Quote :

"SATURDAY, AUG 31 East Carolina SATURDAY, SEP 7 Western Carolina SATURDAY, SEP 14 atWest Virginia SATURDAY, SEP 21 Ball State DATE TBA atBoston College DATE TBA atFlorida State DATE TBA atGeorgia Tech DATE TBA Clemson DATE TBA Louisville DATE TBA North Carolina DATE TBA Syracuse atWake Forest Time TBA ET | TV TBA"

@Wake and @BC look like the key games. get Clemson at home so should be able to keep it within 50.

#1 question: who is the the QB?

1/13/2019 8:36:00 AM

Anyway I partially made this bc I heard we are hiring the architect of a vaunted college defense

Quote :

"SOURCE: Former #WVU DC Tony Gibson is expected to become the new co-defensive coordinator at #NCState."

1/13/2019 8:36:48 AM

Hopefully his lack of success was more the offensive system/team philosophy than his def coordinator ability. From the little I've read up on him he was a good recruiter and extremely popular with the players.

[Edited on January 13, 2019 at 9:41 AM. Reason : f]

1/13/2019 9:41:25 AM

How is it not a slap in the face to hux that we keep hiring co DCs.. Or is that just the new norm

1/13/2019 9:57:55 AM

^

Quote :

"Don’t care, still getting paid."

- Dave Huxtable

1/13/2019 10:20:06 AM

I don't think the "Co" labels are a thing that matters/pisses off coaches. Seems to be the new norm. Clemson had co-offensive coordinators and what not.

1/13/2019 10:34:33 AM

Yeah I think it’s more of a norm now especially with the addition of the 10th assistant last year.

The @WV seems pretty winnable. They lose a lot (so do we) and have a new staff. Getting GT as the crossover opponent is good too. New staff, learning an entirely new system. Another winnable one. With so many questions throughout the conference, Clemson seems like the only definite L. @FSU won’t be easy either, but I think they’re still in rebuild mode.


[Edited on January 13, 2019 at 11:51 AM. Reason : Add a note ]

1/13/2019 11:47:38 AM

Right now our quarterbacks are: Matthew McKay (RS-S), Micah Leon (RS-S), Jory Perkins (RS-S), Bailey Hockman (RS-S), Devin Leary (RS-F), and Ty Evans (F), so no one with very much experience. Of them, Matthew McKay is the only one who has played a single college game, and he only played 5 games for a total of 13 attempts for 36 yards.

So if I had to guess, McKay starts out with the starting job but in the first few games they're gonna experiment the most with Hockman, who transferred here from FSU. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the other quarterbacks saw some action, though.

My bold prediction for next year's team is that they're gonna try and and work Ty Evans in somewhere.

[Edited on January 13, 2019 at 11:54 AM. Reason : grammar]

1/13/2019 11:53:35 AM

New Co-DC is considered a great recruiter and their secondary was top 5 in the nation in interceptions last year and he's working with DBs, so I don't see a negative here.

QB situation is going to be a 3-horse race between McKay, Leary, and Hockman. Evans is going to be redshirting and I don't think we'll waste any garbage time reps with him given we have 3 QBs with little to no game experience. I expect something like last year where we have 1 guy taking 95% of the reps and then his main back up gets the garbage time reps.

I thought Leary would be the best bet to start(apparently he impressed all season with his arm talent) but now I could see Hockman winning the job. He's gone through a QB battle before, he's been in a college S&C program for 2 years and he's probably more physically ready than Leary. I think McKay might start the season given his experience within our system, but just have a feeling that with the strength of our offense being WR/TE, we're going to end up rolling Leary or Hockman out there to start eventually if McKay can't get the job done.

1/13/2019 12:42:13 PM

Perkins and Leon are walk-ons and Evans is a true freshman. so the competition will be between McKay, Leary, and Hockman. Evans will probably RS...it'd be weird not to RS him unless he's just awesome. we need to space these guys out the best we can. idk who will win the job, but i feel pretty confident that of the 3 guys (4 if we count Evans), at least 1 is gonna be a solid option for the future. also, i'm pretty confident somebody will transfer...but that's the way things go.

1/13/2019 1:22:43 PM

I think it's pretty telling that Leary got exactly zero snaps this year, especially at the end of the year (ECU). Seems pretty obvious he's noticably behind McKay.

1/13/2019 2:18:18 PM

maybe. but maybe not. i wouldn't read too much into it either way, honestly.

