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NC State Wolfpack 2006 Preview

NC State Wolfpack Football Preview By: Matt Fargo
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college football previews :#65 – NC State Wolfpack Preview

by: Matt Fargo

Spring practices are in the books and fall camps will be here before you know it so that means getting an early jump on the 2006 NCAA football season. Knowing the teams now will save you time in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year. We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Preview.

#65 – NC State Wolfpack 7-5 SU; 5-6 ATS

Fargo’s Take - Things were looking grim in Raleigh last season after a humbling loss at Wake Forest that dropped the Wolfpack to 2-4, putting head coach Chuck Amato’s job in serious jeopardy. Insert new starting quarterback Marcus Stone and NC State turned its season around by winning four of its final five regular season games, including a huge win at Florida St., becoming bowl eligible and then shutting out South Florida in the Meineke Car Care Bowl. That momentum will be huge heading into this season as the Wolfpack must find a way to replace three first-round draft picks from their outstanding defense. The cupboard isn’t bare however as the stop unit will still be very solid but it’s up to the offense to become a bigger factor. NC State failed to score more than 24 points in all of its games against 1-A competition last season and that will not get the job done this year. Amato will be hearing grumblings from the Wolfpack faithful if they get off to yet another slow start.

Returning Starters on Offense – 5 The NC State offense was terrible last year plain and simple. The defense bailed the unit out on numerous occasions and even though the defense should be strong yet again, the offense is going to have to win some games in 2006. When Stone was entered into the starting lineup, the Wolfpack changed its offensive gameplan from a passing team to a grind it out running team and the new system worked. NC State will do the same this season as it returns two of the best young backs in the conference in Andre Brown and Toney Baker, both sophomores. The offense isn’t going to fool any defense and it will be up to Stone to become more efficient in the passing game to keep those defenses honest. The offensive line is a strength and should open plenty of holes and provide good pass protection. The Wolfpack finished 103rd in total offense and 95th in scoring offense and those rankings obviously need to improve.

Returning Starters on Defense – 5 Replacing three first round draft picks is tough for any team but the Wolfpack still have an experienced defense that will once again be a force. The loss of Mario Williams, the top pick in the NFL draft, along with two other players from the defensive line will be impossible to replace but the line has the ability to remain tough against the run. Freshman defensive end Willie Young is a star in the making, the likely defensive newcomer of the year in the ACC, and will contribute right away. The linebackers are experienced while the secondary will be the strength of the unit with three starters coming back. The rushing defense, ranked 14th last season, has allowed 3.8 ypc or less in each of the last five seasons. This defense finished 12th in scoring and 8th overall and while replicating those rankings will not happen, the potential is there to remain one of the top units in the ACC.

Schedule - If there is one thing that can get NC State to a second straight bowl games, it’s the schedule. The ACC is one of the most difficult conferences in the country but the Wolfpack caught plenty of breaks. Overall, they have seven home games and five of those come in the first six games of the season, setting up a possible fast start to the year. NC State opens with Appalachian St. and Akron at home before traveling to Southern Miss in a pivotal non-conference contest. Then it’s back home for three straight games, all within the conference, starting off with the two toughest home games of the year against Boston College and Florida St. Four of the next five are on the road but three of those, at Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina are all winnable. The Wolfpack close at home against East Carolina. The biggest break in the slate is missing Miami and Virginia Tech.

You can bet on… This is not your pass happy offense anymore. The days of Philip Rivers are long gone as the Wolfpack will rely on a strong rushing attack and solid defense to get the job done. Last season, that was very evident as 10 of their 11 lined games all went under the total. It would not be surprising to see that continue as the totals will be low but they can’t come down too much. NC State has been one of the best road underdogs around, going 13-1 ATS over the last six seasons when receiving points away from home. The only loss was last season at Boston College when it was getting four and a half and lost by 20. They will be road dogs in at least two contests starting with the game against the Golden Eagles. It’s important to note that the ATS record is all under Amato as he seems to get the team energized when needed.