Latest news with #NorthCarolinaState
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Sport
- Miami Herald
F Ven-Allen Lubin transfers to NC State, his fourth school
Ex-North Carolina forward Ven-Allen Lubin is heading a half-hour or so southeast on Interstate 40, committing Sunday to play at Atlantic Coast Conference rival North Carolina State in the 2025-26 season. He made the announcement via a social media post. Wearing a Wolfpack uniform, Lubin simply wrote "Committed." Lubin entered the transfer portal on April 21 after spending one season with the Tar Heels. He appeared in 37 games (20 starts) and averaged 8.7 points, 5.5 rebounds in the 2024-25 campaign. Prior to North Carolina, the Florida native played single seasons at Notre Dame and Vanderbilt. Lubin has career averages of 9.0 points and 5.4 rebounds in 91 games (53 starts). He is a career 61.6 percent shooter from 2-point range. He averaged 12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 26 games for Vanderbilt in the 2023-24 season. Lubin, 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, is a two-time selection to the All-ACC Tournament team. Now 21, Lubin was ranked by 247Sports as a four-star prospect in the Class of 2022. NC State has rebuilt its roster following the hiring of former Chattanooga, VCU, LSU and Mcneese State head coach Will Wade. The team has eight incoming transfers, including recent high-profile addition Darrion Williams, formerly of Texas Tech. --Field Level Media Field Level Media 2023 - All Rights Reserved
4 days ago
- Sport
Stetson scores 7 runs in first inning of 11-2 romp over NC State in opener of Auburn Regional
AUBURN, Ala. -- Isaiah Barkett used three doubles to drive in four runs and Jonathan Gonzalez pitched six shutout innings as No. 3 seed Stetson scored seven times in the first inning in an 11-2 romp over second-seeded North Carolina State in the opener of the Auburn Regional on Saturday. Stetson (41-20) awaits the winner of the nightcap between No. 1 seed Auburn and No. 4 seed Central Connecticut State in a Saturday matchup. NC State (33-20) will play an elimination game against the loser earlier Saturday. NC State starter Dominic Fritton (5-5) retired just one batter and left trailing 6-0 after the teams waited out a 2 hour, 10-minute weather delay before starting. The first five Hatters reached base off Fritton and Barkett capped the big first inning with a two-out, two-run double off reliever Anderson Nance for a 7-0 lead. Salvador Alvarez had an RBI single in the fifth. Barkett doubled and scored on a groundout in the eighth then added a two-run double in the ninth. Josh Hogue and Brandon Novy hit solo homers for the Wolf Pack in the eighth off reliever Jake Gorelick, who pitched the final three innings for his third save. Gonzalez (10-2) allowed five hits and walked three for Stetson. The Hatters have played in 20 NCAA Tournaments but have never advanced to the College World Series. They won their only regional title in 2018. NC State has played in 35 tournaments and made four CWS appearances — most recently last year.
USA Today
26-05-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Kansas State and Jerome Tang land another big fish in the transfer portal
Kansas State and Jerome Tang land another big fish in the transfer portal Kansas State and Jerome Tang significantly improve their roster with PJ Haggerty portal pickup. Haggerty, however, is taking a pay cut for this move. One very big college basketball transfer portal domino tipped over on Monday. PJ Haggerty, who had transferred from Memphis and courted North Carolina State -- among other schools -- landed at Kansas State. Jerome Tang landed a very big fish in the portal to build his 2025-2026 roster in Manhattan, Kansas. Kansas State was one of the biggest spenders in the transfer portal window last season, bringing in Coleman Hawkins and other high-profile players, but the roster fit just didn't work for the Wildcats, who were horrible in the first two months of the season before finding a winning formula in the second half of January and making a run at the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats were a bubble team for a few weeks, but they dug themselves too big a hole. They ran out of steam in the final weeks of the season and fell short. The hope and expectation in Manhattan is that Tang's roster construction surrounding Haggerty will be better and more integrated this time around. Once again, Kansas State has shown that it is a major player in the transfer portal and in the NIL space. College basketball insider Adam Zagoria, who writes at ZagsBlog, Forbes, and other publications, reported via source that Haggerty's estimated NIL deal comes in at $2.5 million, with $2 million guaranteed and $500,000 in incentives. This is a lower dollar figure than the $4 million Haggerty's father was reportedly shopping around for. Industry experts think that if Haggerty had stayed at Memphis, he could have pulled in $3 million, so this move to Kansas State resulted in a pay cut. The pressure is on Kansas State to make the NCAA Tournament after another big transfer portal investment. The pressure is on PJ Haggerty to make this move work after absorbing a pay cut. Some people might see this as a bad development for North Carolina State and first-year head coach Will Wade, but one has to remember that Wade and State brought in Darrion Williams from Texas Tech in the portal. NC State landed its own very big fish, so the Wolfpack are not lamenting this development. They got their guy. Kansas State got its own guy. Now we get to see how these programs and their rosters handle the new configurations for next season. Contact/Follow @College_Wire on X and like us our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of college sports news, notes, and opinions.
