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Line: Florida State -7 O/U 43
Importance of Game to Florida State: The Seminoles are right in the thick of the ACC title race. They are tied with Miami for second in the ACC, behind Virginia and Virginia Tech. With all those teams playing each other, the Seminoles have a chance to jump into contention. After all, the Seminoles own the tiebreaker with Virginia thanks to their blow out win. Things are not looking good, though, for the Seminoles. Teams no longer fear FSU like they once did. This is a game all about earning back respect on a national scale. Winning just 29-7 against Duke shows how this team has fallen on hard times. After all, they have humbled Duke by twice that most years since they joined the ACC. They have been struggling on the road against Miami (a loss), Syracuse (a close win), Wake Forest (a come from behind win), and Maryland (a loss). They need to win to restore their air of invincibility.
Importance of Game to North Carolina State: The Wolfpack have been struggling at this point in the season. They are 4-5 on the season, and must win out to become bowl eligible. They have lost four out of five and three in a row. They lost last week to Georgia Tech, the week before to Clemson, and before that to Miami. With a game against East Carolina coming up, this is clearly the game standing between them and bowl eligibility. At 3-4 in conference, a win would help the Pack finish at .500 in conference play. This is a chance for the Wolfpack to prove that they have not fallen too far behind the top of the ACC in this rebuilding season.
Quote from Bobby Bowden, Florida State’s head coach: "They (North Carolina State) are coming after whoever is in there. That's their style, they blitz every down. Normally you bring four if you bring somebody else you call it a blitz. They will bring their four and then they will bring somebody else and you don't know where he is coming from. Of course, sometimes they will bring six. It might come from the secondary it might be either safety coming or a linebacker from either side. They believe in pressure."
Quote from Chuck Amato, North Carolina State’s head coach: “Nobody is going to feel sorry for us, especially that team we're going to line-up and play on Thursday. Even with all that, we've had an opportunity to win our last two football games. Even with all those bad things, we've had our opportunities. You can't miss opportunities and you can't take those points off the board. It's too hard to get across that goal line."
Breakdown: Florida State Offense vs. North Carolina State Defense: The Florida State offense has been very average this year, particularly on the road. Wyatt Sexton and Chris Rix have both been playing a lot at quarterback. Sexton is likely to be the starter this week. Sexton is completing 59 percent of his passes for eight touchdowns and six interceptions. Rix is completing fifty percent of his passes for one touchdown and four interceptions. The leading receiver is Chris Stovall, who has 38 catches for a 14.7 average per catch and five touchdowns. Craphonso Thorpe has 31 catches for an 11.6 average and one touchdown. The rushing offense is lead by Lorenzo Booker, who averages 5.6 yards per carry and has three rushing touchdowns this year. Leon Washington is a very good runner, averaging 6.9 yards per carry and has six rushing touchdowns. The North Carolina State defense has been solid this year, allowing only 241 yards per game. Manny Lawson leads the team with six sacks. Linebacker Oliver Hoyte leads the team with 69 tackles. The rush defense only allows 3.1 yards per carry, which isn’t great. However, opponents are only completing 45.6 percent of their passes for just 10.9 yards per completion. Marcus Hudson has two interceptions on the year, with one being run back for a touchdown. They have come up with 25 sacks this year so far. The defense is particularly good against the pass, which could spell trouble for Sexton/Rix.
Florida State Defense vs. North Carolina State Offense: North Carolina State’s offense has been a bumbling bunch at times this year. TA McClendon is a very good running back, yet he only averages 4.8 yards per carry and has six rushing touchdowns. Jay Davis completes 58 percent of his passes, has thrown nine touchdowns, but a stunning fourteen interceptions. Richard Washington is the team’s leading receiver. He has caught 29 passes for a 12.0 average with two touchdowns. The Wolfpack just struggle to get big plays from the passing game. They have already allowed 21 sacks on the year. The Seminoles defense has not been quite as stout as the Wolfpack defense, but it has been very good, nonetheless. They are only giving up 2.0 yards per rush. Opponents are completing almost 57 percent of their passes for 11.6 yards per catch. But they have only six touchdown passes and the Seminoles have intercepted thirteen passes this year. Antonio Cromartie and Pat Watkins lead the team with four interceptions apiece. Cromartie has returned one for a touchdown. Linebacker AJ Nicholson leads the team in tackles with 63. Ernie Sims leads the team in sacks with 4.5 and has 62 tackles as well. The defense is picking off a lot of passes and Davis is throwing a lot, which could mean a lot of good things for the Seminoles.
Prediction: All the turnovers by the Wolfpack is disconcerting. However, the Seminoles offense has struggled mightily on the road, and the Wolfpack defense is too good to let them off the hook. The Seminoles defense is solid, and should contain the ‘Pack’s passing game, and hold McClendon down. The question is which team’s running game will do better. Statistically, it looks like the ‘Noles have an edge there. But in a game this big at home, take McClendon and NC State. North Carolina State 16, Florida State 14.
