How NC State DC D.J. Eliot's intentional transfer portal approach paid off right away in Week 1

NC State defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot arrived this past winter with the idea of changing the Wolfpack’s scheme from the 3-3-5 under Tony Gibson to a more multiple unit that could operate out of a 3-4 look.  But when he first got to work in Raleigh, it became clear that the Wolfpack didn’t have all the pieces to accomplish the scheme change. He only had about two weeks in the winter transfer portal to find impact players, adding both transfer linebacker Tra Thomas and cornerback Jamel Johnson from as the headlining additions early on, so it remained a work in progress through spring practice.  Eliot was able to use those 15 practices as an experimental period. There were things that worked, but it was obvious that NC State still lacked the edge rushers needed to take his aggressive defense to another level, a unique body type that Gibson’s previous scheme didn’t utilize. The linebackers that were on the existing roster couldn’t fill his JACK role — a hybrid defensive end-like position — to his liking. It was time for the veteran defensive mind to dip his toe back into the transfer portal at the end of spring practice. Eliot, armed with a specific shopping list of the pass rushers and high-end defensive back he needed to look for, went to work. After all, he arrived at NC State with the background of being an elite recruiter, and it was going to be put to the test in a short window.