NC State linebacker Jaylon Scott waits his turn, ready to be Wolfpack leader

N.C. State linebacker Jaylon Scott had finished a media interview Tuesday and was leaving the podium when he accidentally spilled some Gatorade on the floor.

Scott could have blown that off and left, but went to grab paper towels. Returning to the room, he found running back Jordan Houston being interviewed. He stood by and watched, then cleaned up the spill.

Some times, small things can say a lot about a person. Scott, in a few moments, showed a willingness to finish what he started – in this case, clean up his own mess and not let someone else do it for him. He also showed patience, waiting until Houston was done.

If anything, Scott has shown a lot of patience at N.C. State. In a time when college athletes can get antsy and enter the transfer portal, the 6-1, 225-pound senior from Shelby has waited his turn to be a starter and more of a leader on the Wolfpack defense.

Scott has started some games in the past three seasons, usually when linebacker Payton Wilson fought through injuries or was sidelined. Wilson is back again this season, but with Drake Thomas now in an NFL camp, Scott takes over as the starting strong side linebacker. Devon Betty, who will start at middle linebacker, replacing Isaiah Moore, who also trying to make an NFL team.

“They have a lot to prove, but I know how hard they’ve been training and how excited they are to play,” Wilson said.

It’s Scott’s time now and he appears ready for it.

“It’s a really big opportunity for me,” Scott said this week. “We’ve had Drake, Isaiah and Payton here since I’ve been here. They’ve been those guys in the starting role.

“Me and Betty are stepping up in (those) roles and kind of taking it head-on. There’s no missed beats there. We’re still going to continue to work, and Payton’s out there with us and he’ll make sure we’re held to that standard that Drake and Isaiah had and even raise it a little more.”

Scott said it was tough not playing more his first three years in the program. At Shelby High, he was a part of two state championship teams and received considerable recruiting interest from Clemson, North Carolina, Duke and others.

But at N.C. State, he had to wait his turn. He said he placed his faith in defensive coordinator Tony Gibson – “He has had my back through almost everything here,” he said – while watching and learning how Thomas, Moore and Wilson handled their positions.

With Thomas, Scott said he paid close attention to the linebacker’s “body movements.”

“He has great, great control over his body with everything he does, whether that’s playing in space, whether that’s blitzing, whether that’s trying to go make tackles on the other side of the field,” Scott said. “Drake plays with great, great body control, and that’s something I want to apply to my game.”

Scott calls Gibson’s 3-3-5 stack defense “linebacker friendly,” saying it gives the ‘backers a “lot of room to operate” and allows them to “roam” and make plays.

“It allows us to run and be active,” he said.

As an upperclassman, Scott said he will be willing to share all that with the younger players in the linebackers room such as Jordan Poole, Jayland Parker, Kelvon McBride. There’s also Caden Fordham, a redshirt sophomore who will push for playing time, possibly some starts.

“I know the defense as well as anybody else in the room, if not even more,” Scott said. “And I take that with a lot of pride, because I know if any of those guys in the room need help they’ll come to me or (Wilson).”

The Wolfpack, 8-5 last season, open the 2023 schedule with road game Aug. 31 at Connecticut. The next week, it’s Notre Dame in the Pack’s home opener at Carter-Finley Stadium.

Scott’s plan for the season is a simple one, he said.

“Just continue to be me and play my game,” he said. “At the end of the day I know if I continue to do what I do, and on the team to help the younger guys and continue to just lead in the way I am. I feel like that will continue to set me apart.”