GAMEDAY PRIMER: NC State vs Charleston Southern | Keys to the Game and How to Watch

#18 NC State Wolfpack vs. Charleston Southern
Time: 12:30pm
Location: Raleigh, NC
TV: RSN (Bally Sports South in most of NC)
Line: NC State -44.5

NC State opens things up at Carter-Finley this season with a matchup against Charleston Southern. This is a game where NC State is favored to win by 44.5 points which may seem crazy after they just squeaked by unranked ECU with a 1-point win, but it seems Vegas thinks the Pack is ready to bounce back.

In recent history, the Pack has struggled when coming into a football season with high expectations, and that was the narrative coming into this season. It was hard to believe with so much veteran talent that they would open the season flat again, but it happened. However, this time they were able to escape with a win.

Maybe that was the wake-up call they needed. Maybe today we finally see the all-out assault that we all know this team is capable of. Maybe they’ll have a chip on their shoulder from falling the 3rd most spots of any team in the AP Poll. We’ll have to wait and see.

Getting to know Charleston Southern

The Buccaneers are currently 0-1 after being blown out by Western Carolina 52-38 at home (now does that 44.5 line seem more reasonable?). They are coming off a 4-6 season where they finished 5th in the Big South.

They are going to throw it a lot and they are going to rely on freshman QB Ross Malmgren to handle those duties. He was 30-45 in the opener, good for 392 yards and 5 touchdowns. He did throw 1 INT.

Meanwhile, freshman TJ Ruff will likely get the majority of the carries. In week 1 he had 9 carries for 60 yards.

Honestly, the Charleston Southern offense, led by freshmen, didn’t do too shabby in week 1. It was the defense that really let them down, giving up over 600 total yards and 7 TDs to Western Carolina.

Keys to the game for NC State

– Don’t be scared to open things up
We want to see the play calling get a little more exciting. Let Leary, your Heismann candidate QB, take control of the game. Let him take a few deep shots on 1st down. Let’s see what he can do when we put it on his shoulders. Conservative play calling almost cost NC State in week 1, so we’re hoping to see that change.

– Take care of business
If NC State can focus and execute, this is a win. It’s as simple as that. However, I think the fans want to see improvement in almost every aspect of the game this week. A win is great, but if this one is close then we might have a deeper problem. But I don’t think this will be the case. I think NC State comes out with a little something to prove against a team that really doesn’t have the horses to keep up.

– More Slimey Shark? 
NC State fans got to see their first real glimpse of RB Demi Sumo. He essentially split carries with Jordan. Houston, but out-gained him 79 yds to 55. Houston is going to be a big part of this offense and honestly I think there are going to be games where he has the better matchup. However, against these smaller, weaker teams, Sumo might really start to shine.