1/13/2019 3:14:34 PM

Why shouldn't I read into a guy not getting a single snap?

1/13/2019 4:36:16 PM

Because he was a true freshman, we already had a back up QB, and there were exactly 2 games (ECU and TAMU) where he could have played in super duper mop up duty. So...I don’t really read anything into that at all

1/13/2019 5:10:44 PM

But if he's better (and going to be the starter next year), why not get him in the game?

1/13/2019 5:37:24 PM

NC STATE PLAYS ON SEP 21 = BALL STATE

OPPONENT = BALL STATE

1/13/2019 5:46:48 PM

1) I’m not saying he is better. I have no way of knowing.
2) The guy ahead of him has a year jump on Leary to learn playbook and practice.
3) At this point the coaches don’t know who will be the starter next year.
4) Just because McKay might be more advanced now, doesn’t mean Leary or Hockman can’t overtake him.
5) I’m not anti-McKay at all. Just think it’s way too early to know much either way

1/13/2019 5:50:33 PM

I was surprised that McKay didn't get to throw the ball.. If he's just a runner (or much more of a runner) I don't see how that works well for us

1/13/2019 7:38:18 PM

Yeah I would’ve liked to see him throw. But I think it’s just cause it was mop up duty...it’s not like he’s just a runner.

1/13/2019 7:48:38 PM

What's the benefit of playing Leary in mop-up duty when you have a 2nd QB with no experience that needs that playing time in case something happens to Finley?

Also, why play Leary unless he's 100% ready? He comes in and struggles, how does that help his confidence? What's the use of throwing him out there with the 3rd string?

I think not playing Leary was much more about making sure McKay would be a little more game-ready if Finley got hurt at any point this year. I think the general consensus on Leary out of HS was that he had a strong and accurate arm, decent mobility(think Finley), but he needed to add good weight(only 189lbs out of HS and Finley was playing at 212lbs this year). That gives him a full year in S&C, he should be much more physically prepared to compete next year.

Wrench for Leary is where he was the superior arm talent and McKay was slightly more mobile and experience, Hockman is in between the 2 and has experience. It's why I wouldn't be surprised to see Hockman win the job. Feel like he picked NC State as his landing spot for a reason.

Big question will be who ends up #3 in the rotation and will that player be content hanging around or not. I think McKay wants to be here to play with his brother and I'm not sure if I see Hockman transferring again.

1/13/2019 8:46:02 PM

Leary didn't play because he was the scout team quarterback the whole season. Meaning he spent very little time practicing our offense and more time practicing the other teams offense.

I expect it to be him or hockman playing for most of the season, even if mckay starts the first game.

1/13/2019 9:40:50 PM

Levi Davis officially on the roster, as we all already assumed

1/14/2019 9:44:35 AM

Going to be a pretty big rebuilding year, especially for our defense. Unfortunately, we wont have a stellar offense to help win those games. I see at least 5 losses (@WVU, @BC, Clem, Cuse, @WFU) and probably one more against FSU/Lou/GT. Which would still make us bowl eligible. So see y'all at the Pinstripe bowl!

1/14/2019 10:48:58 AM

I think our offense won't skip a beat. And the defense can't get much worse

1/14/2019 10:55:17 AM

Quote :

"Going to be a pretty big rebuilding year, especially for our defense"

Huh? On defense we lose 4 starters, granted one of whom was our best D player and first team all acc. But on offense we lose 7 starters including the Rimington award winner and 4 other all acc first teamers plus a 3rd team and honorable mention. One of those is the most important position on the field and another is a position where we are pretty thin (RB, Griffin decision will be impactful).

Offense is basically a total rebuild.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 11:24 AM. Reason : E]

1/14/2019 11:24:05 AM

Quote :

"I think our offense won't skip a beat. And the defense can't get much worse"

We are replacing THREE all time great players on offense (QB, WR, and C) as well as our record setting RB. Fortunately, we have some pretty good depth at those positions, though I am not sure about our C depth. I think we can still be good, but we will definitely have our struggles on offense.

^ I don't disagree. But I think our lack of depth on defense makes the rebuild tougher than on offense. Pratt was our only consistent playmaker on D, and our secondary was absolute trash all season. Now, maybe Isaiah Moore can step into that playmaker MLB role and our young secondary can be a little more consistent. But there is not the same depth on defense yet* to make up for the talent we've lost the last 2 years. I do expect our young defense to significantly improve throughout the year, but I don't think they will be really any good until 2020.

