NC State football countdown to 2023 kickoff: 5

The NC State football season opener for 2023 is at Connecticut on Aug. 31 — or 5 days away. TheWolfpacker.com’s countdown for the season looks at the significance of the number 5 in Pack history.

NC State Football And The No. 5

• Just like the No. 6, two important NC State football players wear No. 5 for the Pack this season.

How each arrived at NC State is a pair of completely different stories.

For the offense, super senior quarterback Brennan Armstrong dons No. 5. Armstrong arrived to the NC State football program as a grad transfer from Virginia, where he set numerous school passing records, most of them in the 2021 season when he excelled for then-Virginia offensive coordinator Robert Anae.

Armstrong though suffered through a disappointing 2022 campaign under new coaches with the Cavaliers, including former NC State football assistant Des Kitchings as UVa’s replacement for Anae at offensive coordinator.

With Anae now at NC State and Armstrong seeking a fresh start to rejuvenate his NFL hopes, the two are reunited in Raleigh. Armstrong will be the Pack’s starter at quarterback when NC State travels to Connecticut Thursday.

• Defensively, fifth-year redshirt junior defensive lineman C.J. Clark wears No. 5.

Clark was a bluechip prospect in the 2019 class. According to the On3 Consensus, Clark was rated the No. 184 player in the country and No. 4 prospect in the state of North Carolina that year.

That led to a who’s who offer list, and despite some presumptions that North Carolina would be Clark’s in-state choice, NC State prevailed over Georgia for his commitment. When UNC hired Mack Brown following the 2018 season, Brown made a spirited effort to try to flip Clark, but he held firm to the Wolfpack.

When healthy, Clark has lived up to expectations for NC State. He redshirted in 2019 to rehab from hand surgery. The following year, Clark earned two starts at nose tackle despite the presence of All-American and current Detroit Lions starting lineman Alim McNeill.

In three games in 2021, Clark started each one while having eight tackles and three quarterback hurries. However, he tore his ACL in practice leading into the Clemson game and would miss the remainder of the year.

Last year, Clark played on the edge more often and started five games there after an injury to Savion Jackson. Clark had a trio of sacks.

• One famous former NC State running back wore No. 5.

Ray Robinson still holds the school record for most carries in a game when he ran 40 times for 178 yards vs. Maryland in 2000. He also is one of just seven ball carriers in NC State history to have 200 rushing yards in a game, running for 202 yards on 27 rushes vs. Virginia in 1998.

Robinson ranks fifth all-time at NC State with 2,781 career rushing yards and 30 running scores.

Robinson also has the most receptions ever by a NC State running back with 113 for 865 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He ranks ninth in all-time all-purpose yards in school history with 3,927.