i guess they're factoring draft picks into their equation...even if those draft picks were "busts". we have had 4 picks..Rivers, Glennon, Wilson, Jacoby...i'm sure other teams have had much more than 4. but the success rate or quality or however you wanna measure it, seems like State would be about as good as anybody.

4/25/2017 12:41:55 PM

I can pretty much guarantee they aren't counting Wilson for us

4/25/2017 1:08:30 PM

yeah thats a safe bet

4/25/2017 2:53:47 PM

Connor Cook is probably the #1 QB in the NFL for being an asshole

4/25/2017 3:22:36 PM

^jeez now even State fans are knocking PRiv!

4/25/2017 6:07:23 PM

http://www.espn.com/blog/acc/post/_/id/99254/acc-post-spring-power-rankings-florida-state-looks-strong

Quote :

"5. NC State Wolfpack Here’s the Wolfpack’s biggest problem right now: We have them as the fifth-best team in the ACC... and the fourth-best team in their own division. Ryan Finely is solid, the playmakers on offense -- Stephen Louis, Jaylen Samuels, Nyheim Hines -- are very good, and the defensive front will be one of the best in the country. The catch, of course, is we could say the same or better about most of the rest of the ACC Atlantic."

5/1/2017 11:40:00 AM

ugh.

5/1/2017 11:48:13 AM

That sounds about like every year as far at the Atlantic goes. Must be nice to be in the coastal where you just have to be average to win a division title. I still think we go 6-6 again next year but will just be more competitive in those games.

5/1/2017 11:52:15 AM

Quote :

"I still think we go 6-6 again next year but will just be more competitive in those games."

if we're any more competitive than we were vs Clemson and FSU those would be wins. can't get much closer than we were last year...a missed FG and a dropped INT from beating Clemson and FSU. only games we lost by more than 1 possession were UL and Miami.

our defense should be really really strong this year. it's tough to replace Matt Dayes, but on the whole i think our O will have more weapons (and more experienced weapons) than last year. i could see 8-4.

5/1/2017 12:01:35 PM

Quote :

"more competitive in those games"

Double overtime loss to Clemson.

5/1/2017 12:31:51 PM

in terms of goals and expectations...i think we have to get over that 3-5 hump this year. 5-3 would be tough, but 4-4 seems quite doable and with a break here or there maybe we could get to 5-3. it'd be nice to finally get a W from UL, Clemson, or FSU but again...that's a tall order.

5/1/2017 12:35:55 PM

Our problem has been when we do pick up a win like that we even it out with a loss to BC or some bullshit haha

5/1/2017 12:52:13 PM

yeah that's pretty typical for us...DD hasn't beaten any of those teams so that's what i hope to see change this year. along with taking care of business vs the lesser opponents. this will be a veteran team...hopefully the kind of veteran team that can get a win vs UL or Clemson at home and then not get caught looking ahead and stumbling vs lesser opponents. obviously that all starts at the top with the staff, but i think having a veteran team definitely aids in that too.

5/1/2017 1:51:36 PM

Apparently with the departure of Dayes and Frasier Drinkwitz is wanting to do more spread sets and QB roll out type deals.

I, Personally, dont think we have the WR talent to do that but...In Elijah we trust.

With that said, think Dave wins 4 games and gets canned.

5/1/2017 8:53:11 PM

I don't think we need Finley rolling out a lot.

5/1/2017 9:33:10 PM

^^ not sure I understand why Dayes and Frasier leaving would lead Drinkwitz to that style...not like we don't have RBs still. Gallaspy and Nichols should be fine. Hines is gonna be in the backfield more and of course JaySam can do it all. I know Hines and Samuels aren't your traditional RBs, but I certainly think Gallaspy (and to a lesser extent Nichols) would be capable of giving us a solid backfield presence.

I know it's just your prediction, but i really don't us winning only 4 games this year. We have plenty of veteran talent and we've got some depth. This team should win 7 at a minimum, really

[Edited on May 1, 2017 at 9:52 PM. Reason : A]

5/1/2017 9:51:07 PM

http://www.foxsports.com/college-football/gallery/top-25-rankings-post-spring-alabama-ohio-state-usc-mandel-050217

Expectations

5/2/2017 11:34:22 AM

from ^, where he has us #24.

