NC State baseball continues to revamp the 2026 roster with another strong portal addition in Dalton Bargo from Tennessee, Pack Pride has confirmed.
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RALEIGH, N.C. -- NC State baseball continues to revamp the 2026 roster with another strong portal addition in Dalton Bargo from Tennessee, Pack Pride has confirmed. The former Volunteer outfielder and infielder announced his transfer decision moments ago, deciding to join the Wolfpack roster and potentially fill multiple spots for Elliott Avent's club next season.
The 6-foot-1, 196-pound transfer comes to the Wolfpack after spending the last three years in the SEC between Missouri and Tennessee. Over those three seasons, Bargo has slashed a career .276/.372/.517 with 27 home runs and 90 RBI in 474 at-bats between the two programs.
The Omaha, Neb. native is coming off a career year with the Volunteers, tallying a career-high 14 homers, 40 RBI, .925 OPS and 113 total bases reached. It also marked the first time he played more than 50 games and finished with 200-plus at bats, leading to him hitting more home runs than his previous two years combined to that point. Bargo was the four-hole hitter for the Vols this past season.
Where Bargo might fit in with the Pack remains to be seen, but he has several options. Mostly a utility outfielder with a combined 96 starts at one of the three outfield spots, Bargo has also played 25 games at third base, nine at first base and four at catcher -- his natural position out of high school. He was also a designated hitter at Mizzou, starting 43 games with the Tigers before transferring. With a lot of depth already added through the portal in the infield, that allows State to move Bargo around to find the best fit while keeping his explosive bat in the lineup.
Bargo joins a transfer class for the Wolfpack that includes right-handed pitchers Collins Black from Duke and Ryder Garino from South Carolina along with fellow infielders Mikey Ryan from LSU, Wyatt Peifer from JMU and former JUCO infielder Sherman Johnson. And the Wolfpack isn't done just yet when it comes to the 2026 roster with another outfielder potentially on the way.
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picked up a critical 35-31 home win over Virginia this past weekend to move to 2-0. On Monday, CBS Sports named Dave Doeren, who's his 13th season leading the Wolfpack, as its ACC head coach of the week.
The Pack overcame a 24-14 halftime deficit against the Cavaliers due in large part to its 21-point, 230-yard third quarter.
Sophomore quarterback CJ Bailey led the Pack's offense, completing 16-of-23 passes for 200 yards with one touchdown. Bailey, who completed 70 percent of his passes on both of State's games, also six carries for 44 yards and two more scores. Bailey also completed multiple passes to six different receivers for the second week in a row.
State running back Hollywood Smothers also had a stellar performance, totaling 17 carries for 140 yards with two touchdowns and two receptions for 13 yards.
"Super proud of the comeback win, proud of the guys for the grit and resilience," said Doeren after the victory. A lot of reasons why it happened. But before I get to that, I just want to thank our fans that came today. It was hot, for you guys to sit in that sun and cheer for us the way you did, means a lot to our players and our staff. So thank you for your loyalty and a noon kick on top of it, I know that's not easy for a lot of you to travel into Raleigh, so thank you.
It's great to be 2-0, another great, crazy finish, and you got to make a play, and sometimes you don't know who it's going to be. It's awesome when it's a senior. I told the guys in the locker room I was really proud of Cian [Slone] for making that. It's a key play in the game at the end. Offensively, played really well. We had zero turnovers on offense.
"We only had one penalty as a team the entire game. We didn't beat ourselves that way, and we were able to be productive, moving the football. We were 100 percent in the red zone, scoring points. Had explosive plays in the run game, rushing for 200 yards. I thought Hollywood was really in a good groove. The O-line, tight ends, and receivers did a good job blocking."
The veteran State head coach emphasized how impressed he was with the Wolfpack's toughness and resolve.
"I think this team understands who NC State is," Doeren said Saturday. "It's grit. This team has grit. It's in our DNA and we train in chaos. We look forward to tough situations. We practiced a lot of this stuff that you're seeing at the end of games, and the guys always revert back to their training. They're tough kids. They want to win.
"They know how to dig deep, and we've trained them well in those situations. It's a combination of things, along with the identity of our program. It's Hard Tough Together, and if you're going to be on this football team, you gotta have that kind of resiliency in you. So I'm proud of the leadership guys on our team, because they're demanding that from each other as well. Thank you guys. Go Pack."
Doeren, the all-time winningest coach in program history, is 89-65 since being hired Dec. 1, 2012.
The Wolfpack continues its season Thursday night on the road against Wake Forest. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
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