NC State’s secondary might be its deepest position on the football field. Here’s why

When someone returns to something they haven’t done in a while, there’s always the comparison made to riding a bike — the thought process being you never forget the basics of bike riding.

If that’s true, Chris Ingram is ready to show NC State fans that he still has all the tricks.

“I’m changing gears, I’ll pop a wheelie,” Ingram told the media recently. “It’s fine, man. I’m out here, I feel like a kid again. I wasn’t able to play football. So, you know, once you’re out there it’s just, it’s full go.”

Ingram, the Wolfpack cornerback from Salisbury, is making a welcome return to the NC State secondary, perhaps the deepest position group on the team. Fourteen players who have played significant college football snaps return, including two transfers — Derrek Pitts, Jr. and Cyrus Fagan — as well as Ingram and Teshaun Smith.

Ingram and Smith are both former starters. They both have missed chunks of time battling injuries. Smith started one game in 2020 before missing the rest of the year with an injury. Ingram has 19 starts under belt and has played in 32 games, but has not taken a snap since Oct. 10, 2019. He was on the field for 34 plays in that game, before suffering a knee injury that required surgery days later. Ingram could only watch last season and throughout the spring, but was back with his teammates on day one of practice. The return to the field for both Ingram and Smith, after all the time they’ve missed, didn’t go unnoticed by head coach Dave Doeren.

“It was fun to see some of the players who had been out for a while,” Doeren said after the first practice. “Chris Ingram and Teshaun, those two have been out for a long time, so having them back on the grass was really a heartfelt thing.”

Ingram played in all 13 games as a true freshman, with one start, and started 18 games over the next two seasons. He has three career interceptions and with 1,1154 plays under his belt, is another leader in a deep, yet young, defensive back room. One of the things Ingram did even though he wasn’t playing was remain a presence in meeting rooms and on the practice field. He always tried to separate himself by being prepared, watching more film than the next guy. That didn’t stop as he recovered. When he returned to action, his mind was still sharp, even if his body was still playing catch up.

“I worked on my mental so much,” Ingram said. “I feel like once you’re mentally tough that football shape is going to come to you once you get out there.”

When he did return to the field, Ingram returned to the most interesting battle throughout camp.

Shyheim Battle was a mainstay at one corner position, while Cecil Powell took over the other side after swapping in and out with Malik Dunlap most of the year. Pitts, a transfer from Marshall, looks to be in contention for a starting spot, along with Ingram and Smith. That type of competition makes every practice a battle.

“Everyone is playing really good football right now,” safety Tanner Ingle said about the secondary battles. “It’s a lot of people (standing) out, it’s hard to pinpoint anyone because everyone is playing so well.”

If the level of talent is as even as Ingle makes it sound, the veteran Ingram is just fine with that.

“I don’t want that much separation from the first guy to the last guy,” Ingram said. “You don’t want that drop off. If someone goes down, god forbid, we can put the next guy in. I like that depth in the cornerback room. That’s why I’m so excited to work with those guys. It’s so much competition, it’s the best group I’ve been able to be around since I’ve been at N.C. State.”

Projected NC State defensive back depth chart

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This story was originally published August 25, 2021 at 5:20 AM with the headline "NC State’s secondary might be its deepest position on the football field. Here’s why."

Jonas E. Pope IV

The News & Observer

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Sports reporter Jonas Pope IV has covered college recruiting, high school sports, NC Central, NC State and the ACC for The Herald-Sun and The News & Observer.