Jonathan Paylor: ‘I will be playing college football at NC State’
Jonathan Paylor holds offers from 23 Power Five programs. Coming out of the summer official visit season, he was down to two schools, but he pretty much knew where he wanted to go.
NC State, the home-state university located less than an hour from Paylor’s Burlington (NC) Cummings High, hosted him more than any other program over the past few years. Turns out, that constant love over the years meant a lot to the elite four-star receiver, and he announced his commitment to the Wolfpack Friday.
“I will be playing college football at NC State,” Paylor informed TheWolfpacker.com.
HIs recruitment was a back-and-forth affair that included NC State attempting to overtake South Carolina, his longtime public leader, for most of the spring. Paylor’s June 16-18 official visit with the Wolfpack helped decide his recruitment. Around the same time reporters were submitting predictions for the Gamecocks, NC State started to separate itself.
“After the official visit was over, I had my mind made up,” Paylor said. “Then, it was just between South Carolina and NC State.”
A trio of conversations towards the end of his weekend in Raleigh helped the Wolfpack stand out. First, he talked to Kevin Concepcion, his player host for the official. Then, he met with head coach Dave Doeren again before speaking with his parents.
His family was on the same page. NC State’s location, the coaching staff and the potential playing time all made the program a good fit.
“They were like ‘Yeah, Jon this is this this is kind of where you want to be at,” Paylor said.
Paylor’s parents really liked South Carolina’s pitch for their son and, prior to the official, they had not spent a ton of time at NC State. Their weekend together in Raleigh helped make the difference.
“Once my family got down there and we went on official visit, they were like ‘Yeah Jon, these guys are going to treat you real, real, real, real good,” Paylor said.
His recruitment was down to two schools going into July. When Paylor looked at South Carolina and saw that the program already had someone who would fill a similar role, that continued to push him towards the Pack. He sees an ideal fit alongside the program’s other young receivers.
“I’m like, okay, this guy does the same thing I do, but you want two of us?” Paylor said. “And it boggled my head, but then I was thinking about NC State’s side. I’m like, okay, they have KC, they have [Juice Vereen], they have [Terrell Timmons Jr.], so all they need is another receiver that can do a lot of things like catch punts, run the ball, everything like that.”
When he arrived on campus for the July 28 Alpha Wolf Showcase, the good vibes continued. He felt an instant connection with Concepcion on the field and really enjoyed the opportunity to go through a workout with Robert Anae and graduate assistant Gavin Locklear.
The Wolfpack offensive coordinator, who has a history developing versatile athletes like Paylor, put him through a series of routes, jet sweeps and option plays. His experience in Carter-Finley Stadium that day made him feel even better about making his decision.
“They run the same things I run in my offense at high school, but it’s just more advanced,” Paylor said. “And then I’m like, yeah, I can work with this.”
He committed to the staff that day, keeping it quiet and only letting a couple of staff members know— Locklear and assistant director of player personnel Quint Cottingham.
“They were like ‘Are you serious?’” Paylor said. “And I was like ‘Yeah bro, I need a hat and a t-shirt. I need to put it in my bookbag.”
Paylor told them not to tell anyone else, and then he surprised wide receivers coach Joker Phillips and Dave Doeren later in the week, waiting until the day of the announcement to tell the head coach. Doeren was a huge part of the in-state prospect’s recruitment. Paylor said, when they spoke, it always felt like genuine interest. The coach’s actions backed up his words.
“He’s the only coach that came to my school more than like three times,” Paylor said. “That’s a big deal for your head coach to be on campus.”
Throughout his recruitment, the receiver discussed his father-son connection with Phillips, his future position coach. That, combined with the overall vibe of NC State’s locker room, also really helped out the Pack.
“They’re not just a football program,” Paylor said. “They have great guys in the locker room.”
Wolfpack cornerback commit Asaad Brown II was the first person to hear about the decision. Paylor told him the news right before they went out on the field for the Alpha Wolf camp.
“They treat me good, they have a good thing going, the academics are great, I’m going to be a two sport athlete here, so I’m running track also,” Paylor said he told Brown. “I told him ‘Bro, I’m good here. I’m fine, and my family is 45 minutes away.’”
When he arrives at NC State next summer Paylor plans on competing in the 200 and 400-meter dashes with the Wolfpack track and field team.
“Like a mini Nyheim Hines,” Paylor said.
His similarities to the former two-sport star were definitely a significant selling point for the Wolfpack staff.
Paylor is the first On3 four-star commit of NC State’s class. He will not enroll early because he plans on finishing his track career at Cummings High. Looking forward, the rising senior plans on recruiting Josh Alexander-Felton, who will announce his decision Friday at 6:45 p.m., and four-star wide receiver Terrell Anderson.
He enjoyed the process, but Paylor told TheWolfpacker.com his recruitment is shut down, and he looks forward to joining the program.
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