NC State’s biggest question mark for the upcoming season is its defense. Losing an entire defensive line to the NFL and graduating other contributors is not ideal to repeat a good season. However, there is more experience returning than many fans realize.

The four returning defensive lineman: redshirt junior defensive end James Smith-Williams, senior defensive end Darian Roseboro, senior defensive tackle Eurndraus Bryant and redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Shug Frazier all had ample game experience last season. Roseboro, Bryant and Frazier appeared in all 13 games while Smith-Williams appeared in 12.

There is no debate that James Madison will be a good team this year at the FCS level. Last year’s Dukes went undefeated until the FCS Championship game where they lost 17-13 to North Dakota State. Although they lost a number of pieces on offense, a core group will be returning for the 2018-19 season.

“They’ve got a really good staff,” head coach Dave Doeren said. “And their players, winning 28 games in two seasons. They’ve played a lot of football. … Even though they lost a lot of starters in some areas, they’ve got a lot of guys that have played and expect to win just like we do.”

James Madison’s all-time leader in passing yards, touchdowns, completions and total offense in quarterback Brain Schor graduated last season, leaving a big question mark at that position for the Dukes.

Doeren said that he has not heard from JMU who their starter will be, but that they are preparing for any option they put on the field on Saturday.

Whoever gets the ball to start the game will have a solid offensive line to protect him. Although week one might be the toughest matchup all year, the Dukes lost only one offensive lineman from last season and should be able to hold their ground for most of the game.

James Madison lost just one rusher from a season ago and will start the season with a committee of running backs that will fight for snaps. Running backs Marcus Marshall and Trai Sharp look most likely to play most snaps on Saturday with backup Percy Agyei-Obese to see the field as well. With returning lineman, this will be a dangerous group as the season progresses.

Besides NC State’s d-line, graduate linebacker Germaine Pratt will be there to stop the run. Pratt played in all 13 games and was fourth on the team in total tackles. The defensive leader will definitely make his presence known as he starts his final season.

JMU will have a good year on offense, returning a solid running game and almost the whole offensive line. However, the Pack are too strong in the box to allow consistent yardage and a stellar offense will take an early lead on the Dukes, forcing a team with a question mark at quarterback to go to the air.

The matchup in the air is fairly even. The Pack will return three juniors in the secondary who saw playing time last year and added two transfers to create a good nucleus of players. On the other side, James Madison graduated their number one wide receiver, but have three other contributors returning.

Although James Madison should not be overlooked, the already strong defense will benefit once NC State gets going on the offensive side of the ball and the Pack should handle this one easily.

“You start your 2018 season early in January so a lot of time and effort goes into it,” Doeren said. “A lot of meetings, a lot of lifts, a lot of runs, a lot of mental time, a lot of practice, a lot of injury reports, a lot of everything. A lot of talking, and it’s finally time to play.”