With graduation only a couple of months away, college applications have been sent, and high school seniors are making the difficult choice of where to spend the next four plus years of their lives.
Scotty McCreery chose N.C. State.
McCreery is more than a local celebrity-he won last season’s American Idol and has since embarked on major tours and produced his first country album, Clear as Day.
But the Garner native is taking a break from his country music career to pursue a college degree. McCreery applied to four schools across North Carolina and Tennessee and ultimately decided to join the Wolfpack . N.C. State is his father’s alma mater, which some suspect had something to do with his choice of school.
A report from CMT Radio said McCreery is considering transferring to a school in Nashville after two years in Raleigh.
But until then, many students are relishing the thought of running into America’s idol in the Brickyard or D.H. Hill or sitting beside him in lecture or on the Wolfline .
McCreery’s attendance is analogous to athletes who study at the University while nationally recognized for playing a sport. But even basketball superstar Scott Wood has assimilated into the role of student when on campus, and he indicates that Scotty will be able to as well.
“Scotty will fit in just fine,” Wood said. “He will be able to come and enjoy his time here at N.C. State and get a great education.”
Others aren’t as star-struck by McCreery’s coming to Wolfpack country. Audrey Lait , a junior from Garner, attended Garner Magnet High School with McCreery and knew him before he became a household name.
“Most people knew who he was because he was involved in a lot,” Lait said. She said that as a freshman he participated in musicals and theatrical productions, probably recruited for the uniquely deep voice that has contributed to his early success in country music.
Lait said Garner Magnet High had to make some changes when McCreery returned to school after the Idol finale, according to her younger sister Emily who attends Garner Magnet. She wondered if the University might have to enforce similar regulations.
“He wasn’t allowed to sign autographs during school hours,” Lait said. “It will be interesting to see how people react.”
Jackson Smith, a freshman who played a leading role in University Theatre’s production of Rent this past winter, was excited by the prospect of performing alongside McCreery in future plays and musicals.
“It’d be intimidating at first, but I’d have to remember that he’s just another student here,” Smith said. “He’s probably looking for the same enriching experience that I am.”
Other students were unimpressed by McCreery’s decision to attend NCSU , including sophomore Hussein Sharafi .
“I don’t even know who that is,” Sharafi said.
McCreery said in a WRAL report in January that since winning American Idol he has made an effort to regain some sense of normalcy in his teenage life, even if that just means paying tribute to his former job of bagging groceries.
“I do the self-checkout, so I can see if I still got it,” McCreery told WRAL .
Regardless of McCreery’s fame, the student body will surely accept the budding star and make him feel as welcome as any other incoming freshman when classes begin next fall. Marlee Mattson , a freshman in elementary education, said she plans to do exactly that.
“It has been exciting to watch a hometown boy rise to stardom and still stay true to who he is,” Mattson said. “I know my Wolfpack family will do its best to give him the privacy and respect that he deserves and convince him that he made the right decision and that there truly is no place like N.C. State University.”
