On paper, the No. 14 North Carolina Tar Heels have the best offense No. 23 NC State has seen all season. However, the Pack’s defense has been hot in the last few weeks, led mostly by the star power of the linebacker corps. Here’s a closer look at how the Tar Heels offense will square off against NC State’s defense.
NC State D-line vs. UNC O-line
The Tar Heels offensive line isn’t a perfect group by any measure, having more than a few weaknesses and surrendering 11 sacks through four games. However, the line does boast returning talent, such as guard Josh Ezeudu, whom the Pack might struggle to get through.
UNC has struggled with stopping opposing D-lines against Boston College and Florida State, two strong groups in the trenches. The Pack ranks well in terms of both of those schools, especially given that junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill is lining up in the middle.
NC State doesn’t have the best D-line in the ACC, but seeing as UNC has been seemingly affected by strong opposing defensive lines and the fact that graduate end Daniel Joseph is heating up, this matchup bodes well for the Wolfpack.
This is likely a case of small sample size, but in the two games against Boston College and Florida State, UNC allowed three or more sacks, and Tar Heels went 1-1. But in the two games against Virginia Tech and Syracuse, UNC shut down opposing D-lines, and its score differential is a plus-36.
If the Pack can sustain pressure on the Tar Heels behind McNeill, Joseph and others, it could have huge ramifications on the outcome of the game.
NC State linebackers vs. UNC running backs, tight ends
In yet another primetime matchup for the stellar Wolfpack linebackers, the trio of redshirt sophomore Payton Wilson, sophomore Drake Thomas and redshirt junior Isaiah Moore will be facing off against one of the best rushing attacks they have seen thus far.
UNC ranks third in the ACC in rushing yards, with Javonte Williams and Michael Carter flipping a coin to decide who goes off in which game. This season, the duo has combined for 880 yards and nine touchdowns.
Unfortunately for the Pack, the last time it faced off against a top-five ACC rushing team, it lost handily to Virginia Tech. In that game, which Wilson missed, NC State gave up 314 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, the exact point differential in what ended up being a 45-24 loss.
This time, the Pack is hoping for something different, something it should get, given that Wilson is not only healthy for the game, but is coming off a dominant 19-tackle, two-interception showing in a game where NC State shut down the Duke rushing attack.
In the three games since Wilson’s return, NC State hasn’t allowed more than 100 rushing yards in a game to running backs.
This trend will be something to watch given the Pack’s scorching hot linebackers and UNC’s star-studded running back room. If the Pack can shut down the run game effectively and early, it forces Sam Howell to air it out, something the linebackers can also impact.
Thomas, Wilson and Moore aren’t the only linebackers to have heated up; redshirt junior Vi Jones has blocked a punt in two straight games and is making his presence known on a game-by-game basis.
That will also be needed if the Pack wants to shut down Tar Heel tight end Garrett Walston, who has 86 yards and a touchdown so far this season. For the Pack, shutting down Walston, Williams and Carter will be key, given that those three are all formidable passing targets for Howell.
NC State secondary vs. Sam Howell, wide receivers
For weeks on end, the NC State secondary has been forced to offer inspired performances in the face of numerous injuries. Now, junior safety Tanner Ingle is out, and the Pack will be relying on redshirt sophomore cornerback Isaac Duffy and freshman corner Devan Boykin to step up and hold their own against one of the best air raids in the ACC.
Junior Dyami Brown, senior Beau Corrales and senior Dazz Newsome all have the ability to go off against the Wolfpack, with the three having a total of 671 yards and five touchdowns on the year.
While Brown and Newsome in particular haven’t delivered as much as expected so far this season, they are both still extremely formidable, especially given Howell’s 65% completion accuracy.
Howell hasn’t been elite this season, but he is still the best quarterback NC State will have played this season. Howell has 1,151 passing yards and nine touchdowns on the year, though he does have four interceptions.
In recent weeks, sophomore safety Jakeen Harris, sophomore corner Cecil Powell, freshman defensive back Joshua Pierre-Louis and redshirt freshman Shyheim Battle have all been able to make significant dents in the passing attacks of opposing teams. Battle and Pierre-Louis recently captured their first interceptions on the season and all four, along with redshirt sophomore corner Malik Dunlap, have numerous pass deflections on the year.
The overall youth of the Pack’s secondary makes this matchup worrisome, but the fact that UNC-Chapel Hill has been shakier than normal to start the season in the air and that NC State has defied the odds in the secondary so far, it should be a closer matchup than on paper.
