Sarah Cochran
Junior cornerback Nick McCloud and redshirt junior safety Jarius Morehead combine for a tackle against James Madison on Saturday, Sept. 1 at Carter Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack beat James Madison 24-13.
While the NC State football team has seen immense success for the majority of its three out-of-conference games, the tougher part of its season begins Saturday. The Wolfpack will kick off ACC play against Virginia at 12:20 p.m. looking to continue moving in the right direction.
Junior defensive back Jarius Morehead was given ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors after his stellar performance against Marshall. He and the rest of the Wolfpack defense will be taking on an experienced Virginia offense.
Let’s take a look at how the Pack matches up defensively against the Cavaliers’ offense.
Quarterback vs. Defensive Backs
NC State’s defensive backs have tightened up after a weak showing the first week against James Madison. This past week against Marshall, Morehead stood out with six tackles, but mainly for his pick-six that came at the end of the third quarter, putting the Pack in the driver’s seat. Morehead has tallied 22 total tackles on the year, the most out of the group of defensive backs and second on the team as a whole.
With senior quarterback Kurt Benkert graduating, the Cavaliers brought in junior college transfer Bryce Perkins to take the reins at quarterback. Perkins is a dual-threat quarterback giving Virginia more versatility than in years past. In four games he has thrown for an average of 216.8 yards and nine touchdowns, while rushing for an average of 79.3 yards per game. Last week against Louisville, Perkins was 17 of 24 throwing for just under 200 yards and two touchdowns.
Look for Morehead to have another big game against the Cavaliers in hopes of slowing down Perkins.
Wide Receivers vs. Defensive Backs
Junior defensive back Nick McCloud had the job of shutting down Marshall’s big wide receiver threat Tyre Brady, which he did successfully, holding him to 25 yards on three receptions. McCloud has recorded 16 tackles in four games and one fumble recovery, which came this past weekend against Marshall.
The Cavaliers’ biggest wide receiver threat thus far has been senior Olamide Zaccheaus. He has recorded two 100-yard receiving games with one of them coming against Ohio where he set a school record catching nine passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns. In Zaccheaus’ other two games he tallied a combined nine catches for only 44 yards. Even with these misleading stats in four games, Zaccheaus still seems to be Perkins’ top target and McCloud will need to keep him in check in order for the Pack to keep the Cavaliers air attack under control.
Running Backs vs. Linebackers
Graduate linebacker Germaine Pratt kept with his consistent season this past weekend against Marshall with 11 total tackles and three solo tackles. This pushes Pratt’s total to 30 tackles, a category he leads the team in. His play and senior leadership has been key so far for the Wolfpack defense and will continue to be as the team gets into the meat of its schedule. Pratt and the linebackers will scheme to slow down the Cavaliers’ running attack that includes Perkins and senior tail back Jordan Ellis.
Ellis comes into the game averaging 6.5 yards per carry and has five touchdowns through four games. However, last week against Louisville Ellis was held in check with 20 carries for only 68 yards with his longest run of the day being 11 yards. Virginia’s offense this year has been more balance than in years past so expect them to attack the Pack on the ground just as much as through the air.
Tight Ends vs. Defensive Line
Redshirt junior defensive end James Smith-Williams had four tackles, one sack and two tackles for losses in the win over Marshall. Smith-Williams has had steady production for the Pack up to this point in the season. Look for him and senior defensive end Darian Roseboro to give the Virginia tight ends a difficult time protecting Perkins in this matchup.
Redshirt senior tight end Evan Butts has registered eight receptions for 60 yards through four games. Butts appeared in all 13 of the Cavalier’s games last year and is a large part of their ground game as a blocker.
Offensive Line vs. Defensive Line
Freshman defensive tackle Alim McNeill has been an integral part of the Wolfpack defensive line through the first three games. McNeill registered four total tackles and two QB hurries in last week’s win against Marshall. Anticipate McNeill and the rest of the Pack defensive line to put a substantial amount of pressure on Virginia’s offensive line to make Perkins uncomfortable in the pocket.
Redshirt senior offensive tackle Marcus Applefield is new to the Cavaliers this year as he transferred in from Rutgers University. However, at Rutgers Applefield started 10 out of 12 games at right guard, therefore the experience is not lacking. So far at Virginia he has started all four games working next to senior offensive guard Jake Fieler who has started every game for the Cavaliers the past two years. The Pack will have their hands full on the right side of the offensive line facing an experienced group for Virginia.