Quote :

"It’s been a slow build for Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren, but this is his most experienced team. DE Bradley Chubb is a dominant pass-rusher. QB Ryan Finley is solid, and WR Jaylen Samuels could be one of the nation’s most versatile weapons. The defense returns eight starters, not even including LB Germaine Pratt, who had a strong spring after missing 2016 to injury. The Wolfpack should be better than 7-6."

i know we all hate high expectations and we all think of the worst when media starts saying we might be good. but i think this is pretty fair and not really unreasonable.

5/2/2017 11:39:40 AM

Problem is they tend to have us as the 5th best team in the ACC but 4th best in the Atlantic. Schedule is harder than last season but this is easily our best team under Doeren, so we're going to need some upsets to beat our record from last year.

5/3/2017 8:58:22 AM

Quote :

"so we're going to need some upsets to beat our record from last year."

i mean, it's speculation at this point. but...i'd expect us to be underdogs in these games:

@ND, Clemson, UL, @FSU....and then @Pitt is a possibility, but that seems kinda like a toss up. obviously it's not as easy as winning all the games where we're favorites and losing when we're underdogs. but this would put us firmly in the 7-5/8-4 (4-4, or 5-3) range.

i realize i'm quibbling over one or two wins in our final record...but what i'm getting at is, i don't see it as unreasonable to think we could go 8-4/5-3 this year. which wouldn't be a total stretch.

we thought our schedule was hard last year...then ECU and ND were super shitty and our schedule turned out to be not as brutal as expected - even though we still shut the bed vs ECU.

5/3/2017 12:50:43 PM

If we beat SC to start the season thats when I will open up to the idea of us having a better than .500 record.

Currently I think we lose to FSU, Clemson, Louisville, ND, and 2/3 of SC, Pitt, UNC. I hope to be proven wrong.

5/3/2017 3:40:13 PM

^ UNC should be dogshit next year. Lost EVERYONE on offense and their D is still trash. We better win that game this year. Of course it is a rivalry game so...



[Edited on May 3, 2017 at 5:05 PM. Reason : vb]

5/3/2017 5:04:33 PM

we are better than UNC, SC, and Pitt. Pitt's on the road and they're probably the best of those 3 teams, that seems like the most likely loss. obviously, just being better than a team doesn't always translate to a W, but i feel like 2-1 in those 3 is a very probable scenario. but i know all state fans hate to get their hopes up about anything.

5/3/2017 6:24:38 PM

Quote :

"Currently I think we lose to FSU, Clemson, Louisville, ND"

We'll win one of those. 2 if were lucky, but were not

5/4/2017 11:59:30 AM

I would love to win one of those games, but I just assume if we do instead we will lose to BC/Wake/Cuse instead haha

5/4/2017 12:03:19 PM

http://www.espn.com/blog/acc/post/_/id/99299/nc-state-could-be-sleeping-giant-in-acc-atlantic

Welp folks, seasons over. The curse of higher expectations is upon us. This year is guaranteed to be an unmitigated disaster.

5/9/2017 12:29:15 PM

i think the media writes things like this for laughs

5/9/2017 12:44:22 PM

Ah so thats what we have been doing all these years? Just sleeping? Waiting to wake up and start pounding people into the ground? How could I not have seen that!

5/9/2017 12:53:53 PM

Whenever an opposing coach talks about our defensive line, I'm wondering - are they just trying to avoid talking about how crappy the 2ndary and linebackers are?

5/9/2017 1:10:15 PM

nah, our defensive line is worthy of the praise. it's gonna be legit v good. secondary definitely is the weakest/most unknown unit on defense. but a dominant DL really can hide that well.

^^^maybe, but more likely...they can't call UL, FSU, or Clemson a "sleeping giant" so if you're looking for a "surprise" ACC team do really well this year we kinda fit that bill. loaded DL and D as a whole was pretty good last year and didn't lose a lot, we're a veteran team all around, return almost everybody, were a few plays from winning 9+ games last year...it's not hard to see why people might see us as team that could make some noise. except our own fans, of course. we may end up being god awful this year...but the pieces are in place for us to be a top 25 team this year.

[Edited on May 9, 2017 at 2:14 PM. Reason : h]

5/9/2017 2:11:14 PM

Anybody willing to share their packpride login? We had to make some budget cuts. I promise to only read.

5/9/2017 4:36:36 PM

^^eh

Over 3,000 yards passing on us last year, bottom 4 in the ACC. and our DL was pretty effin good then too. Tocho, JJones, and wright weren't exactly studs (IMO), but I'm guessing the dudes that didn't start over them last year aren't any better.

