Junior wide receiver Emeka Emezie is now NC State’s top wideout, and he’s ready to take on that responsibility. After impressing in brief time in his freshman year and shining in his sophomore year, the spotlight is on Emezie.
NC State has a rich standard of great wide receiver play, with Kelvin Harmon and Jakobi Meyers standing out as recent examples of the level of performance that fans can expect from Wolfpack football. Emezie welcomes his time to create his own legacy.
“Seeing the other guys – Jakobi and Kelvin – being great, that makes me want to be great too,” Emezie said. “I never feel pressure, and I wouldn’t say I’m following in their footsteps. I’d say I’m leading my own path. Of course they helped me, but it’s my time to be myself. I’m wearing the number three, but I’m not trying to be Kelvin.”
Even though he’s his own man, Emezie has been taught by great receivers, and he takes a piece of each of them to help improve his game.
“I’m definitely a huge film guy,” Emezie said. “I watch probably two hours of film a day. From Kelvin, I try to imitate his physicality. And then ‘Kobi and [Stephen Louis], I just try to imitate their quickness, the way they get in and out of their breaks, the way that they set up their routes.”
One way that differentiates Emezie is his leadership style. As the most experienced receiver on NC State’s roster, the young players in the Wolfpack wide receiver room often look to him, and he prefers to show the way by being an example.
“I’d describe myself as quiet,” Emezie said. “I don’t want to yell at them, I want to lead by example.… I want those guys to see what I’m doing more than me just yelling at them. I want to be the first guy through the sprints, I want to be the guy that does the drill right, does it 100 percent and shows the guys how to do it.”
Emezie is one of the more competitive players on the roster, and that drive is evident every time the wide receivers go one-on-one with the cornerbacks. Emezie lines up against junior cornerback Chris Ingram every day in practice, and the two love to play against each other.
“Me and ‘Mek, we’ve been going at it since high school,” Ingram said. “Every single day, he knows I’m gonna bring it and I know he’s gonna bring it.”
The team projects to be as deep as it’s ever been at wide receiver, but a lot depends on the new faces in the room getting up to speed. One key player may be Oregon transfer Tabari Hines, who competed against the Wolfpack in his time at Wake Forest.
“I love the guys,” Emezie said. “We added Tabari, that’s huge. Great player. He’s played at this level before, so he knows what to do. And then the young guys as well, [Devin Carter] and [Jasiah Provillon], and [Keyon Lesane], all those guys are stepping up.”
One thing’s for sure: there aren’t many receivers in the ACC who will work harder than Emezie.
“I think I try to take it to another level, honestly,” Emezie said. “I was in here working my butt off every single day, and coming out here, it’s starting to pay off.”
