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Previewing NC State’s Opponent: Wake Forest

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Wake Forest’s 2018 football season has been plagued by injuries. Prior to the season even beginning, 6 Demon Deacons were out for the year, and 6 more have suffered season ending injuries since it began.

The most recent is starting Freshman quarterback Sam Hartman, who broke a bone in his foot last Saturday against Syracuse. He will be replaced tonight with Sophomore Jamie Newman.

Newman was a 3-star prospect out of Graham High School (Graham, North Carolina), that also held offers from NC State, Duke, Boston College Wake Forest, and Vanderbilt. In limited action the past two seasons, Newman is 9 of 19 for 83 yards and 2 interceptions.

Sophomore slot receiver Greg Dortch is one of the most dangerous players in the ACC. He currently leads the conference in all-purpose yards per game (157.7), and ranks 5th nationally. He leads the ACC in receptions per game (7.7), and ranks 2nd in receiving yards per game (94.0).

The Demon Deacons have two running backs that have rushed for over 600 yards, and are averaging 5+ yards per carry. Senior Matt Colburn II has rushed for 670 yards (5.0 ypc) and 5 touchdowns. Junior Cade Carney has rushed for 601 yards (5.1 ypc) and 6 touchdowns. Wake Forest averages 224.4 yards per game, which ranks 24th nationally.

Wake Forest boasts the 2nd-fastest offense in the nation, running a play every 19.65 seconds. They also rank 14th nationally in 1st Downs.

On the whole, the Demon Deacons are averaging 453.4 yards per game, which ranks 30th nationally (NC State ranks 27th), but they will be without their starting quarterback tonight.

While Wake Forest is solid on the offensive side of the ball, they are abysmal on the defensive side, giving up an insane 493.6 yards per game, which ranks 122nd nationally (130 total schools). They are equally bad at stopping the run (221) and the pass (272.6), ranking 115th nationally in both.

The Demon Deacons have two players that rank in the Top-10 in tackles per game, with both Cameron Glenn and Justin Strnad tied for 8th in the ACC, averaging 8.1 tackles per game. When you give up close to 500 yards per game, there are plenty of opportunities for tackles. Strnad also has 6 tackles for loss, as does Carlos Basham Jr. Essang Bassey ranks second in the conference in passes defended (13).

 

Matthew is Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He writes for all sports, with a focus on football and recruiting, and is in charge of business strategy. He is an NC State alum who majored in business. Matthew is also the lead pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Football

Former NC State Running Back Jordan Houston Signs with Marshall

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Former NC State Running Back Jordan Houston has officially transferred to Marshall for his final year of eligibility. NC State played Marshall this past season, but Houston didn’t play against the Thundering Herd, because he had already opted to redshirt the remainder of the season.

After playing in three games this past season, Houston opted to redshirt the remainder of the season (despite the fact that he was the starter at the time), giving him the ability to transfer with one year of eligibility remaining.

Houston played in 51 games for NC State over 5 years on the field, rushing for 1,392 yards (4.3 yards per carry) and 6 touchdowns. He also caught 60 passes for 398 yards and 1 touchdown.

Houston was a 3-Star prospect in NC State’s 2019 recruiting class out of Flint High School in Oakton, Virginia.

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NC State Football

Philip Rivers will Finally be Enshrined in the NC State Hall of Fame in April

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Wolfpack legend Philip Rivers will finally be inducted into the NC State Hall of Fame on April 20th!

Rivers was elected into the Hall of Fame back in 2013 (2nd year of the NC State Hall of Fame), but he has deferred his enshrinement over the years due to time constraints.

 

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Rivers pretty much owns every NC State record for Quarterbacks, and still has the most Career Passing Yards and Passes Completed in ACC history, and he ranks 3rd in Touchdown Passes. Rivers was the ACC Rookie of the Year in 2000, and the ACC Player of the Year in 2003.

You can buy your tickets here.

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NC State Football

DJ Burns Had a Word for Wolfpack Fans After Winning the ACC Championship

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When NC State’s DJ Burns was giving his acceptance speech after receiving the 2024 ACC Tournament MVP Award, Burns had the following quote to say when asked what he wanted to say to the fans.

“I’m going to keep it real simple. Thank you to the ones who’ve been consistent throughout the ride, and welcome back everybody else.”

Burns’ words struck a chord.

Throughout much of this season, it was embarrassing to see all the empty seats in PNC Arena.

As the Wolfpack lost 7 of their final 9 regular season games, it was clear that this team wasn’t just losing games, but they were also losing much of the fanbase.

It’s clear from Burns’ words that the empty seats were noticed, and so were the words of fans online.

NC State finished the regular season 10th, and much of the fanbase was frustrated, and rightfully so.

But, frustrated doesn’t have to mean giving up.

‘Never giving up’ is kind of supposed to be NC State’s thing.

The words of Jimmy V reverberate throughout the history of NC State basketball.

This team didn’t always put W’s in the Win column this season, and it wasn’t always an easy watch, but never for a moment were these players not playing as hard as they could for their school, one another, and their coach.

They never gave up.

Fans have a right to be frustrated, but you can still show up for a team, even when they struggle, because that’s what loyal fans do. When players wear a jersey with NC State across the chest, and they don’t give up, their fans shouldn’t either.

NC State fans aren’t known to be fair weather fans. Let’s not get in the business of leading our players to think we are.

But, like Burns said, whether you’ve been along for the ride all season or not, it’s time to hop on.

 

 

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NC State Football

WATCH: PackInsider’s 2023 Sean Brown Highlight Reel

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This past season was a breakout season for Junior Safety, now turned Linebacker, Sean Brown.

This past season, Brown started in 11 of the 13 games that he played in, and ranked 3rd on the team in tackles (66) and pass breakups (5). He also had 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 interceptions and 1 forced fumble. Brown’s PFF Grade of 63.7 ranked 13th on the team. His Tackling Grade of 86.6 ranked 2nd on the team behind Payton Wilson.

As you will notice in our Highlight Reel ABOVE, Brown lived in the box, and is a very ferocious tackler. He will fit right in at Linebacker next year for the Wolfpack.

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