I don't think we are in as bad a position at RB as you indicate. We have good depth at RB (Person played injured most of the year, and we saw some good snaps by Pennix). Griffin obviously will be a game changer as you mention above. We have a couple other good freshmen coming in with good speed, but they might be a year away from making any impact. A lot of that depends on the OL though.

I think we are setup really well for 2020 and 2021. So I just don't have high expectations for this year. But hey, we are NC State, so we should be used to saying "wait for next year"

1/14/2019 11:55:31 AM

offense will basically be totally dependent on QB play. i know other things matter...need somebody to step up at RB behind Person, hopefully the OL will remain a strength even with losing some guys, and obviously we lose a lot at WR (but are still talented at that position, imo).

Quote :

" I see at least 5 losses (@WVU, @BC, Clem, Cuse, @WFU) and probably one more against FSU/Lou/GT."

maybe. WV is gonna be rebuilding, they lose a lot and have a new coach. it won't be easy, but it's winnable. Wake seems like a toss up at worst, except they seem to have our number in W-S. BC and Cuse should both be solid, but i'm not ready to chalk either up as likely losses. honestly, Clemson is the only game i look at as basically unwinnable. the rest of the ACC is just kinda meh (and so are we)...so i'm not saying we'll win 10+ games or anything. i just don't look at our schedule and see 5 definite losses. but again, it all depends on QB play.

the way i see it, basically every ACC game outside of Clemson is totally winnable...but also totally loseable.

Quote :

"I think we are setup really well for 2020 and 2021."

yeah i agree. the constant caveat will be "if we get good QB play", but i'm confident one of the guys on the roster is ACC caliber.



[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 12:06 PM. Reason : f]

1/14/2019 12:05:31 PM

Pennix barely even played. Bodine played more than him. If person isn't 100% healthy all year, we'll be in trouble. Also "depth" at QB isn't really a thing that matters, you need 1. Qb is basically a total unknown at this point. Oline, sculthorpe and Riley played some. Sculthorpe should be fine at guard or center, the other is a total unknown. As for LT, Riley was terrrrible against Cuse, so if it's him he better step it up.

And yea the defense might be bad but losing 4 players isn't a "rebuild". As Justin said, we had one of the worst d's in the country, but most of the same players will be starting where they started this year. Hope Levi Jones can help shore up lb depth, but we have plenty of depth and dline and secondary, just maybe not good enough depth.

1/14/2019 12:13:41 PM

Obviously losing Harmon and Meyers hurts, but our wr depth is ridiculous. Emezie is poised to have a breakout year, and if Riley can limit the drops, he could be Harmon 2.0. Not to mention Thomas back in the slot and the promising freshmen who barely saw the field this year because of that depth.

I'm confident that Doeren will field another above average OL next year.

And I'm not worried in the least bit about replacing Finley. We will be fine at QB. Who knows, maybe we'll even be able to win a game that we get behind in.

1/14/2019 12:14:43 PM

Seems like you're either expecting too much of Riley or discounting Harmon. Riley apparently has track speed, so he could be a good deep threat if he can catch. But Harmon was pretty much the total package at WR, size, hands and enough speed to get the job done. Seems like Emezie or Carter would be the better options to be a poor man's Harmon.

1/14/2019 12:22:44 PM

Quote :

" Also "depth" at QB isn't really a thing that matters, you need 1."

You know what they say about depth at QB. If you have 2 starting QBs, you don't have one. I guess my point is that we have a couple of good options going into next year. It's not just: "well, this is McKay's team now, so he better show up."

Quote :

"i just don't look at our schedule and see 5 definite losses."

Maybe not definite, but we would not be favored in any of these games, and we all know DD's record as an underdog is not optimal. I guess the only definite losses I see are Clemson and WFU.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 12:25 PM. Reason : 1]

1/14/2019 12:23:00 PM

Quote :

"Who knows, maybe we'll even be able to win a game that we get behind in."

I know this is silly trolling/irrational hate that i shouldn't respond to, but if you think our qb can't be significantly worse than Finley, your opinion can basically be ignored from now on.

Quote :

"guess the only definite losses I see are Clemson and WFU. "

Lol FOH with this.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 12:28 PM. Reason : D]

1/14/2019 12:26:45 PM

Quote :

" Lol FOH with this. "

Which part of this do you take such great exception to?