We're gonna get torched in passing defense. Again.

Just trying to prepare you for the inevitable.

5/9/2017 5:44:20 PM

Our DL is probably top 20 in the nation, our LBs are quite good and the secondary isn't bad, it's just that one of those units is really, really good. If we still had Josh Jones then I think you would hear coaches raving about the entire D but they'd still be emphasizing the DL. We have at least 5 guys that are likely going to be in the NFL.

I mean just based on talent and experience, we do have a team with a load of potential. Hell if we had even an average kicker we'd be coming off a 10-win season including a win over Clemson on the road and a blown lead against FSU. We'd probably be preseason top 25 and a "darkhorse" for the Atlantic.

I'd say "sleeping giant" makes sense right now. We proved we were a good team last year that just couldn't close out big games but could basically play with anyone(outside of Lamar Jackson going Superman on us) and we return a bunch of guys on both sides of the ball. If we can figure out how to win the close ones and close out games(FSU, Clemson, and hell even UNC last year where we almost blew that lead) then it could be a really good year.

Fairly big year for our program and Doeren. Recruiting is picking up(Leary, Person, and Dunn all seem really big-time and we're leading for some other kids getting a lot of good press), we have a team with great depth and experience, just need to stay healthy and keep trending up on the wins. Next up is he needs a "signature win" and to finish .500+ in the ACC.

5/9/2017 5:55:33 PM

^^we also were #5 in Defense rush yds/game and had a fairly good defensive passer efficiency rating. You could argue that 3000 yards is partially from teams knowing our passing D maybe isn't terrible but def a weakness compared to rushing, so we saw more passing volume than other teams.

Our yards/att and yds/comp were pretty good too.

No way to say our passing D was great or even good, but maybe closer to "meh" then those stats imply.

5/9/2017 6:35:45 PM

^^^I get you knocking on Tocho and maybe Stevens(at times), but you can't really question Jones and to a lesser extent Wright. Josh Jones played well and he'd be a HUGE piece if he was returning this year. Wright was a liability in coverage but the man was an enforcer out there and him taking Gallman out of the game was a big reason we had Clemson on the ropes.

I think bringing in a guy like Aaron Henry to coach the secondary is going to help, and he's sounds fairly jazzed about a few of the guys. I'd love to have Josh Jones back there but I think we have potential to be at least as good as we were last year in the secondary to go with a hopefully improved and deeper DL and LB group.

5/9/2017 8:57:11 PM

^^^ I love this shit. Always next year, we're always going to be better. Do you know you're talking about NCState? We're destined to dwell in the gutter.

5/9/2017 9:24:28 PM

^this is the kinda bullshit that's infuriating to me. i realize that it's maybe funny to joke about "nc state shit" or whatever, but a decent portion of our fan base is scared that we might actually be a good (not great, just good) team this year. hell...with a lot of our fans it's either 1) the media doesn't respect us or 2) the media has us ranked, i bet it's just for laughs.

guys...it's ok to be excited about the prospect of a good season every once in a while. it's kinda fun.

also...it's not like this every year. last year, we all thought the schedule was too hard and we'd be lucky to go 7-5. there was no dark horse talk or "this is our year".

5/10/2017 6:57:03 AM

^

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1gxDJFnEgc

5/10/2017 7:44:00 AM

Let's not forget that Jones and Tocho both got drafted, I'm not sure you hang blame on guys that are playing at the next level.

5/10/2017 8:24:22 AM

Josh Jones went in the 2nd round, the guy is a super athlete and has a high ceiling, he would have likely been the 2nd best player on our D this year.

Tocho...physically he's got everything you want for a CB. The guy just had mental lapses and seemed to have some confidence issues where he'd either play great or fall apart. Not surprised he got drafted, some team will see if they can fix his game and utilize his physical ability. Wouldn't shock me if he ends up trying to switch to safety.

I actually think our CBs will be better this year, but even though the hype around some of our younger guys at S sounds great, Jones will be hard to replace.

