10/15/2018 football Edit

NC State looks to finish the job this time against Clemson

Matt Carter • TheWolfpackCentral

Editor

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Last season, after opening with an inexplicable loss to South Carolina in Charlotte, a 35-28 setback despite outgaining the Gamecocks in total yards 504-242, the Wolfpack reeled off six straight victories. That included triumphs over ranked Florida State and Louisville squads, the former on the road.

NC State rose to No. 14 in the rankings after its off week before heading on the road to face No. 9 Notre Dame in a game that seemed to have national implications. That Saturday did not go well for the Pack. Star running back Nyheim Hines was injured early on a cold afternoon, and Notre Dame, which led at the half 21-14, would dominate the second half en route to a 35-14 win.

A week after that, NC State had a second shot a marquee win, facing No. 4 Clemson at home with the Atlantic Division title essentially on the line. NC State led 21-17 at the half, but the Tigers would score two unanswered, third-quarter touchdowns to take a 31-21 lead, and CU held on for a 38-31 victory after stopping the Wolfpack, who was approaching the red zone for a potential game-tying score, with an interception to end the game.

A year later, NC State finds itself in a similar position. The Pack is 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the ACC, and currently ranked No. 15 in the coaches’ poll and No. 16 in the Associated Press rankings. After taking last weekend off, the Pack prepares to travel to No. 3 Clemson for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff, with once again the Atlantic Division title potentially on the line.

The last time NCSU went to Death Valley, it famously ended with a missed 30-yard field goal as expired that would have given NC State an upset over the eventual national champion. Instead, Clemson survived 24-17 in overtime.

NC State head coach Dave Doeren noted that for his program to elevate itself, it has to finish off one of these big games.

“We’ve put ourselves in places to win, some of those close games particularly against Clemson and they’ve made the plays at the end that we needed to make,” Doeren said. “That’s what it’s really about — it’s finding a way to finish somebody off, whether it’s on defense, offense or special teams with that key play.”

Making that key play will be challenging against this Clemson squad.

“I have a lot of respect for Dabo [Swinney] and his staff and their program and what they have done for our conference,” Doeren stated.

The NCSU coach praised the explosiveness of Clemson’s offense, noting particular admiration of Clemson sophomore running back Travis Etienne, who has rushed 83 times for 761 yards (9.2 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns in six games for the undefeated Tigers, who are also 3-0 in the ACC.

“He’s a fun guy to watch,” Doeren said. “He’s fast, gets to top speed in a hurry. He sees things well. He’s definitely somebody you have to be really concerned about.”

Defensively, Doeren observed that Clemson “lives in people’s backfield.” Add to that it is Clemson’s homecoming and NC State’s lone road experience this fall of playing at Marshall pales in comparison to what it will experience Saturday.

But this is the type of game that the players and coaches dream about.

“This is why we do it,” Doeren noted. “You work your butt off as a staff just like our players do. You want to be in this position where you are playing for a lot against another team that is playing for a lot. This is what it’s all about, having this kind of matchup.”

Doeren appreciates that his team has met every challenge this year, noting that Virginia’s “almost single-wing” offense was a unique test, followed by playing an up-tempo, physical Boston College squad with a dangerous play-action game.

“Now they are playing an up-tempo spread offense where they’re balanced with tremendous athletes,” Doeren said. “It’s not going to be easy. They are going to make plays in the game [because] they have really good players. It’s just about making more than they do.

“I think the guys, just like the last two games, are really into the game plan. They understand the process that they need to have to play well and have brought into that process.”

There are reasons for why the veterans of the past two Clemson games should be all-in with the plan. Doeren noted that seniors at any school want to leave a legacy, and this is an opportunity for them to do so at NC State.

“I think our guys love a challenge,” he said. “I think our guys get up, get excited about playing them. They’re obviously the class of our conference and have been, and they’re the team you got to knock off if you want to be in a different place than you are.

“This game is so meaningful for those reasons. Our guys have rose to the challenge but haven’t finished it.”

Other tidbits

• ESPN's College GameDay will be headed to Washington State this weekend, where the Cougars host Oregon in a top-25 showdown. It’s not surprising given that the WSU flag that has appeared on every GameDay show will be celebrating its 15th anniversary of its initial appearance Saturday.

That said, with just eight undefeated teams left in college football, Doeren thought Clemson-NC State had a good claim for being the game to host the popular pregame show.

“We knew there was a possibility that we would have that opportunity, and we didn’t get it,” Doeren said. “Obviously you would think with two undefeated teams out of eight left that would make sense, but there’s other things at play. Obviously, I am not in the conversation so I don’t know why it was picked that way.

“We’re excited to play them regardless where they play us. They can put us on AM radio for all I care. I can’t wait to play the game, and I know our players feel the same way.”

• The bye week changed NC State’s practice schedule. Players had Monday and Tuesday off last week while the staff put together film for each of them to show their position group what they are doing well and what needs work as part of the self-scouting process.

Wednesday and Thursday practices were half spent on fundamentals and schemes, and the other half on first- and second-down packages for Clemson. The team then had Friday and Saturday off before returning for a Sunday practice devoted exclusively to Clemson, including the game plan for special teams.

“[Sunday] we were able to get a really good practice in,” Doeren said. “The guys were really rested, running around.”

• From a health standpoint, Doeren noted that NC State is “in a pretty good place.”