COMMIT ALERT: JUCO DL AJ Prim Picks NC State

NC State has landed JUCO defensive lineman AJ Prim out of Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi. The 6’2, 270-pound prospect picked the Wolfpack over offers from West Virginia, Boise State, Washington State, and others.

Prim, who plans to enroll in January, finished this season at Pearl River with 49 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 interception, and 1 forced fumble in 8 games.

Inside Pack Sports recruiting analyst PJ Williams had the chance to talk with Prim before he went public with his decision.

PJ: Congratulations. Talk about why you chose NC State.

Prim: Coach Wiles. Coach Wiles is a cool dude. He’s funny, he’s old school. He jokes a lot, and you always need that when you’re playing football. You need some kind of fun and joking people in your life. Coach Doeren is very old school, too. Coach Faulk, his grandfather and my grandfather are best friends. He’s from my town. That was another big thing, having family ties up there. They’ll actually care about you up there.

You mentioned coach Wiles. Explain a little bit more about what you mean when you say he’s old school, and what’s his vision for you?

He wants me to come in and play end. With coach Wiles, he’s not going to just give nothing to you. You’re going to have to work for everything you get. You’re going to have to earn it. Some schools will give you a lot on the front end, but he’s not going to do that. You got to work for it. That’s what I like. That’s how it’s supposed to be, because you value it more. I like how they want you to work for it and earn your spot.

Talk about last weekend’s official visit. What were some of the highlights for you?

Raleigh reminds me a lot of Mississippi. It’s not very city-like. It’s a city, but it gives you that small town feel. That’s one of the biggest things I liked. Also, the game environment. I didn’t know the stadium was that big. I didn’t know it was going to be like that. The fans, you can tell they really care about the players. You hear them in the stands talking about the players like they know them personally.

Talk about how you ended up at Pearl River and what these two years have been like for you.

I went to Pearl River because my head coach and defensive coordinator played together at Southern Miss when they were really good, so I thought it would be a smooth transition. I played my freshman year there. I didn’t get too much action my freshman year. I was still getting used to being in college. My second year, we worked all summer. I got used to getting up, working, going to practice at 4:15 in the morning to stay out of the heat, eating the right foods, and going to bed early. Everything played out well in my second year from working so hard.

Even though we didn’t have a winning record, we were 4-5, and we went 1-8 last year, so even just making progress was better.

JUCO recruiting has changed a lot with NIL and the transfer portal. What do you think are some things you bring as a JUCO player that a guy out of high school or out of the portal might not?

I feel like I’m more hungry. I don’t care about the money, I don’t care about the NIL. I feel like I have something to prove. I’ve been in JUCO for two years, and I don’t really think I was supposed to be in JUCO, so I really got something to prove for other teams who passed on me. And I want to prove to my family that I can help them out and get them out of the situation they’re in.

For fans trying to get more familiar with you, how would you describe your game?

I feel like I can play all three positions up front. I feel like I’m twitchy. I’m probably the twitchiest d-lineman in junior college right now, and at my size, so I feel like my versatility on the d-line is what makes me a good player.

What are some things you’re looking to improve on this offseason?

My speed. I want to get faster. I don’t have problems speed-wise, but I feel like if I get faster, that just brings your stock up. And I’ve never really had a real offseason, so if I had a good offseason of four or five months of just straight working out, then I’ll be really good.

Did you get a chance to sit down with coach Thunder on your visit?

Yeah, I love coach Thunder. One thing I love about him is he’s been there, just like coach D, so everybody’s pretty stable, and he played there, too. With him, everything is very technical. He pays attention to detail a lot, and everything you do with him in the weight room is going to transfer over to the field.

What are your interests outside of football?

Fishing. I love fishing. I’m addicted. If I could only fish for the rest of my life, I’d just be out there.

Coach Doeren is big into fishing. Did you get a chance to talk to him about it?

I didn’t talk about fishing with Doeren much, but I’m most definitely going to be talking about fishing with him.

There’s lots of good spots to fish up here.

I heard them talking about it. As soon as I get up there, I’m going to find some.