New York Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
NC State lands Texas Tech transfer Darrion Williams in recruiting win for Will Wade
New North Carolina State head coach Will Wade has picked up a commitment from Texas Tech transfer Darrion Williams, according to multiple reports. Williams, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward, spent the past two seasons with the Red Raiders after starting his college career with Nevada. He was named to the All-Big 12 first team last season as a junior after averaging 15.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He entered the 2025 NBA Draft but withdrew after the NBA Combine. Advertisement His junior season in Lubbock followed a sophomore campaign that saw him named to the All-Big 12 Newcomer Team. It is a massive recruiting win for Wade to beat out Kansas and land Williams. The Wolfpack had a solid core on the perimeter but needed a frontcourt scorer. Williams was the highest-rated player left in our portal rankings and is one of the best mismatch forwards in college basketball. He can score in a variety of ways, whether it's spotting up from 3, beating bigger guys off the dribble or picking on smaller players with dribble downs. He thrived in Texas Tech's system and is best when put in space and allowed to use his strength to get where he wants on the floor. This is a disappointing week for Kansas, which lost out on both Williams and Dame Sarr. The hope was for the Jayhawks to land at least one of those two. Kansas coach Bill Self told me last week that he's looking to add one more scorer who can average 14-15 points per game. There aren't many of those guys left in the portal and KU might have to look overseas or adjust and maybe spend the money it had left for a scorer on more size up front.
NBC Sports
15-05-2025
- NBC Sports
PGA pro Rupe Taylor, competing in PGA Championship, turns life around after DUI
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rupe Taylor had 10 days to contemplate his most improbable path to the PGA Championship , and that wasn't enough to prepare the golf professional when he arrived at Quail Hollow. He walked 18 holes with a wedge and a putter to get comfortable. And then he stepped into the locker room and found himself face-to-face with Scottie Scheffler. 'I had to do a double take because I was like 'I can't believe this is happening,'' said Taylor, a 35-year-old whose 'Play Better Golf Now' instruction business in Virginia is affiliated with Virginia Beach National. 'He was so kind. He was authentic. I talked to him for a couple of minutes and he asked me about me.' It was only for a couple of minutes, not nearly enough time for Taylor to tell him about a life he feared he had squandered through alcohol until he woke up in a hospital room, his arms and legs tied to the bed and his mother sitting beside him with her head in her hands. Taylor was 23, a graduate of the Professional Golf Management program at North Carolina State, working at a Virginia golf course. He had been drinking since high school — 'Anything, anytime, any reason to drink,' he said — until he was arrested for driving while intoxicated. He had no memory of how he wound up in a hospital. 'I was completely incoherent,' Taylor said. 'I didn't know what happened, so the only thing I knew to ask her was if I killed someone.' There was relief to find out there was only minor damage to his car and another vehicle. And there was a second chance he couldn't afford to pass up. He attended Alcoholic Anonymous meetings practically every day. He met a girl through a social media app, Baylee, who trusted the process and stayed by him on the road to recovery, to finding work in the golf business. Taylor has been sober for 12 years now. They are married with an 18-month-old daughter, Noah. He worked at golf courses on Kiawah Island in South Carolina and back home in Virginia. That's when he decided to spend his working time giving lessons to a cross-section of people who wanted to get better, allowing more time with his wife and young daughter. Yes, it's been a journey. Taylor is among the 20 club professionals at the PGA Championship who will take on Quail Hollow alongside Scheffler and Rory McIlroy and defending champion Xander Schauffele. The strongest field of the majors has 98 of the top 100 players in the world ranking. And the field includes Rupe Taylor, a recovering alcoholic and teaching professional who still can't believe he has his name plate in a locker room next to PGA Tour winners Nick Taylor and Sahith Theegala. PGA professionals have come under scrutiny over the years for diluting a field at a major championship. They are among some 31,000 members of the PGA of America who work long hours giving lessons, folding shirts, organizing club competitions. This is their reward. Taylor qualified at the PGA Professional Championship in Florida on April 30, making a double bogey on the 11th hole that made him sweat, recovering with consecutive birdies to easily finish in the top 20 to earn a spot in the field. Scheffler recalls meeting Taylor on Sunday when he arrived. 'It's a lot of fun to have those guys in this tournament,' Scheffler said. 'I think the PGA pros do a lot for the game of golf, running tournaments all over the country, teaching people all over the country, and it's a huge organization, and they do a lot for our game.' Taylor mentioned being on Cloud 9 on more than one occasion, but actions speak louder than cliches. He showed up Monday at 7:30 a.m. in the rain and played 18 holes. 'Nothing is going to faze me,' he said. 'We have rain gear. We have umbrellas. I'm at the PGA Championship. I'm going to play.' It was his second time at the PGA Professional Championship, the first experience a decade ago when he was just starting to get his life back in order. That wasn't easy on its own. And then a year into sobriety, Taylor lost his grandfather to cancer. Ten days later, his father died. He had diabetes from a young age and wasn't in the best shape. 'He had low blood sugar, got into a car accident and I never go to speak to him again,' Taylor said, his voice cracking slightly. It was a devastating time in his life, and yet he never felt stronger. 'At that point, I had my sobriety in order and I think in some ways it helped me deal with the grief,' he said. 'A lot of what we discussed in AA is you can't let circumstances influence your desire to drink or give you an excuse. 'Without sobriety, I would have fallen into a deep depression and gotten into another bender.' His given name is Robert. Turns out he was playing Little League at age 10 and his coach had bad handwriting. He was called 'Rupert,' which became Rupe. And it stuck. It's a name worth noting this week, even if it likely won't be found on the leaderboard. His expectations are minimal. Quail Hollow is a big course for anyone, much less a professional who spends more time giving lessons than honing his own game. Taylor at times wonders how good he could have become had he chosen a different path in golf. Then again, he wonders how in the world he got from a hospital bed in a drunken state to teeing it up against Scheffler and McIlroy in the PGA Championship. 'I'm just going to do the best I can and have as much fun as I can,' Taylor said. 'At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what I do. I feel like I won already just by being here.'
