'm not going to set limits on what he can do as far as how quickly he can come back, we want to be smart, but he has done a phenomenal job, along with our elite training staff and medical staff, to execute the plan that was put in place. He's coming along very nicely, I guess I'll just put it that way."
The senior was one of Alabama's top portal additions during the offseason, joining the Crimson Tide following a pair of seasons at NC State. Rogers had 68 receptions for 919 yards and three touchdowns with the Wolfpack, and is a prominent name to know entering 2026, projecting as one of Alabama's top wide receivers this fall.
Others such as Ryan Coleman-Williams and Lotzeir Brooks project as Alabama's top wideouts alongside Rogers, a position group that should be loaded yet again in 2026.

#ryan

Now that summer camp sessions are over in June, and the July recruiting visits are winding down, the coaching staff is able to provide us some information about summer workouts.
Front Court – Feeling much better after the two late additions. Both bring something different, Hall with the athleticism and Jurkovic brings that veteran older piece, can play both spots, can play inside but can also play outside and stretch the floor. Adding those two gives me five guys that we can play with down there, so that makes me feel a lot better.
Defending, rebounding, take care of the basketball are the identify of Wolfpack basketball
They've been pushed in ways that many of them have not been pushed before
Paul McNeil – He wants to be pushed hard. He doesn't want to be treated any differently. Our relationship is continuing to grow.

#summer #Basketball

Roberson baseball junior Holt Gaston is headed to play Division I baseball.
Gaston announced his commitment to North Carolina State in a post on X on July 15.
Gaston was an All-WNC second-team selection as a pitcher this past season after going 6-0 with a 3.53 ERA in eight starts and 11 appearances. He struck out 51 batters, walked 24 and held opponents to a .227 batting average. He was named the Mountain Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year.
At the plate, Gaston, who also played outfield for the Rams, batted .303 with four home runs and 26 RBIs.
Gaston will play alongside Polk County's Gunnar Alm, who affirmed his commitment to the Wolfpack after going undrafted in the MLB draft, and former West Henderson star Truitt Manuel, who just finished his redshirt freshman season with the program.

Wolfpack fans, Blue Devils fans and Caniacs alike are celebrating after each had nominations for major honors at this year's ESPY Awards.
Former NC State soccer standout Donavan Phillip is nominated for best college athlete, as is former Duke basketball star Cameron Boozer. They join a formidable field of nominees that includes Penn State wrestler Mitchell Mesenbrink and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza of Indiana University. Boozer was recently selected third in this year's NBA draft, and Phillip, now with the Colorado Rapids, played his final collegiate season on the very field where fans first saw his rise.
NC State men's soccer head coach Marc Hubbard said the nomination marks a first for the program.
"Another first. I haven't had an ESPY nomination for one of our guys," he said.
Hubbard, now in his second year leading the Wolfpack, said Phillip's growth has been remarkable.

With their second round pick in the 2026 draft, the Orioles chose outfielder Ty Head from North Carolina State. That follows on the heels of their first round pick going to a high school outfielder, Eric Booth Jr.
On MLB’s draft telecast after the pick, the **** ysts offered praise for Head as a player, describing his potential for elite contact rates along with “stick in center field” level defense, plus potential for speed and power as a 20 homer/20 stolen base guy.
Of course, if Head was a strong probability to do all of those things, he would have been picked much higher than #46 in the draft. Head’s elite contact rates haven’t equated to a high batting average in his time with the Wolfpack; he posted just a .293 average this season. He walks a ton and doesn’t strike out much. I’m talking 59 walks and only 23 strikeouts. That’s a crazy ratio. It’s not uncommon to see a player praised for “more walks than strikeouts” in his college tenure and you look at those guys and it’s usually like, a handful more walks than strikeouts. Head is more than doubling up his number of strikeouts with walks.
The downside there is some pitches you don’t actually want to hit, and you will end up with a lot of not-great contact. Head has had his share of that while facing ACC level competition. It’s only going to get harder in the pros. Even Low-A pitchers are going to be better than a lot of the guys who are pitching for college teams.
The Orioles had to wait a long time to make this pick between their first round selection and this one. That’s because they traded the pick they would have had at #33 to the Rays as part of the Shane Baz trade. The Rays selected a South Carolina high school shortstop, Taj Marchand, with that pick. If any player selected in the 33-37 range pops, that’s going to hurt a little bit. That group includes the son of Hall of Famer and former (for a short time) Oriole, Jim Thome. The younger Thome, Landon, was taken from the Illinois high school ranks at #34 .

The 2026 MLB Draft is just a few weeks away (July 11-12), which means the 2026 MLB Draft Combine is upon us, taking place this week (June 23-26) in Arizona. NC State will have six players partaking in the event.
All six are expected to be drafted, with JR RHP Jacob Dudan and SO CF Ty Head expected to be the highest draftees of the group. With Dudan still recovering from Tommy John Surgery earlier this spring, he won't be doing anything but taking some measurements and meeting with clubs. The other five participants will be partaking in drills.
JR LHP Ryan Marohn's bullpen will be of great importance for his draft prospects as he'll need to show the injury that kept him out of the latter half of the year is now behind him. A solid showing will boost his prospects significantly.
Likewise, a solid combine showing from JR 3B Sherman Johnson will amplify his late season boom with the Wolfpack in 2026. He seems to have some momentum heading into the draft.
JR 2B Luke Nixon and JR 1B Chris McHugh will also have an opportunity to boost their profiles.

The Denver Broncos drafted Justin Joly in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL draft, and according to Sports Illustrated writer Justin Melo, Joly could be a late-round steal who could contribute early for the Broncos.
Joly posted 1978 yards receiving and 15 touchdowns between his two stints with the UCONN Huskies and the NC State Wolfpack, and his size (6-3, 251 pounds) and wide receiver background may help him be an ******* et in Sean Payton's offense.
"Justin Joly is a compact and athletic tight end prospect who used to play wide receiver," Melo wrote for SI. "His background pops on tape in his ability to consistently separate from single-man coverage. Joly is undersized, but his athletic traits allow him to uncover. He recorded a team-high with 49 receptions this past season with 489 yards and seven touchdowns. He'll be a moveable 'F' for Sean Payton's and Bo Nix's Denver Broncos."
Joly's competition at tight end includes veteran Evan Engram, who is entering the final year of his contract, and Adam Trautman, who is used more as a blocker than as a receiver. So there should be opportunities for Joly to make an instant impact as a receiver threat in Payton's offense this fall.
Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.