The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1153250
50 ■ THE WOLFPACKER 1. Beat UNC This game has a little added importance this season. The Heels have a familiar face as its new head coach — Mack Brown. When Brown was the coach at UNC from 1988-97, he went 5-5 against NC State — losing the first five and then winning the final five. Chapel Hill has been running with the mantra that "Mack is Back," this entire offseason and trying to put a dent into NC State's recent in-state football recruiting suc- cesses. Brown will need wins to back up the hype, but if Dave Doeren can make it four in a row versus the Heels then NC State can keep its claim for in-state superiority. 2. Get a marquee non-conference win in the regular season Since 2003, NC State is 1-7 against non- conference Power Five teams (including Notre Dame) in the regular season. Its one win was against a 4-8 Fighting Irish squad in a contest that was played during a hur- ricane at Carter-Finley Stadium in 2016. Mother Nature was the reason NC State did not get a chance last year to improve in that category, with the threat of Hur- ricane Florence forcing the cancellation of the West Virginia home contest. Thus the home-and-home with the Mountaineers is now a one-off series with NC State playing at Morgantown Sept. 14. The last time NC State won on the road against a non-ACC Power Five team was an overtime victory at Texas Tech in 2002. 3. Avoid the prolonged slump NC State has enjoyed five straight win- ning seasons, but each of those campaigns was slowed by an extended stretch of los- ing. In both 2014 and 2016, NC State suf- fered four-game losing streaks — the for- mer after starting 4-0 and the latter when NCSU was 4-1. In 2015, 2017 and 2018, the Pack went through stretches that all began in October where it lost three out of four contests. 4. Find the quarterback of the future In the big picture, this is arguably the key goal for the 2019 squad. Doeren said after the first practice of preseason camp that he has a lot of talented freshmen and sophomores on the roster, and the Pack will need some 18-year-olds to play like 20-year-olds. The future is bright both offensively and defensively with some of the young talent, but without a capable quarterback that might not matter. Redshirt sophomores Matt McKay and Bailey Hockman plus redshirt freshman Devin Leary are compet- ing for the starting job this fall. The ideal conclusion is that one of them, at the end of the season, has stamped him- self as the clear quarterback going forward. 5. Go bowling again It is going to be difficult to break through in the Atlantic Division with defending na- tional champion Clemson returning an arse- nal of offensive talent not seen very often. That's the main reason why the Tigers are the preseason No. 1-ranked team nationally. But reaching a sixth straight bowl game would still be a significant accomplishment for NC State. Only once has that been done before in Wolfpack history — when for- mer head coach Dick Sheridan and Mike O'Cain combined to take NC State to seven straight bowls from 1988-94. If NC State gets back to the postseason this year, Doeren would be the first head coach in school history to go to six straight. Sheridan went to five in a row before hand- ing over the reins to O'Cain prior to the 1993 season. Five Goals For 2019 The Wolfpack will be seeking its fourth consecutive victory versus the Tar Heels when the two rivals square off Nov. 30 on Senior Day in Raleigh. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN