ESPN’s Bill Connelly Ranks NC State Football 7th in Preseason 2019 ACC Power Rankings

A little while back, ESPN’s Bill Connelly (Creator of the S&P rankings) released his 2019 ACC Football Preseason Power Rankings, and he ranked NC State 7th heading into the season.

Tier 1

1. Clemson

Tier 2

2. Miami
3. Florida State
4. Virginia
5. Virginia Tech
6. Syracuse
7. NC State

Tier 3

8. Pitt
9. Wake Forest
10. Duke
11. North Carolina
12. Boston College

Tier 4

13. Georgia Tech
14. Louisville

His S&P calculations heading into 2019 projects that NC State will finish 3rd in the Atlantic Division.

Atlantic Division

Projected Conference Wins (Projected Overall Wins)

1. Clemson 7.5 (11.0)

2. Florida State 4.6 (7.1)

3. NC State 4.2 (7.4)

4. Syracuse 3.7 (6.7)

5. Wake Forest 3.4 (6.2)

6. Boston College 2.9 (5.5)

7. Louisville 2.1 (4.0)

Coastal Division

1. Miami 5.6 (8.7)

2. Virginia Tech 5.2 (8.3)

3. Virginia 4.5 (7.6)

4. Pitt 3.8 (5.9)

5. Duke 3.6 (5.4)

6. North Carolina 3.1 (5.1)

7. Georgia Tech 2.1 (3.7)

SBNation

Connelly projects that Redshirt Junior Center Joe Sculthorpe will be the Wolfpack’s best offensive player, and Redshirt Senior Defensive Tackle Larrell Murchison will be their best defensive player.