Four-star safety KJ Caldwell has committed to NC State. The Lilburn (Ga.) Parkview standout chose NC State over Georgia, Mississippi State and Kansas State, giving Dave Doeren another major recruiting win in the Southeast.
Caldwell, the No. 98 prospect in the Rivals Industry Ranking, built a strong connection with the Wolfpack staff over the last two years, and that ultimately separated NC State from the rest of the field.
“Really just relationships,” Caldwell told Rivals on what pushed the Wolfpack to the top. “Relationships with Coach Warren and the staff in general were just different. And then the culture made a big impact on my decision too. It is a family environment. It’s somewhere that I know I could be for three to four years.”
NC State has recruited Caldwell since around his sophomore year, and Charlton Warren stayed consistent throughout the process.
“He’s been with me for a while,” Caldwell said. “Coach Warren’s been consistent from then to now. He has called me, he has been by the school and I knew he really wanted me. That showed me a lot, and meant a lot to me.”
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That consistency intensified over the last few months as NC State pushed harder to land one of its top defensive targets.
“They really were showing me that they really, really wanted me these past couple months,” Caldwell said. “They’ve really been making a push to get me to Raleigh.
“Coach Warren came to my house a couple of weeks ago. He sat down and talked to me and my mom, really showing me and telling me that we need you, we want you. That is when I made my decision.”
The Wolfpack made their move earlier this spring
A spring visit to campus changed everything.
Caldwell traveled to Raleigh in March for his first visit to NC State, and the trip quickly reshaped the recruitment.
“That visit was huge,” Caldwell said. “I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t really thinking about NC State, but I kept them around because of Coach Warren and our relationship. But me going up there, really seeing what it’s like to be up there and what it’s like to get coached by Coach Warren and all the things they offer, it changed my mind and opened my eyes.”
During the visit, Caldwell toured the facilities, watched spring practice and spent time around the program.
“I got a tour of all the facilities and I watched spring practice,” he said. “I got to sit in some meetings too.”
The relationships inside the building continued to strengthen after that trip. Coach Warren visited Caldwell and his family at home recently, reinforcing how important he was to the Wolfpack’s class.
Doeren also made a strong impression.
“He’s a real straight-up person,” Caldwell said. “He’s a player coach. Sitting down with him and really getting to chop it up with him, he showed me this is somewhere I could be.”
When everything was finalized, three factors stood above the rest.
“Relationships, culture and stability,” Caldwell said.
Caldwell added that he plans to shut his recruitment down completely following the commitment and cancel the remaining official visits he previously scheduled.
