Willie Kennedy, a 6-foot, 180-pound safety from Ashbrook High School in Gastonia, N.C., became the first player to commit to CU from the Tar Heel state since Chuck Fairbanks was coaching in Boulder.
In 1981, Fairbanks landed LaMarr Landrum, a tailback from the Winston-Salem area and center Brian Lewis from Greensboro as part of his 24-member recruiting class.
Those players remained at CU for one year and the program hadn't landed a recruit from North Carolina again until today when Kennedy announced his decision during a ceremony at his school.
Kennedy visited CU earlier this season and chose the Buffs over an offer from Missouri. Plenty of other programs also were recruiting him, including Clemson, Marshall, Virginia Tech and most of the programs near Tobacco Road.