How Ruffin McNeill’s presence has become a critical asset for NC State football

His tan golf cart has become a must-stop spot for every NC State player as they stream onto the program’s natural grass practice fields adjacent to Carter-Finley Stadium each morning. It doesn’t matter if it’s a starter or a walk-on, the man clad in red and white Wolfpack apparel from head-to-toe sitting in the front seat has the same affection for every player that greets him.  Some players top one at a time for a handshake or high five, while entire position groups surround his electric-powered Yamaha four-seater all at once. No matter who approaches, Ruffin McNeill’s smile grows each and every time one of NC State’s players makes sure to stop by ahead of each practice.  And while McNeill, the Wolfpack’s special assistant to the head coach, finds immense joy in the brief interactions with nearly all of the Wolfpack’s 124 players on the roster, they gain the same energy from him in return. “It’s awesome,” graduate linebacker Caden Fordham recently said with a grin. “Every time I go out there, I dap him up. I say I love him before every practice. I love seeing him out there.”