NC State vs. Pitt availability report: Starting OL Spike Sowells, Anthony Carter Jr. listed questionable

NC State is exiting its first of two open dates after seven straight games to open the 2025 campaign, but although the Wolfpack had a weekend off from game play, it isn’t where the team would have liked to be health-wise at this point of the season.

“We’re still a beat up football team, unfortunately,” NC State coach Dave Doeren said on his weekly radio show Wednesday. “We’ve still got a lot of injuries we’re dealing with. I wish we were coming out of this with a lot more players on the field than we are.”

The Wolfpack, which is looking to snap a three-game skid against FBS competition when it plays at Pitt on Saturday afternoon (3:30 p.m., ACCN), has 13 players listed as out with a pair of starters questionable on its initial availability report going into the Steel City clash.

Here’s a look at NC State’s Week 9 initial availability report.

NC State’s availability report

OUT

LB Sean Brown
S Rente Hinton
DB Isaiah Crowell
WR Jonathan Paylor
CB Jaren Sensabaugh
LB AJ Richardson
S JJ Johnson
LB Cole Wilson
S Daemon Fagan
LB Sterling Dixon
S Brody Barnhardt
OL Tyler West
OL Trent Mitchell

Questionable

OL Spike Sowells Jr.
OL Anthony Carter Jr.

Notes on NC State’s availability report

— Brown, the Wolfpack’s starting middle linebacker, will miss his third straight game after leaving the Virginia Tech loss early. There has been no further update on his status since.

— Johnson, a starting safety, will miss his second game of the season after he was active for the 56-10 win over Campbell but didn’t log a snap. He recorded 20 total plays in the loss at Notre Dame two weeks ago.

— Sowells and Carter, the Wolfpack’s starting right and left guards, are the only two players listed as questionable. The two offensive linemen left the Notre Dame loss early as Carter exited in the first half, while Sowells left in the second half.

— Offensive lineman Brock Stukes and wideout Je’rel Bolder no longer appear on it, making them available to play this weekend at Pitt. Both had appeared on the report for the entire season to this point. It’s also a positive sign that wide receivers Noah Rogers and Terrell Anderson aren’t listed after both left the Notre Dame loss early due to injury. Doeren said on his radio show that the two high-end pass catchers are expected to play at Pitt.

Pitt’s availability report

OUT

DL Zach Crothers
LB Jayden Bonsu
RB Jaylin Brown
DB Nigel Maynard
LB Jeremiah Marcelin
RB Derrick Davis Jr.
DL Denim Cook
DL Jaeden Moore
OL Keith Gouveia
OL Jeff Persi

Questionable

LB Rasheem Biles
LB Kyle Louis
DL Blaine Spires
LB Nick Lapi
LS Nilay Upadhyayula

Probable

DB Rashan Murray
DB Shadarian Harrison