My Play:
NC State +7
Under 43
might tease it up to double digits and 50
Importance of Game to Florida State: The Seminoles are right in the thick of the ACC title race. They are tied with Miami for second in the ACC, behind Virginia and Virginia Tech. With all those teams playing each other, the Seminoles have a chance to jump into contention. After all, the Seminoles own the tiebreaker with Virginia thanks to their blow out win. Things are not looking good, though, for the Seminoles. Teams no longer fear FSU like they once did. This is a game all about earning back respect on a national scale. Winning just 29-7 against Duke shows how this team has fallen on hard times. After all, they have humbled Duke by twice that most years since they joined the ACC. They have been struggling on the road against Miami (a loss), Syracuse (a close win), Wake Forest (a come from behind win), and Maryland (a loss). They need to win to restore their air of invincibility.
Importance of Game to North Carolina State: The Wolfpack have been struggling at this point in the season. They are 4-5 on the season, and must win out to become bowl eligible. They have lost four out of five and three in a row. They lost last week to Georgia Tech, the week before to Clemson, and before that to Miami. With a game against East Carolina coming up, this is clearly the game standing between them and bowl eligibility. At 3-4 in conference, a win would help the Pack finish at .500 in conference play. This is a chance for the Wolfpack to prove that they have not fallen too far behind the top of the ACC in this rebuilding season.
Quote from Bobby Bowden, Florida State’s head coach: "They (North Carolina State) are coming after whoever is in there. That's their style, they blitz every down. Normally you bring four if you bring somebody else you call it a blitz. They will bring their four and then they will bring somebody else and you don't know where he is coming from. Of course, sometimes they will bring six. It might come from the secondary it might be either safety coming or a linebacker from either side. They believe in pressure."
Quote from Chuck Amato, North Carolina State’s head coach: “Nobody is going to feel sorry for us, especially that team we're going to line-up and play on Thursday. Even with all that, we've had an opportunity to win our last two football games. Even with all those bad things, we've had our opportunities. You can't miss opportunities and you can't take those points off the board. It's too hard to get across that goal line."
Breakdown: Florida State Offense vs. North Carolina State Defense: The Florida State offense has been very average this year, particularly on the road. Wyatt Sexton and Chris Rix have both been playing a lot at quarterback. Sexton is likely to be the starter this week. Sexton is completing 59 percent of his passes for eight touchdowns and six interceptions. Rix is completing fifty percent of his passes for one touchdown and four interceptions. The leading receiver is Chris Stovall, who has 38 catches for a 14.7 average per catch and five touchdowns. Craphonso Thorpe has 31 catches for an 11.6 average and one touchdown. The rushing offense is lead by Lorenzo Booker, who averages 5.6 yards per carry and has three rushing touchdowns this year. Leon Washington is a very good runner, averaging 6.9 yards per carry and has six rushing touchdowns. The North Carolina State defense has been solid this year, allowing only 241 yards per game. Manny Lawson leads the team with six sacks. Linebacker Oliver Hoyte leads the team with 69 tackles. The rush defense only allows 3.1 yards per carry, which isn’t great. However, opponents are only completing 45.6 percent of their passes for just 10.9 yards per completion. Marcus Hudson has two interceptions on the year, with one being run back for a touchdown. They have come up with 25 sacks this year so far. The defense is particularly good against the pass, which could spell trouble for Sexton/Rix.
Florida State Defense vs. North Carolina State Offense: North Carolina State’s offense has been a bumbling bunch at times this year. TA McClendon is a very good running back, yet he only averages 4.8 yards per carry and has six rushing touchdowns. Jay Davis completes 58 percent of his passes, has thrown nine touchdowns, but a stunning fourteen interceptions. Richard Washington is the team’s leading receiver. He has caught 29 passes for a 12.0 average with two touchdowns. The Wolfpack just struggle to get big plays from the passing game. They have already allowed 21 sacks on the year. The Seminoles defense has not been quite as stout as the Wolfpack defense, but it has been very good, nonetheless. They are only giving up 2.0 yards per rush. Opponents are completing almost 57 percent of their passes for 11.6 yards per catch. But they have only six touchdown passes and the Seminoles have intercepted thirteen passes this year. Antonio Cromartie and Pat Watkins lead the team with four interceptions apiece. Cromartie has returned one for a touchdown. Linebacker AJ Nicholson leads the team in tackles with 63. Ernie Sims leads the team in sacks with 4.5 and has 62 tackles as well. The defense is picking off a lot of passes and Davis is throwing a lot, which could mean a lot of good things for the Seminoles.
Prediction: All the turnovers by the Wolfpack is disconcerting. However, the Seminoles offense has struggled mightily on the road, and the Wolfpack defense is too good to let them off the hook. The Seminoles defense is solid, and should contain the ‘Pack’s passing game, and hold McClendon down. The question is which team’s running game will do better. Statistically, it looks like the ‘Noles have an edge there. But in a game this big at home, take McClendon and NC State. North Carolina State 16, Florida State 14.
My Play:
NC State +7
Under 43
might tease it up to double digits and 50