QB returnees: CJ Bailey remaining at NC State for 2026 season

Quarterback CJ Bailey is returning to North Carolina State for his junior season in 2026, he announced Friday on social media, becoming the first of several starting quarterbacks to reveal their intention of sticking with their current teams.

Longtime Kansas State starting quarterback Avery Johnson will be back in purple next fall, and Marcel Reed, Texas A&M's QB the past two seasons, is staying in College Station.

Bailey posted on Instagram, "Back with the Pack," ending speculation he could enter the transfer portal on Friday.

The two-year starter would have been one of the top signal-callers on the market if he had opted to leave Raleigh.

Bailey completed 68.8% of his passes for 3,105 yards with 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games for the Wolfpack (8-5, 4-4 ACC) in 2025. He rushed for 215 yards and six scores.

Bailey ended the season with 221 passing yards and three touchdowns (two passing, one rushing) in a 31-7 victory against Memphis in the Gasparilla Bowl on Dec. 19 in Tampa.

The 6-foot-6 sophomore from Miami has thrown for 5,518 yards and 42 touchdowns with 19 interceptions in 25 career games. He has added 494 yards and 11 scores on the ground.

Johnson posted to Instagram regarding his time at Kansas State, "There is unfinished business here, and I'm not done yet."

Johnson was recruited to Manhattan, Kan., by his new head coach, Collin Klein, when Klein was offensive coordinator under since-retired coach Chris Klieman after a prolific high school career in Kansas that left him as one of the top QB prospects in the country.

The Wildcats struggled to a 6-6 record this season, though Johnson, a junior, threw for 2,385 yards and 18 touchdowns against six interceptions in his second season as the primary starter. As a sophomore, Johnson passed for 2,712 yards with 25 touchdowns and 10 picks as the Wildcats finished 9-4.

A dual-threat, Johnson has rushed for 1,378 yards and 22 touchdowns in three seasons.

Reed wrote on Instagram of Texas A&M, "Where the heart is. Let's finish what was started Aggieland!"

He rejoins an Aggies squad that will be missing Klein and several other assistants from a group that made a playoff run in 2026. As a sophomore, Reed helped lead the Aggies to an 11-1 regular-season record this fall, though the campaign ended with back-to-back disappointing losses to rival Texas (27-17) and to Miami in the playoffs (10-3).

Despite throwing for 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns with 12 interceptions to go along with 493 yards and six TDs on the ground, Reed struggled in the two defeats, getting shut out of the end zone while tossing four interceptions.

He split time in previous seasons before becoming the primary starter during the Aggies' playoff season, totaling 5,407 passing yards and 41 TDs and 19 picks to go along 1,085 yards and 14 TDs on the ground over parts of three seasons.

--Field Level Media