NC State has a schedule that at least lets the dream breathe.
With less than three weeks left before Week 0, the Wolfpack are getting a hard look as a team that could do something college football almost never allows: run the table. It sounds like a long shot, because it is. But the path in front of NC State is cleaner than most, and that’s why the conversation exists at all.
The biggest break for the Wolfpack is who they don’t have to play. Clemson, Miami and SMU are off the slate.
Vanderbilt comes in from the SEC on Sept. 19 and won’t be a free pass, but the game that really shapes everything is Oct. 9, when Louisville comes to Raleigh. The Cardinals went 9-4 in ACC play last season and were picked by the media to finish in the top three, four spots ahead of NC State.
If the Wolfpack handle Louisville, they’d be sitting in a strong position once the heart of the schedule arrives. Four of their conference opponents finished with losing records last season, which gives NC State a stretch where the door is open if they can keep winning.
Brad Crawford of College Football writer included NC State among the 10 teams with the best chance to finish undefeated, putting the Wolfpack in the same conversation as Georgia, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Indiana. That’s rare company for NC State, but it also reflects how workable the schedule looks on paper.
The last real run at perfection came in 2002 under Chuck Amato, when Philip Rivers helped the Wolfpack jump out to a 9-0 start before the season turned with three straight losses to conference opponents. NC State finished 11-3 that year, which remains the closest the program has come in more than two decades.
If this team were to go unbeaten, the payoff would be enormous in the College Football Playoff era, where an unbeaten Power Four team gets to control its own fate. No debate.
No committee suspense. Just a ticket punched.
Still, the schedule only gets NC State so far. The real hinge point is CJ Bailey.
Everything runs through him. Last season, he threw for 3,105 yards with 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions while completing 68.8% of his passes.
If he takes another step, NC State has a real chance to turn a favorable setup into something historic in 2026.
In Other News...
Germaine Pratts Return Gives NC State A Familiar Voice Fans Will Love
Germaine Pratt is back around NC State this offseason, and for a program trying to steady and reshape its linebacker room, the timing feels about right. The former NFL linebacker has returned as a volunteer coach for the position group, giving the Wolfpack a familiar face who knows exactly what the standard looks like in Raleigh and how it connects to the next level.
After seven years in the NFL, Pratt is using this stretch to give back to his college program while also getting a taste of the coaching side of the sport. He is working alongside former teammates and helping guide a retooled linebacker group, which gives NC State a little continuity in a room that needs it and gives Pratt a chance to see whether this could be more than just a short-term stop back home. [Read more 🡒]
NC State Just Got A Temporary Roster Break From NCAA Chaos
The roster math around college sports keeps getting messier, but NC State got a small bit of breathing room this week. A Colorado judge declined to pause a court order tied to the NCAAs ongoing eligibility fight, keeping alive an injunction that lets seniors from the class of 2022 pursue an extra season under the so-called 5 in 5 rule while the appeal process plays out.
For a program like NC State, the practical effect is a temporary window to think a little differently about roster construction, especially with players from that 2022 group who had already been penciled in as out of eligibility. The bigger issue, of course, is that the legal fight is far from settled, so whatever flexibility exists now could shift again before the Wolfpack has to make real plans around it. [Read more 🡒]
NC States Final Roster Spot May Come Down To One Backcourt Call
NC State still has two roster spots to sort through, and the picture is starting to come into focus with one of those openings likely tied to the backcourt. The Wolfpack are said to be weighing a big man and a veteran guard, a combination that would give the staff a little more balance as it rounds out the roster. Among the names in the mix is Alfred Worrell, the Morgan State transfer who has already attracted attention from multiple programs and fits the profile of an experienced guard who could help with depth right away.
What makes the guard spot especially interesting is how the staff appears to view its current options. Preston Edmead, now a sophomore, is held in high regard and seems to have a strong case to open as the starter, which would shape how much of a role any addition could realistically have. That leaves the final decision less about adding a headline name and more about whether NC State wants one more proven backcourt presence behind Edmead or to take a different route with the last scholarship opening. [Read more 🡒]