1/14/2019 12:33:42 PM

That WF is a "definite loss". It's silly. If Wake is a definite loss then most of the games on our schedule will be definite losses.


Edit: frankly if a team that went 7-6 last year is a definite loss, then we need to go ahead and move on from DD

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 12:46 PM. Reason : E]

1/14/2019 12:44:30 PM

We are taking a completely rebuilt team into Winston, where we've only won twice since '97. And Wake is no slouch, they will be pretty good again next year.

1/14/2019 12:51:44 PM

Quote :

"I see at least 5 losses (@WVU, @BC, Clem, Cuse, @WFU) and probably one more against FSU/Lou/GT."

WVU - Losing their stars on offense, their entire coaching staff, and changing their entire system.
BC - Losing most of their OL and their best defensive players.
Cuse - Losing their QB, some OL, few defensive guys.
FSU - Have you seen them the last 2 years? They still don't have a QB and until Taggert proves he can do something with all of that talent, I'm not buying them.
UL - That roster is a dumpster fire and they have a brand new staff with new systems. I think they'll be a quicker rebuild than most jobs, but they have some bad culture to change in a hurry.
GT - An entire roster built to run the triple-option is switching to not run the triple-option. If that offense is even mediocre it will be a hell of a job by the new staff.

Clemson is going to go undefeated in the ACC again, that's a L on every team's schedule.

WVU and GT should be worse than last year. BC is still going to put everything on their do-everything RB that can't stay healthy because of his usage. Cuse is a big question mark but on paper I expect them to take a slight step back and we're at home.

I'm not saying we're winning 10+ games, I just think 8-4 is the new realistic goal for every season. Yeah we have a huge question mark at QB but we have 3 guys competing so the hope is at least 1 of the 3 former 4* QBs can be average to good.

Question will be how improved is our D and can they help the O a little bit, especially early? Nice infusion of talent in the 2018 & 2019 classes, will be interesting to see if some of the RS's from last year(Palmer, Wilson, etc) are ready to contribute and how prepared are true FR are(can Harris and Clark contribute immediately?). The D is getting more athletic every year, but can we finally turn the corner in the passing game while remaining really strong against the run(other than the A&M game)?

1/14/2019 12:59:28 PM

Quote :

"but if you think our qb can't be significantly worse than Finley, your opinion can basically be ignored from now on."

Obviously our next QB could be Marcus Stone 2.0, but I'm optimistic they aren't. This offensive system lends itself to good QB numbers. It let a noodle armed QB put up respectable numbers. If Mike Glennon had been the QB the last 3 years, he'd have better numbers than Finley.

1/14/2019 1:01:24 PM

We played the worst game we played all year and only lost by 4. We're rebuilding our O but Wake lost their best offensive player and only first teamer plus 2/3 2nd teamers and 2/3 HM (no 3rd teamers). So they are losing 5/7 of their best players. Not sure how accurate but a depth chart I Googled shows them losing 6 starters on offense and defense. In addition, per rivals, we've been at least 20 spots higher in the rankings of class of 2017/18/19, so I would hope our restock is better than their's.


To be a definite loss, they should be favored by at least double digits

1/14/2019 1:01:56 PM

Quote :

"I'm not saying we're winning 10+ games, I just think 8-4 is the new realistic goal for every season."

I don't disagree with your assessment of the teams above. I just have a much lower expectation considering how much of a rebuild we have. My bar for next season is obviously a little lower at either 6 or 7 wins.

Quote :

" Nice infusion of talent in the 2018 & 2019 classes, will be interesting to see if some of the RS's from last year(Palmer, Wilson, etc) are ready to contribute and how prepared are true FR are(can Harris and Clark contribute immediately?)"

If any of the freshmen or RS Fr. LBs are making a significant impact, you can count on losing at least 5 games.

Quote :

"To be a definite loss, they should be favored by at least double digits"

or be played in Winston.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 1:14 PM. Reason : 1]

1/14/2019 1:10:59 PM

We don't have a rebuild, we have a reload.

1/14/2019 1:25:41 PM

Optimistically, im gonna say 10-2, with WV and Clemson being losses

but if State happens to win one of those, they will probably find a way to lose to ECU or something to make up for it

lets hope im wrong and the narrative is changing



going Debbie downer, ill say 7-5 and a bowl game should be easy no matter what

with BC, Wake, and FSU being the gut checks that should be wins

1/14/2019 1:37:39 PM

Quote :

"but we would not be favored in any of these games, "

Seems like a huge stretch considering 1) it’s January and 2) we don’t know shit about the QB situation.

