North Carolina and NC State haven’t met very often on the football field when both teams are ranked, both that could happen the day after Thanksgiving, and what a scene Carter-Finley Stadium might offer that afternoon.

The Tar Heels close out the regular season by traveling to State in what could be an incredibly important game for Mack Brown’s team as well as something significant to the Wolfpack, too.

For starters, the Pack at the very least would try to play the role as season-spoiler to the Tar Heels, and perhaps State could be playing for its own ranking and bowl positioning. Of Carolina’s toughest games this season, this clash should be near the top.

State has a slew of noteworthy players back and is one of the teams to watch in the ACC that could very well perform above expectations, and the media expects Dave Doeren’s team to finish second in the Atlantic Division and play in a decent bowl.

This is always a big game but could be even more so this time around. Here is our look at NC State.

Game Date: Nov. 26, Raleigh, NC (Carter-Finley Stadium)

2020 Record: 8-4 overall, 7-3 ACC

2020 Offense FCS ranking: No. 74 overall (385.3 ypg); No. 107 rushing (122.5 ypg); No. 48 scoring (30.2 ppg)

2020 Defense FCS ranking: No. 71 overall (415.0 ypg); No. 75 rushing (173.9 ypg); No. 62 scoring (29.2 ppg).

Starters Returning: Offense 9, Defense 10.

We caught up with Matt Carter of TheWolfpacker.com from the Rivals network to get the lowdown on the Wolfpack.

Offensive strengths: NC State has a nice collection of experienced skill talent. The one-two combo of Zonovan Knight and Ricky Person makes for a good backfield, and it has a deep receiving corps led by the return of Emeka Emezie for a COVID-super senior year.

Defensive strengths: The linebacker corps is arguably the best in the ACC, led by likely conference Defensive Player of the Year candidate Payton Wilson. There is lots of experience returning, with the only notable loss being Alim McNeill off the defensive line early to the NFL, on a unit that played its best football in the final five games when none of the opponents’ offenses accounted for more than 23 points.

Offensive weaknesses: The right side of the offensive line is a question mark and the feature position battle on offense, and although quarterback Devin Leary flashed his potential when healthy in 2020, he still must prove it on a consistent, weekly basis.

Defensive weakness: NC State’s secondary has struggled with inconsistency and injuries for years. The depth has finally been developed, and it’s an athletic group, but it must translate that to successes on Saturdays (and the occasional weekday).

Overall outlook: On paper, NC State has an intriguing roster which is why they have emerged as a consensus choice to be second in the Atlantic and a fringy top-25 team in the preseason. The schedule though presents challenges: potentially the top two teams in the Coastal for its crossovers along with the return of Clemson to the slate and a slew of 50-50 games on the road, including Mississippi State, Wake Forest, Boston College and potentially even Florida State.

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