Tag: NC State Football

College GameDay makes its picks for Clemson vs. NC State

One of College GameDay’s pickers think NC State will upset Clemson on Saturday.

One of College GameDay’s pickers believes NC State will upset Clemson on Saturday.

This week, the popular ESPN college football pregame show made its way to Salt Lake City, Utah, on Saturday ahead of Utah’s matchup versus Oregon. Former Utah wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. joined the crew to pick who will win some of the top games in Week 9. Lee Corso was not present, as he was dealing with a family matter.

One of those top games is Clemson’s game against NC State, as the Tigers (4-3) and the Wolfpack (4-3) will kick off at 2 p.m. EDT on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on The CW Network.

That said, here is how College GameDay picked Clemson versus NC State:

Three reasons Clemson picks up a much-needed win over NC State in Week 9

Here are three reasons Clemson will head to NC State and pick up a much-needed win over the Wolfpack.

Dabo Swinney and Clemson football have had a rough season in 2023, with their Week 9 matchup against NC State their next opportunity to get the program back on track and show the Tigers’ fan base that this team still has some life left in it.

Clemson (4-3, 2-3 ACC) lost to Miami on the road in Week 8 in a performance that summed up what the Tigers’ have looked like this season. It was another poor performance where this Clemson team left the fans wanting more. The talent is clearly there, but the execution is about as bad as it could be for a team of this caliber. 

This matchup with NC State is a great bounce-back spot for the Tigers, who SHOULD have no problems taking care of business on the road. Here are three reasons Clemson will pick up a much-needed win over NC State in Week 9.  

Defensive X-Factor for Clemson vs. NC State Week 9

When your defense is coming off one of their worst performances of the season, a veteran needs to step up.

Clemson’s defense got embarrassed in their road loss in Week 8 to Miami.

Embarrassed might feel like strong wording, but it is the feeling I had after watching that game. A usually stout defense had the football run all over them, while a true freshman quarterback starting the first game of his college career looked comfortable under center against this Clemson defense. 

Heading into their Week 9 matchup against NC State, veterans have to step up and ensure that what we saw last week will not happen again against the Wolfpack. For that reason, star linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is our defensive X-Factor.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney shared that after the Miami loss, Trotter “asserted himself” in the locker room, showing some emotion and fire he hadn’t seen from the linebacker in his time with the Tigers. This is exactly what this Clemson team and defense needs: some emotion. 

Trotter should be in for a huge day against NC State on Saturday.

Offensive X-Factor for Clemson vs. NC State Week 9

Clemson’s starting quarterback must play at a higher level for the Tigers offense to succeed against NC State.

For the Clemson offense to turn things around, starting quarterback Cade Klubnik will need to play better football. 

There are a lot of pieces of this Tigers’ offense that need to play better, but Klubnik’s play at quarterback is one of the keys to a Clemson turnaround. The sophomore quarterback game after game flashes his immense ceiling and talent, but the inconsistencies we’ve seen under center have been a major part of this Clemson offense in 2023. 

For this reason, we are making Klubnik the offensive X-Factor for this upcoming matchup with NC State. Again, the issues we’ve seen from this offense are far more than just Klubnik, but at some point, someone has to step up. The person who should be doing so is your starting quarterback, especially considering the situation this offense has been in most of the season. 

Saturday against NC State is the game for Klubnik to show everyone what he and this offense is capable of.

Our staff score predictions for Clemson vs. NC State

Our staff score predictions for Clemson’s away Week 9 matchup against NC State.

Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football program are in desperate need for a strong win, with their next opportunity coming this Saturday on the road against NC State.

Clemson (4-3, 2-3 ACC), is coming off a nightmare loss against Miami where the Tigers got outplayed and showed that they are trending in the wrong direction. It is getting deep in the season and the Tigers need a strong performance against the Wolfpack to turn things around.

NC State enters this matchup with decent, but similar to Clemson, underwhelming first half of their season. While their defense has more often than not played good football, the offense has had its troubles.

As we do every week, the staff gathered and made score predictions for Saturday’s matchup matchup against NC State. Here is a look at what we are thinking heading into Week 9 against the Wolfpack.

Clemson plummets down the rankings in USA TODAY Sports College Football Re-Rank 1-133 after a Week 8 loss to Miami

Clemson’s loss to Miami sees them plummet down the rankings in this 1-133 college football re-rank.

