CJ Bailey’s Growth Has Been on Full Display: Here's How

Sophomore quarterback CJ Bailey shone again in NC State’s win over Virginia. His development going into year two had Wolfpack fans eager to see what Bailey could produce going into a season where it’s known it’s his team.

Head coach Dave Doeren has spoken on the leadership Bailey has showcased in the spring, summer and now during the season in the fall. His impact off the field is felt, but on the field, in two games, he’s gone 40-for-57, 518 yards, two touchdowns and one pick with 65 yards on the ground for three scores.

Bailey threw for 300 yards in the opening game against East Carolina, and even with him having lower numbers against Virginia, his film looked even better. Wolfpack fans are seeing a young quarterback make improvements in real time.

It’s time to dive into the week two performance from Bailey.

Film Examples

One of the biggest things I wanted to see from Bailey going into 2025 was improving on anticipating routes becoming open. Seeing a coverage, digesting it, understanding where the ball should go and ripping it all in a matter of seconds. Yeah, being a quarterback isn’t easy. That’s why when you see the best of the best do it, it’s masterful.

Here, the Wolfpack is in a heavier 12-personnel gun formation. Hardy is lined up in line and Joly is the wing behind him. He has one receiver on each side; the formation indicates a run. But, it’s a pass with both receivers running comebacks and Hardy going down the seam.

Virginia is running a single-high coverage, meaning the receivers on the outside are one-on-one with their defenders. Pay attention to sophomore receiver Terrell Anderson, top of the screen, and see when he breaks to do his comeback. The ball is already out of Bailey’s hands.

So, when Anderson makes his cut, the ball is already half to him, reducing the chance of the corner breaking it up. This is a fantastic rep from the two of them showcasing the growth each made in the offseason.

Here is the 27-yard touchdown pass to redshirt sophomore Noah Rogers. This may be Bailey’s best throw of the young season. NC State is in a 2x2 gun formation and Virginia responds with a two-high shell.

Virginia is in a cover-1 man, meaning man across the board and a single high deep zone safety in the middle of the field. At the top of the formation, Bailey has a drag and corner route. Towards the bottom of the screen, he has a post and an out. What Bailey will read here is the safety and the leverage of the corners.

He glances over to the left and sees his corner route won’t win his matchup. Bailey comes back to the post and the safety isn’t deep enough and he throws a perfectly layered ball over the safety and into the arms of Rogers. Great feel and overall touch from Bailey on this rep.

On this last play, this is the biggest part of Bailey’s game that has improved over the offseason. His ability to scan the field and move from read to read. You say it a bit in the last play, with him going from the corner to the post, but here it’s a little clearer.

NC State again is in a 2x2 formation, but Joly lined up in-line on the line of scrimmage. The field-side receivers are running a simple out-and-go concept. The slot receiver runs an out, and the outside runs a go.

Towards the boundary, it’s a trial concept, meaning freshman receiver Teddy Hoffmann is going to run a drag/sit and redshirt freshman running back Duke Scott is going to run a Texas route behind him, trailing Hoffmann in a sense.

Bailey takes the snap, and by the top of his dropback, he doesn't like what he sees towards the field side, working back to the trail concept. He sees Hoffmann settle in a soft spot of the zone, he makes the throw and easy completion for yards.

His development as a pocket passer has been evident in the first two weeks of the season. It’ll be fun to see him grow even more as the weeks go on.

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