Who Will Be The First Wolfpack Player to Wear No. 0?

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee this week made it legal for college football players to wear jersey No. 0. So which member of the NC State Wolfpack will have the notoriety of being the first ever to wear the new number? Here are a few possibilities

Earlier this week, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Committee adopted several new recommendations for the upcoming 2020 football season. Among them are two that have to do with numbers. 

The first is the elimination of duplicate numbers, at least sort of, a move that will end confusion among officials and teams scouting other teams, along with broadcasters and other members of the media. Only two players per team will be allowed to wear the same numbers from here on out.

The other has to do with the number zero. It's legal now in college football. 

So that begs the question, who will be the first NC State Wolfpack player to wear the No. 0? 

Before we go into some possibilities, here are a few guidelines to consider:

It can't be an offensive lineman. NCAA rules still mandate that at least five players wearing Nos. 50-79 must be on the line of scrimmage for each offensive snap. It should also be a player that is on the field a lot and highly visible. It should also be playmaker who has the personality to stand up to the attention that will come with wearing a number that will make him stand out from everyone else on the field.

So which member of the Wolfpack might it be?

◼ Since there are no obvious candidates ... you know, someone whose first or last name starts with an O, let's start with Alim McNeill. The junior tackle projects to be the next standout in a long line of dominant Wolfpack defensive linemen. At 6-foot-3 and well over 300 pounds, he's kind of built a little like a round number zero.

◼ There's also sophomore linebacker Drake Thomas, who could be poised for a breakout year after seeing significant playing time in his debut season of 2019. With his flowing blond hair and his afinity for eye black, he'd be more than comfortable with the attention wearing number zero would bring.

◼ How about incoming freshman receiver Porter Rooks? He's the crown jewel of State's 2020 recruiting class and he was off to an impressive start in spring practice before it was halted by the coronavirus pandemic. He's also got two O's in his last name. So there's that.

◼ And then there's the two dyanamic sophomore running backs that figure to be carrying most of the load for the Wolfpack this fall. Either Zonovan Knight or Jordan Houston would certainly look good showing off that big number zero in the end zone all season.

Do you have any other suggestions? If you do, feel free to post them in the "Community" section in the upper right hand corner of this page. We'd love to hear what you think.

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