Also. Our past performances at Wake 20 years ago have no bearing on what the 2019 team will do in W-S. Sorry, that just doesn’t carry a lotta weight with me. Our record there is horrendous. That hardly means we shouldn’t expect to win there. And definitely doesn’t make it a near definite loss. Assuming a loss at Wake in January is ridiculous. I get our recent history there is bad. That game is still winnable and probably would fall into the “should win” category.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 1:44 PM. Reason : A]

1/14/2019 1:41:48 PM

Yea i mean if your position is we have a literal demon deacon that has cursed us to forever lose in WS, then sure, it's a definite loss.

However, in the rational world, unless we are just bad in general (for example if the QB craters) then that game should be at worst a single digit spread if it's in wake's favor. If we are just bad in general, throw all of this out and hope we get 1 acc win.

Quote :

" Hope Levi Jones can help shore up lb depth"

Oops I forgot he prob won't be eligible this season. Maybe Debbie can work some magic.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 2:10 PM. Reason : Levi]

1/14/2019 1:52:29 PM

^yep. In short, if @wake is a definite loss...then we’re looking at a potential 1-7 acc season or something.

1/14/2019 2:30:02 PM

but, but, but the curse of NC State Shit won't let us win at Wake!!!

1/14/2019 2:59:55 PM

Wake will be a better team than FSU, Lou, UNC and GT. So losing to them will not be a season ender. Add to that our historic ineptness in Winston, and I don't see how we win that game.

Quote :

"Yea i mean if your position is we have a literal demon deacon that has cursed us to forever lose in WS, then sure, it's a definite loss. "

I am typically one who would argue our historic results have no bearing on future results. But I have watched this program play, and lose, in Winston. No matter the coach or team skill level, we can not win there. Until proven otherwise, this is a guaranteed loss.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 3:06 PM. Reason : 1]

1/14/2019 3:04:28 PM

well Dave is 1-2 there, and one of those losses was his first year we lost almost every game. The other was a W if there's a goal line cam (maybe). So...I think we'll be ok

we're 6-9 in WS in the last 30 years, they're 2-13 here.. We're better than them.

[Edited on January 14, 2019 at 3:17 PM. Reason : 9-3, lose bowl game, 9-4]

1/14/2019 3:11:52 PM

I’d take 9-3 right now.

With the QB situation such a wiestikn mark, it’s hard to predict what we’ll be. But I feel like 7-5 should be the minimum expectation really. Especially in a potential down year (again) outside of clemson for the ACC. UNC should be better, but it’s at home. UL can’t be any worse, but again we get them at home. FSU should improve but they won’t be a juggernaut, on the road is still not easy. GT should be in a major rebuild imo. Cuse should come down a peg this year and we get them at home. Wake and BC are both probably 6 or 7 win teams, which means those should be totally winnable games. Again, definitely not predicting 7-1 in ACC or anything. But I feel like, unless our QB situation is terrible, we should find at least 4 conference wins against that schedule.

1/14/2019 4:33:32 PM

AUG 31 (SAT)
VS EAST CAROLINA

SEP 7 (SAT)
VS WESTERN CAROLINA

SEP 14 (SAT)
AT WEST VIRGINIA

SEP 21 (SAT)
VS BALL STATE

SEP 28 (SAT)
AT FLORIDA STATE

OCT 5
OPEN

OCT 10 (THU)
VS SYRACUSE

OCT 19 (SAT)
AT BOSTON COLLEGE

OCT 26
OPEN

NOV 2 (SAT)
AT WAKE FOREST

NOV 9 (SAT)
VS CLEMSON

NOV 16 (SAT)
VS LOUISVILLE

NOV 21 (THU)
AT GEORGIA TECH

NOV 30 (SAT)
VS NORTH CAROLINA

1/16/2019 2:10:40 PM

Quote :

". If you have 2 starting QBs, you don't have one."

That is the dumbest saying ever. It sure worked out for the 2 teams that played for the national championship. It only rarely works when you try to switch back and forth between 2. Otherwise you have 1 starter and 1 guy who probably leaves.

1/16/2019 2:22:24 PM