There’s a potential future No. 1 pick on the NC State defensive line. Who is it?
It appears N.C. State has a future No. 1 pick on its defensive line right now.
The future is not the 2022 NFL draft, but Tuesday. That’s the first day of the Canadian Football League draft and online sportsbook site Bodog has Wolfpack senior Daniel Joseph as the top pick.
The site had Joseph as +110 odds to be selected by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The thing is, Joseph, a defensive end, announced in January that he was taking advantage of an extra year granted to seniors by the NCAA and returning to N.C. State.
So how does that work?
The CFL can draft Joseph (6-3, 265) on Tuesday and have his rights if he decides to go play in the CFL after his super senior season at N.C. State. Joseph is from Toronto, Canada and his brother, Faith Ekakite, was a No. 1 pick of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2017 after wrapping up his college career at Iowa. Joseph’s cousin, Ese Mrabure-Ajufo, played for the BC Lions in 2015.
Daniel Joseph’s super senior season with Wolfpack football
Joseph transferred to N.C. State after playing three seasons at Penn State. After earning his undergraduate degree in labor and employment relations at Penn State, Joseph started eight games for the Wolfpack in 2020. In his first season under coach Dave Doeren, Joseph led the team in sacks (6.5) and was second in tackles for loss (10).
In March, Joseph was asked what motivated him to return to N.C. State for an extra year.
“After being here for a year, in what was obviously a very chaotic year, I think we can all agree on that,” Joseph told the media. “I want to get a feel for what N.C. State is. It has treated me well thus far, through a pandemic. With me already having that positive experience through a pandemic I just felt another year, not just for me to develop and get better, but for the world to see what I really have to offer.”
Joseph wasn’t a regular starter with the Nittany Lions, and Doeren feels like Joseph wants another year in that role before becoming a professional player.
“He’s embraced being a starter, he’s embraced being a playmaker,” Doeren said. “And I think he wants an opportunity to do that more and having more film (for NFL scouts) is important to him.”
In the last four NFL drafts, seven former Wolfpack defensive lineman have been selected. Joseph finished the 2020 campaign with 37 tackles and is one of 10 returning starters on the N.C. State defense.
