College Football Predictions – NC State Wolfpack 2020 College Football Preview
August 15, 2020
2019 Recap
Record – 4-8
ATS – 2-9-1
The Wolfpack were a disappointment as they recorded their first losing season since HC Dave Doeren took over in 2013 (3-9). They were hit by the injury bug and had a lot of inexperience on offense. Things looked ok early as they began with a mark of 4-2, but then things fell apart and they ended up losing their last six games in a row.
2020 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating
ACC – #10
<Note: In 2020, the top two teams in the ACC advance to the conference title game regardless of division. That includes Notre Dame.>
NC State Wolfpack 2020 Outlook
OFFENSE
The offense was mediocre last year and they finished up ranked #9 in the ACC in rushing offense, 2nd last (!) in the ACC passing efficiency, and #107 in the FBS in scoring offense (22.1). They were #12 in the ACC in plays of 20+ yards and turned the ball over 21 times (T9 ACC). Things gotta get better, yo.
New OC Tim Beck rolls in from Texas and has some nice pieces to work with at RB and WR. The big question is who will lead the offense at QB? Devin Leary took over the gig in the second half LY as a redshirt freshman and might have room to grow (48%, 8-5 TD to INT, 4 rushing TD). Leary is the most likely man to get the starting role as Matthew McKay transferred out of the program. The RB situation looks really good as leading rusher Bam Knight is back after a fine freshman campaign (745, 5.5, 5 TD), as are the #2 and #3 rushers from 2019. Four of the top-5 reception leaders return to the mix including leading receiver Emeka Emezie and that should mean good things for the continuity of the THROW GAME. There are four starters back on the offense line and that should also help the situation.
We expect the offense to take a step forward this year given the young pieces across the board that are ripe for improvement. Keep an eye on the QB battle. There are other players on the QB depth chart that could surprise and turn this into a much better offense. <grabs popcorn>
DEFENSE
The Wolfpack defense ended LY ranked #10 in the ACC in scoring defense, #8 in total defense, #6 in rushing defense, #12 in pass efficiency defense, and tied for LAST (!) in the FBS with FOUR INTs on the year. Yikes.
New DC Tony Gibson (promoted from co-DC, came from WV) has just four returning starters to work with in NC State’s 2nd year in the 3-3-5 system and they weren’t exactly stellar a season ago as noted above. Is there hope? Good question. Well, they do have their top-2 tacklers returning for duty (LB Payton Wilson, S Tanner Ingle), and we suppose it can’t hurt to have a year under your belt in the 3-3-5. They also have some interesting young players lurking on the depth chart (DL, LB) and recall that this program has turned produced some solid defensive linemen in recent times.
It’s hard to predict great things for this defense when you consider their performance last year and the departures (graduation, transfer portal). A slight improvement might be best-case scenario.
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK Christopher Dunn has proven to be a certified WEAPON after connecting on 21/24 FG attempts and nailing every XP a season ago. NC State was #14 in the FBS in net punting and P Trenton Gill returns after averaging an impossible 47.6 yards per punt (#3 FBS). The return game should be fine.
Schedule Analysis
Overall – The PLANDEMIC schedule has been finalized and the only non-conference tilt remaining is a date with Liberty on November 21st. Four of their first six games are ON THE HIGHWAY so it may be more difficult to get off to a good start. Good news? No more Clemson. yo. And four of their last five games are at home.
Potential ATS Trouble Spot – Nothing overly spooky is noted.
Season Win Total
Waiting for Vegas/Offshore number.
MEGALOCKS says:
Waiting for Vegas/Offshore number.
Our EXTRA DEEP NC STATE INSIDERS would open it at something like Over 5.5 -120, Under 5.5 +100.
MEGAmazing Tidbits
NC State was (-13) in turnover margin last year and the only teams more pathetic in that regard were New Mexico, New Mexico St, and Akron.
MEGALOCKS Outlook:
The roster has some question marks (QB, DEFENSE) but recall that this was a young squad last year that had some bad injury luck. Last season was also the first time in a while that the Pack finished below .500. We see them cobbling their way through the schedule and getting back to a bowl game. They just might be an underrated quantity on many occasions and think they will finish the season in the “+” column from an ATS perspective.
Want more NC State football ?
WEBSITE
https://gopack.com/sports/football
FORUM
https://247sports.com/college/north-carolina-state/Board/PackPride-Sports-103752/
https://ncstate.forums.rivals.com/forums/the-wolves-den.8/
NEWS
http://www.backingthepack.com/nc-state-football
http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/acc/nc-state/
https://www.espn.com/college-football/team/_/id/152/nc-state-wolfpack
TWITTER
Hashtag – #1Pack1Goal
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