Dabo Swinney and the Tigers have been having another one of those seasons that has Clemson fans worried. 

Their latest 28-20 double-overtime loss on the road against Miami put it on full display, with the Tigers choking away a lead as they looked miserable in the second half. The offense was non-existent, and the defense got bullied on the ground while allowing a true freshman starting his first game to make some huge plays against them. 

Overall, it was a bad night, and with that, the Tigers have plummeted down rankings left and right. This includes the USA TODAY Sports College Football 1-133 re-rank, where Clemson dropped 19 spots from No.26 to No.45. 

Earlier in the season, I was preaching how Clemson has continually been represented too low on these rankings. At this point, I can’t be making that claim anymore. Sure, the Tigers have the talent of a top-25 team, but there’s a difference between talent and execution. This team’s execution, especially of late, has been weak and uninspiring. 

Swinney and his team will look to recover on the road against NC State in Week 9.

Early betting lines for Clemson vs. NC State have the Tigers as road favorites

Clemson are road favorites against NC State for Week 9.

Coming out of the Week 7 bye, expectations were high for this Clemson (4-3, 2-3 ACC) team, and it looked like they didn’t improve at all or learn from any of their mistakes, falling 28-20 on the road against Miami in Week 8.

Week 9 brings a different test, a road matchup with the NC State Wolfpack (4-3, 1-2 ACC), who have been competitive with the Tigers in recent years. Will it be another close matchup between the two familiar foes, or will the Tigers show Clemson fans the complete performance they’ve been looking for all season? 

Heading into this road matchup, the Tigers are road favorites by two scores. Here is a look at the early betting lines from BetMGM Sportsbook:

  • Point spread: Clemson -10.0, NC State +10.0
  • Clemson moneyline: -375
  • Miami moneyline: +280
  • Over/Under: 46.5

[gambcom-standard rankid=”5″ ]

Swinney on if Clemson will have any staff changes at the end of the season

Dabo Swinney was asked about possible staff changes at the end of the season.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney was asked an interesting question during his weekly radio call-in show.

The Tigers have struggled this season, and the result has been a 4-3 start, where Clemson is 2-3 in the ACC. The slow start led the a question on whether their will be staff changes for this team at the end of the season. As one would expect, this is not on Swinney’s mind.

“Hey man, we’re just trying to get to 1-0 this week,” Swinney said. “That’s not stuff that we evaluate. Again, we clean up some mistakes, we’re having a different conversation.”

For Swinney, these are things not to worry about right now. What the Tigers need to focus on is getting better and showing that improvement against NC State.

“We certainly gotta work to get better,” Swinney said. “But those (making staff changes) are not things that we deal with in the middle of the season. We’re locked in on trying to find a way to win this week.”

Clemson starting safety R.J. Mickens will miss N.C. State game, possibly more

Clemson’s R.J. Mickens to miss the NC State game and possibly more.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney shared important injury updates during his weekly Tuesday press conference, updating the status of starting safety R.J. Mickens. 

According to Swinney, Mickens had his appendix taken out on Monday and will miss Saturday’s game at NC State and possibly more time.

“Mickens is going to be out… They had to take his appendix out yesterday,” Swinney said. “Stomach ache and hurting. He had appendicitis. So, he’ll be fine, but you’ve got to heal up from getting that taken out… It’s a tough break for us there for sure.”

Mickens has started all seven of Clemson’s games, performing at a high level. Through seven games, he has totaled 37 total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, three pass breakups, two quarterback pressures, and a fumble recovery.

Game time and TV network announced for Clemson vs. NC State

Game time and TV Channel have been announced for Clemson’s matchup with NC State.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference and its television partners announced the football game times and networks for the remaining games on Saturday, Oct. 28.

Saturday, Oct. 28

  • Florida State at Wake Forest, Noon ET on ABC
  • Clemson at NC State, 2 p.m. ET on The CW Network
  • Duke at Louisville, 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
  • Virginia at Miami, 3:30 p.m. on ACC Network
  • North Carolina at Georgia Tech, 8 p.m. ET on ACC Network

Previously announced game times for Week 9:

Thursday, Oct. 26

  • Syracuse at Virginia Tech, 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN – previously announced

Saturday, Oct. 28

  • UConn at Boston College, Noon ET on ACC Network – previously announced
  • Pitt at Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC/Peacock – previously announced

–Via the ACC.com