In an era where quarterbacks have proven to be the most valuable asset in college football, NC State has made its priorities clear. Keeping CJ Bailey in Raleigh wasn’t just another offseason win — it was the foundation of everything the Wolfpack hopes to accomplish in 2026.
Bailey emerged as one of the ACC’s rising stars last season, throwing for 3,105 yards and accounting for 31 touchdowns while leading NC State in the running back end. With programs across the country looking for experienced quarterbacks, Bailey would be one of the hottest names available if he entered the transfer portal.
Instead, the Wolfpack is making sure their investment stays where it belongs. That decision speaks volumes for the vision of veteran coach Dave Doeren.
“We’re one of two teams in our league with a third-year starter at quarterback, and we and SMU have that opportunity,” Doeren said Wednesday at ACC media days, via WRAL. “There’s a lot to that. The leadership in your locker room and how you can grow that position, instead of teaching the offense to a new player. You’re going to come in the third time and teach that offense and let (CJ) handle what’s going on. I feel good where we are.”
With Bailey back for another season, the Wolfpack enter 2026 believing they have one of the ACC’s top quarterbacks and the stability needed to challenge for the league’s top finish. Keeping him wasn’t just a move — it was NC State’s biggest win of the season.
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“It was very important (to stay), the loyalty coach Doeren, the Wolfpack fans and coach (Kurt) Roper put in me,” Bailey said. “I have to pay them back for that. They prepared me for my future and did the best job they could. I trust that progress. Another question I asked myself is why would I go somewhere else to learn a new case?”
As previously reported by CBS Sports earlier this springIndustry sources say Bailey would have arrived at a school in his hometown of Florida in need of a quarterback this cycle if he had entered the transfer portal in January.
Asked in Charlotte if he would accept a small fee to re-sign with NC State, Bailey replied that would be a question best suited to his agent.
Believed to be one of the ACC’s highest-paid players, Bailey’s return means he takes up the lion’s share of NC State’s payroll as the Wolfpack’s most valuable player, leading to tough decisions elsewhere on the roster. However, not all departures could be saved, said one source.
The four starters out of NC State who signed with other Power Four programs to lucrative deals are all ranked among the top 60 prospects available in this portal cycle.
NC State’s starters lost to the transfer portal
The Wolfpack signed 28 freshmen this cycle along with 20 transfers to help fill out the roster.
NC State’s NIL challenges
Like most Power Four programs outside of the elite, NC State faced a budget deficit in the first year of the revenue distribution. Football ($13 million) took the lion’s share of the direct revenue-sharing costs allocated to athletes, following the ACC’s introduction of unequal revenue distribution among its members for the first time since the Clemson and Florida State settlements.
It’s a numbers game in terms of talent retention and acquisition throughout the season, a mountain the Wolfpack continues to climb. Last fall, most of the participants in the College Football Playoff have lists lined up near the top of the price tags considered, some exceed $30 million.
“Every year you do your best, man,” Doeren said. “No matter what the rules are, we try to work them to the bottom where you have to stop. (Athletic director) Boo Corrigan is great to work with; he fights hard for our program. He and I and our promoters and the people who are allowed to be a part of the Wolfpack Club, we all do everything we can.
“Sometimes it’s enough, sometimes it’s not, you know? That’s the thing about NC State — this is a place that doesn’t stop, we’re going to find a way, and we’re going to fight and scratch.”
The flexibility of the schedule
Part of the optimism surrounding NC State this season, despite Bailey’s return, is a slate that encourages success by ACC standards. The Wolfpack play just one opponent ranked among CBS Sports’ projected top 25 (Louisville) and miss Miami, Clemson and SMU this fall.
Doeren noted this week that a non-conference game against Vanderbilt was scheduled “eight or nine years ago,” before the Commodores’ rise. That matchup on Sept. 19 in Nashville could go a long way in establishing the Wolfpack’s early momentum with a win.
From there, NC State won’t leave North Carolina until late October with a cross-country trip to Stanford. Potential season-defining matchups with Duke, Florida State and North Carolina fill the docket during the final month of the season.