The reality is ON PAPER, this is Doeren's best team to date. Obviously if we have some significant injuries it's going to change things, but as of right now, this is really a make-or-break season for Doeren. We are probably one of the most talented and experienced teams in the ACC behind probably Clemson and FSU. Clemson still has more talent but we have more experience and FSU is just loaded with both. Doesn't mean I think we're going to be the 3rd best team in the ACC, just means Doeren can't use the players as an excuse anymore. Last year our K was the obvious scapegoat, and honestly he did cost us 2 games, but if you look at games like Clemson, FSU, and UNC...we were rolling 3 good teams and we coughed up 2 of those games. Win all 3 of those and no one is even considering letting Doeren walk. He has to show he can close out big games to take the next step. And there is no reason we should have even needed to rely on our kicker to beat ECU, that team was hot garbage last year.

5/10/2017 9:56:25 AM

^only point i'd argue is that Miami and UL are probably still more talented than us. Miami consistently out-recruits us (ie, gets better talent) and while UL doesn't really significantly out-recruit us...they do return the Heisman QB and should be a top 20 team this year. granted, i don't know the specifics of who those teams return and what their depth looks like. and i don't mean to diminish what we return...but i'd put those two teams above us in terms of talent.

5/10/2017 10:38:04 AM

^Miami is going to be good, except that they are replacing their QB. But they've got one of the 4 best coaches in the league, so that will mitigate the learning curve of the new QBs.

Quote :

"we do have a team with a load of potential."

- Ah, the death knell of NC State athletics.

Quote :

"I mean just based on talent and experience, we do have a team with a load of potential."

Unfortunately, we still have the same terrible coach.

Quote :

"The reality is ON PAPER, this is Doeren's best team to date."

Everyone, please remember this after we go 3-5 again.

5/10/2017 10:56:03 AM

Quality post, great analysis

5/10/2017 11:32:49 AM

For football I want two things:

Get to a bowl, beat Carolina. Get those things and I consider it a successful season. A conference championship in my lifetime would be nice but I'm content with only that.

5/10/2017 11:33:21 AM

hch hates doeren? didn't realize that. man some of y'all are no fun whatsoever. enjoy the fact that many people think we could actually be pretty solid this year. jeez.

the media ranks us and it's: oh boy the media just wants to watch us crash and burn.

or the media ignores us and it's: the media hates us, like always.

5/10/2017 11:45:28 AM

I said mix of talent and experience.

UL has Lamar Jackson but lost talent all over the D and at WR. That OL was also pretty awful last year. Jackson will have to do even more this year to just match their W/L from last year.

Miami is the same, losing some key pieces like Kayaa but they've been recruiting well too. It's like UNC, they're consistently beating us recruiting but they'll lack exp. this year.

Not many teams returning as many starters and key back-ups as we are.

5/10/2017 1:14:17 PM

I gotcha. I just wasn't totally sure what Miami and UL would were returning. We definitely return a lot.

5/10/2017 2:09:15 PM

Quote :

"Over 3,000 yards passing on us last year, bottom 4 in the ACC. and our DL was pretty effin good then too. Tocho, JJones, and wright weren't exactly studs (IMO), but I'm guessing the dudes that didn't start over them last year aren't any better. We're gonna get torched in passing defense. Again. Just trying to prepare you for the inevitable."

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ncaadef

passing downs, rushing downs, etc...our D looks like it was real good across the board last year.

5/11/2017 10:36:12 AM

I mean we played against some pass-happy teams last year(UNC, ECU, ND) and some fairly strong offenses(Clemson, UL, FSU), and statistically our D wasn't that bad.

We were great against the run(109 ypg) and not bad against the pass(244 ypg, <60% completion). Our D was probably top 25 last year.

Though I will admit our stats are a bit padded by playing some weaker OOC games and ND in a hurricane. Our D might actually be better this year but rank a bit lower overall given we likel won't have a hurricane game and the offenses we face this year are poised to better overall.

I mean if you want to shit on our team, I don't think the D is the place to do it. I think our D will be solid, it's the O that I could see being a bit worrisome. Another year of our offense on tape, no Dayes, and replacing Scelfo could lead to some early issues, esp. against a good South Carolina team.

5/11/2017 11:45:05 AM

yeah our D was never really the problem last year except the ECU game. ND was a really good offense and their O was significantly hindered by the hurricane in the game we played vs them.

as far as offenses this season, UNC won't be as good, Clemson won't be as good, UL will be dangerous with Lamar Jackson but probably not as prolific an offense, Pitt is breaking in a new QB and lost James Conner. on the whole i think offenses will be down this year in the ACC.

Quote :

"Our D was probably top 25 last year."

definitely was.

[Edited on May 11, 2017 at 12:35 PM. Reason : d]

5/11/2017 12:30:40 PM