N.C. State continued its impressive collection of in-state verbal commitments last week when Scotland County linebacker Terrell Manning announced for the Wolfpack.

Manning, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound linebacker, can run 40 yards in 4.6 seconds and made 130 tackles during Scotland's 8-4 season in 2006.

Manning is the No. 2-ranked player in North Carolina by the Rivals.com recruiting Web site behind Bunn runner Brandon Barnes, another Wolfpack commitment.

State coach Tom O'Brien and his staff were major factors in Manning's decision, he said. He had visited State several times and said he learned new things on each trip.

"The coaches were the final determinant. The State coaches really made me feel like family," Manning said Saturday afternoon.

"Then they made my family feel like family. When that happened, I knew I was going to State. I followed my heart."

Manning is ranked as the No. 6 weakside linebacker prospect in the country and is No. 78 in Rivals' top 100. Barnes is No. 25 on the national list.

"I'm not surprised with State's recruiting because Coach O'Brien is going to bring in some top recruits just like he did at Boston College," Manning said.

"The coaches told me that they were going after the in-state recruits first and then would start looking to more out-of-state players.

"They want to keep the top in-state players here."

State's ability to get commitments from the state's top two prospects is noteworthy.

According to Scout.com, the only school to land the top two players from North Carolina since 2002 was Florida in 2006.

The Gators signed Southern Durham offensive tackle Carl Johnson, who was ranked No. 1, and Shelby Crest linebacker Brandon Spikes, who was No. 2.

O'Brien said last spring that recruiting in-state would be a priority for his program. State has commitments from four of the top 20 prospects on Rivals' in-state list and six of the top 30.

The Pack is believed to have nine commitments, including seven from North Carolina.

O'Brien made establishing bridges with North Carolina high school football coaches a priority last spring.

He sent staff members into every high school in the state, something State had not done in recent years.

Manning and Barnes carry four stars in Rivals' five-star system. Barnes has five and Manning has four in Scout.com's rankings.

Verbal commitments are not binding on the school or the players. Players may sign binding national letters of intent in February, but Manning may graduate after the fall semester and enroll at State.

HEELS GO TO GEORGIA: North Carolina picked up a commitment Saturday from Roswell, Ga., linebacker Ebele Okakpu (6-2, 205 pounds), who visited the UNC campus this weekend.

Okakpu is ranked No. 5 in Georgia by Scout.com and is rated as the No. 13 middle linebacker prospect in the country.

Okakpu runs 40 yards in 4.5 seconds.

He chose North Carolina over offers from Auburn, Clemson, Georgia, Virginia Tech and Miami.

Okakpu helped Roswell win the Georgia AAAAA state title in 2006.

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