Riley Ready For His Chance
NC State redshirt sophomore wide receiver C.J. Riley hasn’t had to play a major role since he arrived in Raleigh in 2016. An ACL injury forced him to redshirt his first year, and when eligible, the Wolfpack had established options in the passing game with Jaylen Samuels and Kelvin Harmon.
Add in Jakobi Meyers and Emeka Emezie, and Riley has been needed to play sparingly as a reserve.
Until now.
Harmon has announced that he won’t be playing in the bowl game so he can begin his preparations for the NFL draft. While that is a big blow for the offense, it gives Riley a huge opportunity to step up and fill the void left by Harmon.
“I’m sad because we came here at the same time, and I wanted to go out with him,” said Riley, who arrived with Harmon in 2016. “I’m happy for all his success at NC State and looking forward to seeing him at the next level.
“It’s also a good thing for me because I’ve been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.”
An opportunity like this is big for Riley because next season the Wolfpack could be without Harmon and potentially Meyers, who has a decision to make himself regarding the NFL draft following the bowl game.
One of Riley’s teammates, Ryan Finley, will almost certainly be selected in the draft and Riley knows this is a big game for him and his quarterback.
“He’s a great quarterback,” Riley said of Finley. “He’s going to be great at the next level. He’s very smart and knows what he wants. We know where he wants us to be so being with him for the last time, I just want to go out with a win for him.”
This is also a chance for Riley to go home. Growing up in Florida, Riley played his prep ball at North Broward Prep in Coconut Creek, Florida. In fact, he had his roomate, linebacker Brock Miller, are both back in their home state for the bowl game.
“It’s definitely cool,” Riley said. “We’re both from Florida and we can show everybody what we’ve been waiting for. We have a chance to go home one last time before the season ends. It’s great to see his family and my family be able to come up for the game.”