NC State got tough news this week, and it came with a familiar sting at linebacker.
Head coach Dave Doeren said at his weekly press conference ahead of Friday night’s home opener against Richmond that starting weak-side linebacker AJ Richardson is done for the season after suffering a torn bicep. Doeren called it a four- to six-month recovery, but one that will wipe out Richardson’s year.
“We lost A.J. Richardson for the season.
He had a bicep injury. And I hate to lose a captain, and it’s his second year in a row, oddly enough, getting injured against Virginia for the season.
And I hate it for that young man. He’s going to make a great recovery and be back with us.
It’s a four- to six-month recovery, but it’ll cost him the year. So, next man up, which is something that, unfortunately, we’ve been used to.
Losing a player of his magnitude from a leadership standpoint creates an opportunity for the guys around him and also creates some loss in the roster. So, you know, feel for him, and I know he’ll do a great job bouncing back.”
For Richardson, it’s a brutal turn after an injury-shortened 2025 season in which he managed only four games after transferring in from Norfolk State.
His college résumé before arriving at NC State was strong. As a freshman at Norfolk State, he earned FCS Freshman All-American honors and second-team All-MEAC recognition. In his second year, he took another step, picking up first-team All-MEAC honors after finishing the 2024 season with 100 tackles, which led the MEAC, along with 9.5 tackles for loss.
Richardson also made an impact in Week 0 against Virginia, recording four tackles and posting an overall PFF grade of 69.7 across 55 snaps. Teammates had already entrusted him with a leadership role, voting him one of the Wolfpack’s five captains this season.
The injury also keeps a troubling trend going for NC State. This is the second straight season the Wolfpack has lost a captain at linebacker to a season-ending injury. Last year, Sean Brown was lost in the fifth game of the season against Virginia Tech.
Now the attention shifts to the depth chart and the search for the next man in at WILL linebacker. Based on the preseason two-deep, that would be Penn State transfer Da’Kaari Nelson.
Nelson’s role in the opener was limited to special teams, where he played seven snaps. He did not log a defensive snap, which stood out given the vacancy in front of him. He’s in Year 4 and still looking for a real chance to show what he can do.
His background suggests there’s talent to work with. Last season at Penn State, he played just two defensive snaps in two games.
The year before, he posted an overall PFF grade of 68.1 in 67 snaps. Coming out of the 2023 recruiting class, he was a consensus four-star prospect, with Rivals ranking him No. 74 overall nationally, No. 3 among safeties and No. 11 in Alabama.
Unless NC State chooses another route at WILL, Nelson may be staring at the biggest opportunity of his college career. Richardson logged 55 defensive snaps against Virginia, and those snaps - along with the leadership Richardson brought - now have to be replaced starting Friday night against Richmond.
In Other News...
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NC State Has Two Urgent Issues To Fix In Home Opener
NC State heads into its home opener against Richmond trying to clean up a couple of glaring issues from the season-opening loss at Virginia. The Wolfpack were handled 34-8 in that one, and the focus this week has centered on simply getting the offense into better rhythm with the football and giving the defense a chance to settle in earlier in drives.
The challenge gets a little sharper with Richmond coming in at 2-0 and carrying some early confidence into Raleigh. The Spiders have already shown enough playmaking to be a live test, with freshman receiver Bryce Allen and tight end Sean Clarke among the names NC State has to account for, while the Wolfpack are also adjusting to life without starting linebacker AJ Richardson for the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]