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#24 NC State Picks up a STATEMENT Win Over #17 Louisville

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#24 NC State pulled off the ‘upset’ over #17 Louisville last night, defeating the Cardinals 39-25.

But the Wolfpack’s demeanor after the game was cool, calm and collected. They didn’t look like they just ‘upset’ a team. They looked like a team that beat a team they thought they should beat.

In every facet of the game, NC State was better than Louisville.

Wolfpack Quarterback Ryan Finley faced off against the reigning Heisman trophy winner, Lamar Jackson, and on this particular night, Finley was the superior Quarterback. Finley was 20 of 31 for 367 yards with 1 passing touchdown. Jackson was 26 of 47 for 354 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Finley was composed all game long, and Jackson was rarely comfortable.

NC State’s offensive line was droves better than Louisville’s. The Wolfpack’s Band of Brothers didn’t allow Finley to get sacked for the third straight ACC game. That’s bonkers. On the other side, Louisville’s offensive line was unable to keep Jackson safe, allowing him to be sacked 4 times, and NC State also was credited with 5 more QB Pressures.

The Wolfpack’s receivers were superior to the Cardinals receivers. They were 1 yard away from rolling out 3 100-yard receivers in a single game. Sophomore Kelvin Harmon, who has been quiet in the past two games, played like a boss, catching 6 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown. Senior Jaylen Samuels had 7 catches for 104 yards (a career high), and Redshirt Junior Stephen Louis had 3 catches for 99 yards. Louisville did boast two 100-yard receivers as well, in Dez Fitzpatrick (134 yards) and Seth Dawkins (133 yards), but their performance was overshadowed by the Wolfpack receivers.

NC State’s rushing attack was more impressive than Louisville’s. Yes, Lamar Jackson scrambled for 73 yards and two touchdowns, but NC State’s Nyheim Hines rushed for 102 yards (second straight 100-yard performance), averaging 5.7 yards per carry, and picked up 2 rushing touchdowns.

Wolfpack punter A.J. Cole continued to be one of the more impressive punters in the ACC last night, averaging 45 yards per punt, and also managed to pin two within the 20. Louisville punter Mason King was unable to match Cole, averaging 40.6 yards per punt, and pinned just 1 punt within the 20.

NC State’s Nyheim Hines was superior to Louisville’s Traveoon Samuel and Seth Dawkins in the kickoff return game. Hines racked up 105 yards compared to their 71.

Finally, the Wolfpack defense was better picking up 6 tackles for loss (Bradley Chubb picked up 2 more), compared to Louisville’s 3.

NC State believed they were the better team. They didn’t think they were walking on to their home field to claim what was rightfully theirs. They thought they were the better team, and they were.

Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

NC State Football

CBS Sports Ranks Dave Doeren as 1 of the Top-20 Coaches in College Football

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CBS Sports released their Top-25 Power 4 Coaches in College Football, and NC State’s Dave Doeren came in at #16. Heading into last season, he went into the season ranked #25.

16) Dave Doeren: The NC State coach finally gets some overdue credit. He’s always hovered around the bottom of our top 25 or just outside it, and now he finds himself firmly entrenched in it thanks to all the changes at the top. Coaches who take mid-tier programs and overachieve never get enough credit, in my estimation, and the consistency Doeren has established at NC State — where he spent most of his time in a division with Clemson and Florida State — is one of the most impressive things any coach in the country has done. I’m glad to see Doeren getting closer to the top 15. 2023 rank: 25 (+9) (CBS Sports)

Numerous CBS Sports’ analysts voted in the poll, and Tom Fornelli actually ranked Doeren #8.

ACC Coaches that made the Top-25

3. Dabo Swinney (Clemson)

8. Mike Norvell (FSU)

16. Dave Doeren (NC State)

19. Jeff Brohm (Louisville)

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NC State vs. Tennessee Kickoff Time & TV Network Revealed

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Kickoff time and TV Channel details have been revealed for NC State and Tennessee’s game in the Duke Mayo Classic in Week 2 of next season.

The game will be a primetime game on Saturday 7th, at 7:30pm on ABC.

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This game has the makings to be a Top-25 matchup.

Here’s a look at some of the Way-Too-Early Preseason rankings for the Wolfpack and the Volunteers:

Action Network: NC State #24/Tennessee #17

ON3: NC State #22/Tennessee #15

247: NC State #21/Tennessee #11

ESPN: NC State #17/Tennessee #15

DraftKings released their way-too-early odds for the game, and Tennessee is currently a 5.5-point favorite.

Here’s the deal, as NC State fans, if we want to be a big time Football program, NC State fans need to gobble up tickets to this game. Let’s do our part and make sure that Bank of America Stadium is painted RED. Buy Tickets HERE.

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NC State and UVA Agree to Home-and-Home Non-Conference Games

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NC State announced this morning that the Wolfpack and UVA will play in a home-and-home non-conference series, with the game in 2025 being in Raleigh, and the game in 2026 being in Charlottesville.

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To reiterate, despite the fact that both teams are in the ACC, these games are considered non-conference games, and won’t count toward conference records. This is similar to what UNC and Wake Forest did a few years back.

Here’s what’s interesting about the addition of these games in 2025 and 2026. Prior to the announcement, NC State already had 4 non-conference games scheduled for both years.

It would be my assumption that one of the previously scheduled non-conference games for each season will not take place now.

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NC State’s 2024 Transfer Class Rankings After Carter Commitment

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