North Carolina State is still currently in a period of transition from the old regime of Tom O’Brien’s to that of second year head coach Dave Doeren. Since the departure of O’Brien, the main problem for the Wolfpack has been a lack of depth after the old regime’s stars, such as QB Mike Glennon, left. Doeren is working with a roster that contains a large amount of underclassmen (around 70% of the roster), thus, as was evident last season, when experienced starters go down the Wolfpack don’t have the depth to adequately replace them. Doeren has recruited well since his arrival, the most recent class was ranked 30th in the nation by Rivals and contained three 4-star and numerous 3-star prospects and a few of these recruits can expect early playing time due to the Wolfpack’s lack of depth.

2013 North Carolina State Season

The 2013 season seemed to get off to a good start for NC State as they went 3-1 over the first four games. They triumphed over lesser teams in Louisiana Tech, Richmond, and Central Michigan and ran a very good Clemson side close in a tight loss at the Carter-Finley stadium. However, the season went sharply downhill from there as they lost eight straight to finish 3-9 overall and 0-8 in ACC play. This was the Wolfpack’s worst record since 2006 under Chuck Amato and they went winless in conference play for the first time since 1959! It broke a streak of three straight seasons of going to a bowl game. To be fair to NC State, their season was injury ravaged as starters at key positions such as quarterback, wide receiver, left tackle, and defensive end all went down to injury at some time or other, but the numbers suggest the players coming in were not very effective. The Wolfpack averaged just 22.8 points per game, while their opponents averaged 30.2. However, when looking solely at ACC matchups these numbers change to 16.9 and 33.9 respectively, a difference of 17 points in conference play on average. The Wolfpack didn’t break the 20 point barrier in five of eight ACC games and never scored more than 21 against a conference opponent. The 2013 season was an unmitigated disaster due to the scheme change, lack of experience throughout the roster, and a plethora of injuries, so this suggests a fairly quick turnaround may be possible as NC State head in to the 2014 season.

Offense

The offense loses both of the guys who started at quarterback in 2013 Brandon Mitchell and Pete Thomas, to graduation and transfer, respectively. This, however, may be a blessing as both under-performed in the role last year and it hands the keys of the offense to Florida transfer Jacoby Brissett, who sat out last year due to transfer regulations. The former 4-star recruit out of Palm Dwyer High fits Doeren’s system as a run/pass threat and has been in the system for a year now already, leading to the hope of those in Raleigh that he may be an instant upgrade at quarterback. He had a good spring, and a solid spring game going 24/37 for 365 yards with 2 TDs and 1 interception. He is the unquestioned day one starter.

At running back, the top three backs from 2013 all return in the form of junior Shad Thornton, sophomore Matt Dayes and senior Tony Creecy. Shad Thornton has suspension and legal issues hanging over him at this moment in time, but he is the Wolfpack’s most dangerous weapon out of the backfield and should be expected to lead the attack again in 2014, ably backed up by Dayes and Creecy. NC State hasn’t had a 1000-yard rusher since T.A. McLendon in 2002. That trend might not change as the ball will be spread between Brissett, the three guys at running back, and even the wide receivers running jet sweeps in Doeren’s system. The running game underwhelmed in 2013 with an average of 3.76 per carry, and with the same talent in the backfield, one has to question whether the Wolfpack will be able to improve greatly on that number in 2014. However, an improved passing game may help the running game.

The group at wider receiver returns three guys who caught at least 22 balls in 2013 in senior Bryan Underwood and sophomores Marquez Valdez-Scantling and Jumichael Ramos. Underwood is expected to be the leader of the receiving group and has already indicated a good understanding with his new quarterback by hauling in two long touchdowns in the spring game. A true freshman to keep an eye on is Bo Hines, an early-enrollee who had an outstanding spring and an impressive spring game. Coach Doeren raved about him during the spring. At tight end, sophomore David Grinnage will contribute with around 20 catches as he did in 2013. Injuries held back the Wolfpack receivers in 2013 as all missed time at one point of the season or another, so with another offseason of experience under their belts and fully healthy, they could be one of the strongest units on the offense.

