NC State Adds Another Miami Transfer Days After National Championship
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RALEIGH — While the 2025 college football season came to an end last Monday, the process of preparing for the 2026 season is well underway. While the transfer portal window opened and closed for most new entries outside of the College Football Playoff, there are still new players jumping in and looking for new homes after playing in the National Championship.
NC State is taking advantage of those new additions and has added yet another player from the runner-up Miami Hurricanes. The Wolfpack secured a commitment from linebacker Raul Aguirre on Sunday, shortly after he entered the transfer portal days after losing to Indiana, per a report from On3.
More on the Wolfpack's late-night addition
NC State signed Miami transfer LB Raul Aguirre, https://t.co/bvSB98ghWu has learned.
— Noah Fleischman (@fleischman_noah) January 26, 2026
Aguirre logged a career-best 43 total tackles, including two for a loss, this past season with the Hurricanes.
More here: https://t.co/myZWdMwA24 pic.twitter.com/U8mN0PhDff
The Wolfpack used yet another connection to the Miami program to help secure a commitment and signing from Aguirre. The linebacker's younger brother, Markel, signed with NC State's 2026 class as a defensive back and enrolled with the program early. Now, Raul can join his brother in Raleigh with one year of eligibility left, after turning down other offers from power conference programs.
Aguirre found his footing in 2025 with the Hurricanes, putting together the best season of his career. While not a starter, he filled in at weakside and middle linebacker. Over the course of the year, he racked up 43 total tackles across 16 appearances. He played seven snaps in the National Championship, finishing with a tackle in that game.
Aguirre became the second former Miami Hurricane to take his talents to Dave Doeren's Wolfpack program, joining wide receiver Chance Robinson. The Wolfpack has assembled a roster full of players with connections to the Miami area, but Aguirre played his high school football in Georgia at Fayetteville Whitewater High School. He was a four-star recruit when he committed to Miami in 2023.
With three starting-caliber linebackers all leaving the program, it marked a major position of need for NC State. Aguirre profiles as an immediate starter for the Wolfpack, joining a corps that includes Penn State transfer DaKaari Nelson and returner AJ Richardson, who missed a major chunk of the 2025 season with injuries.
The Miami transfer should be the missing piece the NC State defense needed to gain some comfort heading into the 2026 season. With defensive coordinator DJ Eliot's scheme fully installed with a year of film to showcase, the transitions should be a little smoother for the coming campaign.
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Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
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