Backing The Pack, a N.C. State Wolfpack community

Dontae Johnson, a safety rated the No. 6 player in New Jersey according to rivals.com, committed to the Wolfpack on Sunday. His coach at The Pennington School, Jerry Eure, said his staff developed a relationship with O'Brien and his assistants when they were at Boston College.

Stanford, Connecticut, Syracuse and Michigan State were among the schools Johnson considered before choosing N.C. State. He is 6-foot-3 and 180 pounds and also plays wide receiver and returns punts and kickoffs for Pennington.

Cary High senior Fre'Shad Hunter said Sunday that the Wolfpack's performance in the win helped him make the decision to commit to N.C. State after the game. He said N.C. State was one of the first teams to offer him a scholarship and has been his top choice throughout his recruitment.

"It's a dream come true," he said. "I grew up watching N.C. State, seeing all the fans, watching them on TV. Now I'm going to be playing for them. It's crazy."

Rivals.com rates Hunter as the fifth-best prospect in North Carolina. He is 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds and is expected to play defensive end in college. Hunter also had Florida State, LSU and Tennessee among his finalists.

Hunter gives N.C. State three commitments among rivals.com's top seven prospects in North Carolina.

USC would like to add one more offensive tackle to their commitment class, and the Gamecocks may still have a shot at NC State commitment Robert Crisp (6-7 302) of Chapel Hill, NC. A source familiar with the situation tells PalmettoSports.com. that Crisp is not 100% solid with his commitment to State and is considering some other schools including USC.