The offensive line at NC State is big and experienced. They have five returning players with at least 10 career starts. Of those players, only one weighs in at less than 300 pounds and three of them are 6’ 7” or taller. The Wolfpack have a decent amount of experience in their two-deep due to numerous injuries on the line last year. The most costly of the injuries was to tackle Rob Crisp who has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. Due to injuries, the line play was fairly poor in 2013, but if the unit can stay healthy and consistent they have the size and ability to bulldoze the way for the rushing attack that Doeren’s up-tempo offense relies on for rhythm.

Defense

The only unit that impressed on the defense in 2013 was the defensive backfield, who showed good ability despite the fact NC State lacked an effective pass rush. The unit combined for only 9 interceptions, but they looked as good as a 3-9 team could expect from their backfield. They lose only one starter from last year and plenty of those returning were playing as freshmen or sophomores in 2013, so an increase in production can be expected. The leader of the unit should be senior safety Jarvis Byrd, a playmaker who was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA after going down early in 2013.

The rest of the NC State defense is in mediocre shape at best. The defensive line was dominated in the run game by opposing offenses, giving up an average of 5.02 per rush attempt and 26 touchdowns. This unit must become much better in the redzone where they were gashed for an average of 4.17 yards per run play and allowed 21 touchdowns on just 69 rushing attempts in their own redzone. While being appalling against the run, the line also only managed a league low 20 sacks in 2013, struggling to get pass rush pressure outside of obvious passing downs. The inability to stop the run probably contributed to this as the defense became spread too thin. The line does have experience as it returns its top four tacklers and its top two playmakers in DE Art Norman (9 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks) and tackle Thomas Teal (10.5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks). However, like the running backs, you have to question if the incumbents can improve massively on last year’s performance without any additions. Luckily, the Wolfpack strengthened by adding 4-star DE’s Kentavious Street and Justin Jones, while redshirt-freshman Pharoah McKever should also add athleticism as a former receiver who has converted to DE. Look for these guys to get situational game time early on as they could really add to the effectiveness of the defensive line.

With a switch to the 4-2-5 defensive scheme, the linebacker position will be much changed. Only one of last year’s three starters returns in the shape of senior Brandon Pittmann who will lock down one of the linebacker spots, while the other role, which is much more flexible in this type of scheme, will be fought over by senior Rodman Noel and junior MJ Salahuddin who both saw the field in all 12 games last year. A guy to keep an eye on is impressive redshirt freshman Jerod Fernandez, who could also challenge for time in the new scheme. Fernandez notched up 11 tackles in the spring game.

Special Teams

Special teams is one area that NC State does not have to worry about as they return both punter Wil Baumann (42.2 average) and kicker Niklas Sade (19 of 23 on FGs, 100% on extra points). Both performed very well in 2013 and should continue to do so as seniors in 2014.

2014 Season Outlook

Looking at the 2014 schedule, if the Wolfpack show improved play from 2013, there is a chance North Carolina State could sneak into a bowl game. They should start 4-0, and at the very worst 3-1, as they host Georgia Southern, Old Dominion, and Presbyterian before visiting South Florida in the first four games of the season. Getting out of the gate fast will be key as they face a difficult run in ACC play. After their first four, they play Florida State and Clemson back-to-back. Then, they face a winnable game in Raleigh against Boston College. After that they are looking at three probable defeats against Louisville, Syracuse, and Georgia Tech. To round off the season they face in-state rivals Wake Forest and North Carolina, where the Wolfpack fans would hope to nick at least one victory from the two games. At best, NC State are looking at 6-6 if they get a fast start and can avoid the injuries that plagued them last year. At worst, they are facing another 3-9 season with no victories in the ACC. The most likely scenario is they will probably just miss out on a bowl game by going 5-7, but we will see a much improved offense as the players settle into Doeren’s system in the second year along with improved quarterback play. The defense will continue to struggle against the run, which will handicap their ability to control games with their up tempo offense by not being able to get the opposition off the field.

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About the author
Merchant Chris
Sports enthusiast from Worcester, UK. Graduated with an MA (Hons) from the University of Aberdeen.