The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/699450
102 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER C ollege football preview magazines were on newsstands by the end of June, and the consensus was that NC State was a notch below the big three of Clemson, Florida State and Louisville in the Atlantic Division. Here is a breakdown of how three annuals prognosticated the Pack: PHIL STEELE'S COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW NCSU was predicted to tie with Boston College for fourth in the Atlantic Division, but Steele noted that the Pack is well posi- tioned for a postseason contest. "I am not ready to put the Wolfpack into the contenders role with Florida State, Clemson and Louisville, but they have a great shot at a [third] straight bowl," Steele wrote. Steele had NCSU's quarterback position as its biggest question mark, ranking the unit in a three-way tie for last in the ACC with Duke and Wake Forest. He was bullish though on the defensive line, ranking it the 13th-best group in the country. He gave the Pack an 85 percent or better chance of having a worse record in 2016 than 2015, partially because of a strength of schedule that ranks fourth in the ACC and 23rd nationally. Overall, the magazine had NCSU ranked 47th on its national power poll of 128 Foot- ball Bowl Subdivision teams (four spots ahead of Boston College). The Pack's schedule features six teams rated in the top 26. As for where NC State would go bowl- ing, he has them projected to play Connect- icut of the American Athletic Conference in the Military Bowl Dec. 27 at Washington, D.C. The Huskies are quarterbacked by former NCSU player Bryant Shirreffs. ATHLON SPORTS Athlon also has NC State pegged fourth in the Atlantic Division, but nationally they have them a few notches below Steele, checking in at No. 59. They predictably projected a 6-6 record overall and 3-5 mark in the ACC for the Pack, which falls in line with their slate. "With the addition of Notre Dame and a rare crossover game with Miami on the schedule, the Wolfpack face an uphill chal- lenge for progress," the publication noted. The magazine asked opposing coaches to size up NC State, and the recruiting efforts of Dave Doeren's staff earned praise from a couple of them. Two coaches also credited the defense with being athletic and solid in the front seven. Several coaches had questions about the offense, wondering openly what to expect from the quarterback position and how the unit might look under the direction of new coordinator Eli Drinkwitz. Athlon shipped NC State out to El Paso, Texas, for the Sun Bowl Dec. 30 against Utah of the Pac-12. SPORTING NEWS Like everyone else, Sporting News picked NC State to finish fourth in the At- lantic. Its write-up of the Wolfpack, though, erroneously stated that NCSU did not bring back a player who earned all-conference recognition a year ago — junior fullback/ tight end Jaylen Samuels was first-team All-ACC. Signifying the toughness of NCSU's conference slate, the magazine had UNC and Miami ranked one-two in the Coastal Division. Those are NC State's two cross- over opponents from that side of the league. While all three publications were in agreement about where the Pack stood in the ACC Atlantic, none of them converged on a bowl destination. Sporting News had NC State going to Detroit for the Quick Lane Bowl against Minnesota of the Big Ten Dec. 26. Locker Rooms Get Facelift The NC State football locker room in the Murphy Center has a new look after under- going a renovation this spring and summer. "We took away a lot of dead space to make it bigger," said Ray Brincefield, NC State's assistant athletics director for facilities. "It had a lot of curves and angles in it. We squared it off so that the space feels like it's twice as big." Among the notable changes made: • A new seating area previously unavail- able, preventing student-athletes from hav- ing to assemble upstairs in the lounge. WOLFPACK FOOTBALL Preseason Magazines In Agreement About NC State Fourth-year head coach Dave Doeren's Wolfpack squad was picked to finish fourth in the ACC's Atlantic Division by three different preseason magazines. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN