First look: NC State football looking to make it five straight over UNC
.JPG "N.C. State quarterback CJ Bailey (16) jumps over North Carolina linebacker Amare Campbell (17) during the first half of N.C. State’s game against UNC at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024.")
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- N.C. State seeks fifth straight win over UNC with bowl eligibility secured.
- Wolfpack defense dominated FSU; Devon Marshall leads ACC breakups and picks.
- UNC's Gio Lopez and Jordan Shipp provide late offense as Tar Heels struggle.
While Bill Belichick claims his first words were “Beat Duke,” he still understands the special place the UNC-N.C. State rivalry holds in the Triangle.
When asked about the bad blood between the Tar Heels and the Wolfpack after North Carolina’s 32-25 loss to Duke on Saturday, Belichick offered a sarcastic remark in response.
“I’m not, like, real smart,” the UNC coach said, “but I’ve learned that pretty quick. I understand the rivalry.”
N.C. State has won the past four matchups against UNC and is coming off a 21-11 victory over Florida State thanks to two late special-teams turnovers by the Seminoles.
The Wolfpack have already clinched bowl eligibility, and N.C. State head coach Dave Doeren is expecting a “crazy-ass crowd” at Carter-Finley Stadium as N.C. State (6-5) takes on UNC (4-7). Or, as Doeren called them, “the baby blue.”
N.C. State players to watch: Devon Marshall and Caden Fordham
Devon Marshall will certainly be circled on UNC’s scouting reports after his dominant outing against Florida State, the best of his career.
Marshall set the tone for the N.C. State defensive attack, recording three pass breakups and one interception in the first 15 minutes and 43 seconds. His interception led to the Wolfpack’s first touchdown of the game.
“I look at myself as one of the leaders on defense,” Marshall said Friday. “I feel like I’ve got to set the tone and just keep the tone throughout the whole game, and that’s what I did today.”
The senior cornerback finished with two interceptions and six breakups in the 21-11 win over FSU, holding Duce Robinson to 74 yards and one score. Robinson leads the ACC with 1,021 receiving yards and 92.8 yards per game.
Marshall, in his second season with the Pack, finished with seven deflections and two picks in 2024. He matched last season’s interception total and nearly matched his pass breakup total in a single game. Marshall is up to 14 breakups this year, which leads the league.
Additionally, Marshall led the team with a 90.5 overall defensive grade on Pro Football Focus, 12 points higher than his next-highest graded teammate Sabastian Harsh (78.5).
Meanwhile, Fordham leads FBS with 118 total tackles this season. The graduate student has finished with 10 or more tackles in seven games this season and contributed 15 in three games. Two of his 15-tackle games came in its 48-36 upset over Georgia Tech and 21-11 win over Florida State last week.
Fordham was No. 3 on the team in overall defensive production (74.2) and picked up eight stops, according to PFF, for his best outing of the season.
UNC players to watch: Gio Lopez and Jordan Shipp
North Carolina quarterback Gio Lopez is coming off his best performance of the season against Duke.
Lopez threw for 204 yards and completed 21 of 27 pass attempts in a loss to the Blue Devils this past weekend. He recorded two touchdowns — one through the air and one on the ground — and no interceptions.
“I thought Gio played well tonight,” Belichick said on Saturday. “You know, he took some hits. He showed a lot of toughness, showed a lot of accuracy throwing the ball, made some great decisions.”
For UNC sophomore Jordan Shipp, Lopez’s performance against Duke came as no surprise.
“I feel like Gio has been trending up since the beginning of the season… when you say it’s his best game, I don’t think it’s his best game, because I know there’s even more that can come to that,” Shipp said. “So, I mean, I feel like that’s just something that’s another step for Gio to be able to build off of.”
Shipp once again led the way for the Tar Heel receiving corps on Saturday, finishing with eight receptions for 83 yards.
The sophomore wide receiver has been an emotional leader in the UNC locker room and on the field, where he ranks top-10 in the ACC in receptions on the season.
And on Senior Day, playing for his veteran Kobe Paysour, Shipp delivered another standout performance. Shipp’s touchdown catch in the third quarter — hauling in a 20-yard pass from Lopez — and the reception on the subsequent two-point conversion cut UNC’s deficit to a single score.
Both players will be crucial in keeping North Carolina within striking distance of N.C. State.
And Shipp, for one, is ready to face the Wolfpack.
“My biggest thing, I just want to beat State,” Shipp said after UNC’s loss to Duke. “That’s where my mind is now.”
Key game matchup: Can the Wolfpack get UNC off the field on third down?
N.C. State enters the regular-season finale riding its most complete defensive performance of the year, a showing that offers a clear blueprint for Saturday’s rivalry game in Raleigh. The Wolfpack held Florida State to 11 points — the lowest total it has allowed against an FBS opponent this season and just the second time it has kept an opponent under 20. Their 77.8 defensive grade from Pro Football Focus was the best against an FBS team since the season-opening win over East Carolina.
The Seminoles hit several explosive plays, but none for touchdowns. More importantly for this weekend’s matchup, the Wolfpack were sound on third down, holding FSU to 5 of 12 conversions (41.6%). That’s 10 points below the Seminoles’ season average and five points better than N.C. State’s own season mark. In the first half, the Wolfpack limited FSU to 33% on third down.
“We felt like we haven’t put a full game together as a defense, and I feel like we did that tonight,” Fordham said after the win over Florida State. “[The coaches] were on us all week about doing what we need to do; doing your job, playing fast, like we always say. It showed tonight. We finally put a full game together, and it was awesome to play out there with those guys tonight.”
That third-down discipline will be tested against a North Carolina offense that has struggled for most of the season.
The Tar Heels ranked No. 129 nationally in total offense and No. 120 in third-down conversions entering last weekend, with Lopez battling inconsistency in the passing game. Even still, UNC converted 8 of 13 third downs against Duke, a late sign of life the Wolfpack can’t overlook.
Vegas betting odds
The early lines have N.C. State has the 7.5-point favorites in the rivalry game. FanDuel Sportsbook set the over/under at 48.5 The moneyline: N.C. State -295 and North Carolina +235.
UNC v. N.C. State game info
Who: North Carolina (4-7, 2-5 ACC) v. N.C. State (6-5, 3-4 ACC)
When: Saturday, Nov. 29, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh.
TV: ACC Network
Stream: fubo TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream, Sling TV
Series history: N.C. State has won four straight over UNC and is 7-3 in the last 10 matchups.
