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NC State quarterback Grayson McCall was carted from the field in the first quarter of the Wolfpack's game against Wake Forest on Saturday after taking a huge hit while scrambling on a third-down play. McCall remained down for several minutes while receiving attention from the NC State medical staff.

He was able to move his arms and hugged his parents before the cart left the field. The scene was all too familiar for McCall, who was taken to the hospital in 2023 after taking a similarly scary hit while playing for Coastal Carolina. 

That injury, which resulted in a concussion, brought an end to McCall's 2023 season. It also made him contemplate his football future. However, the Indian Trail, North Carolina, native opted to use his final season of eligibility with the Wolfpack.

Entering Saturday's game, McCall had completed 66.7% of his passes for 476 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions in NC State's first three games. But the veteran signal-caller had missed the team's past two games due to injury. In his absence, freshman CJ Bailey started in a loss at Clemson and a win over Northern Illinois.

McCall surpassed 10,000 yards passing during his five seasons at Coastal Carolina and totaled 88 touchdown passes while earning Sun Belt Player of the Year in 2020, 2021 and 2022 under coach Jamey Chadwell.

Backup CJ Bailey, a true freshman, played against Louisiana Tech after McCall suffered a previous injury Sept. 14. Bailey then started games at Clemson and against Northern Illinois. He's 42 of 65 for 469 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions on the season.