Freshman quarterback CJ Bailey’s story was supposed to begin next season, but fate had other plans. His early performance under unforeseen circumstances has hinted at something special — the start of a new era for NC State football.

Originally supposed to make his first appearance in 2025, the 6-foot-6 signal-caller was unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight following two injuries to graduate quarterback Grayson McCall. Instead of shrinking away under the bright lights, Bailey stepped up when his team needed him most.

After McCall was ruled out at halftime in the third game of the season against Louisiana Tech, Bailey led a double-digit comeback in his first proper collegiate experience. But the trials and tribulations didn’t end there. Bailey made his first collegiate start at Death Valley at Clemson, one of the most hostile environments in college football. Though he couldn’t secure the win, Bailey completed 64% of his passes for 204 yards, throwing for one touchdown and one interception — surprisingly good considering his youth and lack of experience.

Bailey followed it up with his first collegiate win as a starter, completing 65% of his passes and totaling two touchdowns in a 24-17 win over Northern Illinois. Bailey was replaced by McCall as the starter against Wake Forest but was once again called upon after McCall’s career-ending injury on the Wolfpack’s first drive of the game. The gunslinger looked like a veteran quarterback, completing 67% of his passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns, but showed his inexperience, throwing an interception on what could’ve been a game-winning drive.

Bailey took the loss personally and responded by playing like one of the best quarterbacks in the country. He had consecutive games of 300 or more passing yards for the first time since Devin Leary in 2021. During this stretch, the true freshman completed 70% of his passes for 635 yards, four touchdowns and just one interception.

As if it couldn’t get any better, Bailey took advantage of a weak Stanford defense to complete 90% of his passes for 234 yards and three touchdowns with a 90.7 PFF grade — first amongst ACC quarterbacks and third amongst all Power Four quarterbacks that week. The performance earned him a spot on PFF’s ACC Team of the Week and the best QBR in the nation.

Bailey finally struggled against Duke, completing just 41% of his passes for 189 yards, one touchdown and one interception. However, the loss wasn’t just on Bailey — the entire offense floundered against the Blue Devils’ strong defense, which is ranked top three in the conference in points allowed.

In a season of complete and total disappointment, Bailey has been one of the few redeeming qualities of the 2024 campaign. No matter your opinions on the state of NC State football, the numbers don’t lie — Bailey has all of the qualities that a top quarterback needs and has only gotten better with more experience. He has every right to be the leader of the Wolfpack in 2025.

However, colleges across the country will be jockeying for the services of Bailey. Well-funded football schools will try to lure Bailey with NIL deals. After the season, he’ll undoubtedly be offered a significant amount of money to transfer to a quarterback-needy school. Rumors have already begun about Miami potentially targeting Bailey in the offseason.

The solution is simple: Offer Bailey the NIL money he deserves and give him a reason to return. NC State has the opportunity to finally cultivate and grow a quarterback, something it hasn’t done in years.

In the last two years since Leary transferred, the Wolfpack has gone through the transfer portal and recruited a graduate quarterback to come play for NC State. However, Brennan Armstrong and McCall proved to simply be band-aid’s that were ripped off midway through the season — albeit for starkly different reasons — causing quarterback changes in both years.

NC State has an opportunity to stop the cycle of rental quarterbacks and keep a player who understands the playbook, buys into the culture and has built chemistry with his teammates, staff and fans.

Bailey will only get better with time. The most valuable thing to a quarterback’s development is experience. His performance as a true freshman has shown that his ceiling is limitless. For the sake of NC State football, Bailey is a must-keep in the offseason and has the potential to develop into one of the better Wolfpack quarterbacks of the 21st century.