Welcome back, college football. Let’s get to it.
There’s no need to overcomplicate the weekly UNC spot. The Tar Heels are the bet-against team of the week, and the setup is ugly enough to make you wince.
This offense is so bad that not even Bobby Petrino can fix it, and Notre Dame laying 21 points feels very live. A 34-7 kind of result would not be shocking at all.
NC State, meanwhile, is where the hesitation kicks in. Last week’s confident cover pick vanished for no good reason, and that’s enough to keep the Pack at arm’s length here. There’s clearly a decent team in there somewhere, but there’s also a very stupid team in there everywhere.
Elsewhere around the country, Pitt keeps finding ways to survive. The Panthers cashed as a +2.5 play against Virginia Tech, though it wasn’t pretty in any sense that matters.
Pitt was outgained by more than 200 yards, finished plus-4 in turnovers, and still had to sweat out a 36-yard game-winning field goal attempt at the buzzer. The bigger concern is Mason Heintschel, who left in the third quarter with an injury and was on crutches afterward.
Even so, Pitt is 5-0, which somehow feels very Pat Narduzzi.
Boston College and SMU is another one that doesn’t require much imagination: the only thing that can make Boston College look competitive is torrential rain, and SMU is favored by 21.
At Alabama-Mississippi State, the number is 5.5, and the real attraction is Kamario Taylor. If you haven’t watched him yet this season, now’s the time. There’s a real chance this ends up being one of the most entertaining games on the board.
The Navy-Air Force over 45.5 also has that familiar sicko appeal. Betting on military academy games means signing up for a whole lot of running, but both defenses are dreadful enough to make the over worth a look.
Auburn-Tennessee comes with the Vols laying 6.5, and it also sparks a little alternate-universe NC State thought experiment. Remember when NC State was somehow a finalist for five-star QB Faizon Brandon?
In another timeline, Brandon is in Raleigh, State lets CJ Bailey walk, and the saved money goes to defense. Would that be better right now?
Nobody knows. Future NC State Hall of Famer Gunner Rivers is committed elsewhere because of it, so the whole thing is probably best left in the imaginary world.
Finally, Eastern Michigan and UMass gives us another angle on the Minutemen’s strange climb. UMass has been a cautionary tale since moving from FCS to FBS, but at 4-0 they’ve already matched their highest single-season win total since making the jump. Now they look headed for their first bowl game appearance, which is a nice little story, even if it’s still a minor one.
In Other News...
NC States Wake Forest Rivalry Test Just Got A Tougher Feel
The latest chapter in one of the ACCs longest-running in-state rivalries now has a firm stage, with the league announcing Wake Forest and NC State will kick off at noon on Oct. 3 at Carter-Finley Stadium. The game will air on The CW, and it arrives as the 119th meeting between the schools, with the Wolfpack holding the edge in the all-time series.
For NC State, the timing adds a little more bite to a matchup that already carries plenty of familiarity. The Wolfpack are 3-2 and trying to steady themselves, while Wake Forest is coming off a convincing win over Stanford, so both sides should arrive with something to prove when the noon slot opens up in Raleigh. [Read more 🡒]
NC State Finally Has Offensive Momentum Fans Have Been Waiting For
NC State finally found the kind of offensive rhythm fans have been waiting to see, and it came at a good time. The Wolfpack earned its first back-to-back win of the season by beating Louisville, with quarterback CJ Bailey turning in the best passing day of his young career, throwing for 373 yards and two touchdowns.
Davion Gause also gave the offense a useful spark, finishing with 69 rushing yards and 45 more through the air while lining up with Bailey in a familiar rhythm from their high school days. Dave Doeren had reason to be encouraged by both players, and Bailey said he believes there is more still ahead for this group, which is the kind of confidence NC State has been trying to build all season. [Read more 🡒]