Made in Miami: They teamed up at the youth level. NC State’s transfer portal work reunites star quartet once again

Even though a hurricane knocked out power across the town, the Miami Gardens Ravens were going to play their game. It was moved to a Tuesday evening in steamy South Florida, but a weather event — and the infrastructure issues that came with — wasn’t going to keep a talented team of 11 year olds, led by quarterback CJ Bailey and his star supporting cast, sidelined.  The local park was a breeding ground for competitive fire, and with nothing going on in town, the game was more than just two little league squads facing off. Upwards of 5,000 people flocked to the field that night, which was something that head coach Rod Mack, a former Miami linebacker in the late 90s, wasn’t expecting. But this soon became the norm for the star-studded youth team that Mack had on his hands. Bailey, who eventually signed with NC State, pulled the strings of the offense, aided by at least eight other skill players that inked commitments with Division I programs: running backs Davion Gause (North Carolina), Vincent Shavers (Nebraska) and Ryan Mack (Miami), and wide receivers Chance Robinson (Miami), Lawayne McCoy (Florida State), Jeremiah Smith (Ohio State), Joshisa Trader (Miami) and Jose Leon (App State). Wherever they went, crowds followed. The team, which formed when they were 8-year-olds, became one of the focal points of the region. From Key West to Pensacola, the Miami Gardens Ravens were the show, and current and former NFL stars like Dalvin Cook, Edgerrin James, Frank Gore and Reggie Wayne were usually in tow at any opportunity they had to get a glimpse of the rare group.  “When we went to the national tournaments, when those kids came in it was like watching Tiger [Woods] on the green with the crowd behind him,” Mack recalled in a recent phone interview with TheWolfpacker.com. “It was something I’ve never seen before and will never see again because of the crowd of people that followed those kids.” After all, this group won a national championship nearly every year it was together. It claimed the title at 9, 11, 12 and 13 years old. And the one year it didn’t, the Ravens lost in the final after Bailey fumbled at the 1-yard line while he was looking to score what would have been the deciding touchdown.  “It was a special team, a special moment,” Mack said. “I don’t think it will be duplicated again when you just take the sheer number of kids that all played together that wound up playing major college football.” While it might not be replicated at the youth level again, NC State’s transfer portal activity might have done the next best thing: reunite as many of the Miami Gardens Ravens as possible in the collegiate ranks. The Pack retained Bailey for his third season as the team’s starting quarterback, while it nabbed Gause, Robinson and Trader from the portal to bolster its offense for the 2026 season.  It was a long time coming, but the Wolfpack’s unit is likely to reflect the one in which Bailey grew up playing with. And if their time growing up together is any indication, success in NC State uniforms is likely to follow with the standout quartet’s built-in chemistry from years of competing alongside one another.