Older than the conference in which N.C . State calls home, Skyline Chili has become a legendary and world-renowned chain based out of Cincinnati since 1949. 

When State travels to face the Bearcats this Thursday, all six Wolfpack players and coaches who call Cincinnati their hometown will make sure the team understands why.

“We’ll try to make sure the guys have a chance to try it, so everyone knows what we’re talking about,” redshirt sophomore tight end, and Cincinnati native, Anthony Talbert said. “This summer, [junior running back] James Washington came home with me and he was able to experience the Skyline sensation. Coach [Dana] Bible [offensive coordinator] will always bring it up. He’ll say ‘Hey Anthony, I just came back from Cincinnati and I got some Skyline Chili.’

“I’m definitely a fan.”

Talbert attended Winton Woods High School on the north side of Cincinnati, and is one of three current State players hailing from the city. Also born and raised just to the north of the Ohio River were football coaches Tom O’Brien, Dana Bible and tight ends coach Don Horton. Bible is also a 1976 graduate of Cincinnati University. 

“There’s a few coaches from Ohio in general,” Talbert said. “Even [linebackers] coach Tenuta is from Columbus and [offensive line coach] Jim Bridge is from just outside of Cleveland. There’s definitely an Ohio camaraderie there.”

While it’s unlikely any of these Ohioan players or football coaches will ever discover the unique Skyline recipe that Greek immigrant Nicholas Lambrinides brought to America, one secret doesn’t stay in the family – Cincinnati’s high school football has consistently produced some of the Midwest’s most prominent football figures. 

“When I was growing up through the years, the Catholic League in Cincinnati was as good as any league in the nation,” O’Brien said. “And it certainly still is.”

St. Xavier High School, which O’Brien and Bible both attended as teenagers, has one of the more powerful programs in the Cincinnati area. Because several of the coaches on State’s football staff have strong regional connections, a small but sturdy pipeline from the state has been created, allowing players like redshirt senior defensive lineman Jeff Rieskamp, a graduate of Elder High School in Cincinnati in 2007, to be recruited.

“Don Horton does a great job,” O’Brien said. “He’s another one of our guys on our staff from Cincinnati. He grew up in the city and went to Wittenberg [University], which is just up the road and has a lot of great ties in the state of Ohio.

“When you know people, you can trust people. You can trust their judgment on athletic ability and the character of the kid you’re getting. That’s important to us in recruiting.”

And for a public university in North Carolina, having seven Ohio products on the roster proves Wolfpack coaching connections can foster that pipeline. In Talbert’s case, it was State’s reputation for developing tight ends, which ultimately sold him on attending college down south. 

“They use tight ends a lot with two tight end sets, and we’ve had some good tight ends come out of here that I have met personally,” Talbert said. “Anthony Hill went to the Houston Texans and he was playing with them for a while, and [redshirt senior tight end] George Bryan has been All-ACC for three years in a row. 

“The Wolfpack definitely knows how to utilize their tight ends, so I figured that would be a good fit for me.”

Along with Rieskamp and freshman tight end Benson Browne, Talbert will be one of the three Cincinnatians headed back home for Thursday night’s nationally televised match up. Receiving the opportunity to play in front of friends and family is something Talbert said he will thoroughly enjoy. 

“I have a lot of friends and family coming to the game, so I am looking forward to being able to play in front of them,” Talbert said. “Two guys from my high school play defense for Cincinnati, so I’m excited to go back home. We’re still good friends and stay in contact, so I’m excited to go out there and compete against them.”

With a hint of Cincinnati ties and a palpable spice of North Carolina pride, perhaps those friends and family will taste a Wolfpack victory.