Despite a below-average showing on offense for NC State against Virginia Tech last Saturday, there’s reason for optimism in Raleigh. NC State’s passing attack was hampered by redshirt junior Bailey Hockman’s early struggles, and it didn’t seem like the team was going to get out of its funk anytime soon.
Despite playing in the proverbial garbage time, the offense did start to show up in the second half with the insertion of redshirt sophomore Devin Leary into the lineup. That bodes well for NC State’s next game against Pitt, but this offense still needs all the good luck it can get against the Panthers who, like Virginia Tech was when NC State played them, are ranked in the top-25 and beat a very good Louisville Cardinals team last week.
Wolfpack O-line vs. Pitt D-line
Saying the Wolfpack O-line as a collective didn’t play their best game against the Hokies would be an understatement. Not only did they give up six sacks against the Hokies, but they didn’t play any better with Leary in the game, allowing the Hokies to sack him three times, the same as the number of sacks Hockman received.
If the Pack O-line plays anything like they did against Virginia Tech, then Pitt’s going to have a field day hunting for heads. But even if the O-line plays better, Pitt’s D-line may still end up collapsing the pocket on occasion. Patrick Jones II, defensive lineman for the Panthers, had a monster week against the Cardinals, picking up three of the Panthers seven total sacks that game.
Wolfpack receivers vs. Pitt secondary
The wide receivers for NC State didn’t look great against Virginia Tech, but they should be given the benefit of the doubt, given that they’ve only played with Leary for a single half this season. As Leary gets more game time this year, he should be able to establish a better rapport with his pass catchers.
For NC State to win this game, the usual suspects need to show up again, namely redshirt sophomore Devin Carter and senior Emeka Emezie. The pair brought down eight total catches against the Hokies which isn’t bad, but certainly needs to be improved upon if the Wolfpack wants a shot at beating Pitt.
This Pitt secondary has been great at forcing incompletions and making good quarterbacks look mediocre. Against Louisville, the Pitt secondary allowed just nine of Malik Cunningham’s 21 throws to reach Cardinal receivers, and three of Cunningham’s throws ended up in the hands of Pitt defenders. They played even better against Syracuse, allowing only 13 completions on 24 passes.
Leary and his receivers need to be on the same page all game and, even then, there will be times when the Pitt secondary wins out. But when the opportunity presents itself, Leary can’t be afraid to uncork a deep ball to Emezie or Carter against this Pitt defense.
Wolfpack running backs vs Pitt linebackers
This Pitt defense has played well against the run most of the time, but sophomore Zonovan Knight and junior Ricky Person Jr. aren’t like most running backs. Knight and Person were the lone bright spots for the Wolfpack offense against the Hokies and have remained consistent through the first two games on NC State’s schedule.
There isn’t any one, glaring weakness for Pitt on the defensive side of the ball, but if there’s an Achilles’ heel of the Pitt defense, it would be defending against the run. Pitt stopped the Louisville running game for the most part but then let Javian Hawkins get a 75-yard run.
Pitt linebackers Cam Bright and SirVocea Dennis, both with double digit tackles this season, will look to make sure that doesn’t happen again, but then again, Knight and Person were able to play well against Virginia Tech linebacker Rayshard Ashby, possibly the best linebacker returning from last season in the country.
The game against Pittsburgh kicks off on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 12 p.m. at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The game can be viewed on the ACC Network.
