Look for solid matchup in NCSU, Louisville

Louisville (1-3) at N.C. State (4-0)

Kickoff: 12:30 p.m., Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh

TV/Radio: WRAL, 101.5-WRAL

Louisville’s strength: Louisville lost safety Gerod Holliman to the NFL after he tied the NCAA record for interceptions (14) last year but the Cardinals’ defense has still been able to produce turnovers. The Cards lead the NCAA with nine interceptions through four games. Chucky Williams, Trumaine Washington and Josh Harvey-Clemons each have two interceptions for Louisville’s rebuilt secondary.

The strength of Louisville’s defense is its front, with tackle DeAngelo Brown and end Sheldon Rankins providing pressure up the middle. With N.C. State missing left guard Alex Barr, that will be an advantage for the Cardinals.

Key theme: N.C. State has run all over its first four opponents and had a season-best 330 rushing yards in last week’s 63-13 slaughter of South Alabama. Junior running back Matt Dayes leads the country with nine rushing touchdowns and has averaged 113.5 yards per game.

Louisville has a bigger and deeper defensive front than any team N.C. State has faced this season. Without exiled running back Shadrach Thornton to share carries with Dayes, it will be up to freshman Reggie Gallaspy to help the offense in short yardage situations. In last year’s 30-18 loss at Louisville, N.C. State ran for 128 yards against the Cardinals.

Joe Giglio

UNC (3-1) at Georgia Tech (2-2)

Kickoff: 3:30 p.m., Bobby Dodd Stadium, Atlanta

TV/Radio: ESPNU, 106.1-FM

Georgia Tech’s strength: As it always is in the triple-option offense, the Yellow Jackets’ strength begins with the running game. During the past two weeks, however, Notre Dame and Duke have had success stopping it – or at least slowing it down.

In those games, both of them Georgia Tech losses, the Yellow Jackets ran for less than 220 yards. Before last weekend, Georgia Tech hadn’t run for less than 220 yards in consecutive games since 2008. Defensively, Georgia Tech appears to have improved and has held three of its four opponents to less than 300 total yards.

Key theme: There have been some wild UNC-Georgia Tech games the past few years and the Tar Heels are seeking something of a wild result: the end of an eight-game losing streak in Atlanta. A win would also be a rare victory in a conference opener for UNC, which has won just one ACC opener since 2001.

For UNC, all eyes will be on quarterback Marquise Williams. Does he bounce back after being benched last weekend against Delaware? The answer could go a long way toward determining the outcome.

Andrew Carter

Boston College (3-1) at Duke (3-1)

Kickoff: 3:30 p.m., Wallace Wade Stadium, Durham

TV/Radio: Fox Sports Carolinas, 620-WDNC

Boston College’s strength: The Eagles’ defense ranks first nationally in total defense, as BC’s first four opponents, including Florida State, have averaged just 118 yards per game. The Eagles are surrendering an average 7.8 points per game, the second-lowest figure nationwide.

Key theme: Can Duke’s offense, which struggled against Northwestern and Georgia Tech, find a way to break through the stout defense? Boston College is down its starting quarterback (broken leg) and running back (broken foot), so offense will be hard to come by for the Eagles. It shouldn’t take too many points for the Blue Devils to put the game out of reach.

No. 11 Florida State (3-0) at Wake Forest (2-2)

Kickoff: 3:30 p.m., BB&T Field, Winston-Salem

TV/Radio: ESPN, 1490-WRMT

FSU’s strength: The ACC doesn’t have anyone like LSU’s Leonard Fournette, but Dalvin Cook is a big-play machine. He’s also coming off a subpar game (54 yards on 15 carries) two weeks ago against Boston College. Look for the Noles to get him involved early and often.

Key theme: FSU is favored by 18, which seems low given the Deacons’ offensive struggles. Wake’s QB Kendall Hinton made some plays with his arm and feet against Indiana but completed just 19 of 46 passes. Can he do enough to keep pace with Everett Golson and Cook?

Laura Keeley

ECU (2-2) at SMU (1-3)

Kickoff: 4 p.m., Ford Stadium, Dallas

TV/Radio: ESPNews, 570-WFNL

SMU’s strength: It’s not defense. Giving up 56 points each to TCU and Baylor is almost worthy of polite applause, but the Mustangs gave up 48 to FCS James Madison in a loss last week. JMU, led by Durham’s Vad Lee, drove 75 yards in the final 2 minutes for the winning TD. Lee, who transferred from Georgia Tech, threw for 289 yards and 3 TDs and ran for 276 yards and 2 TDs.

Key theme: What does ECU do at QB after dual-threat James Summers put on a show last week? SMU clearly had trouble stopping an athletic quarterback last week.

Other area games

Bethune-Cookman (3-1) at N.C. Central (1-2), 4 p.m., ESPN3, Riddick Stadium, Durham: MEAC opener for the Eagles after two decisive losses to FBS teams.

Shaw (0-4) vs. Virginia Union (3-1), 1 p.m., Memorial Stadium, Durham: Bears’ struggling offense won’t find any relief against VUU, which shut down St. Aug’s three weeks ago.

St. Augustine’s (0-4) at Virginia State (2-2), 2 p.m., Ettrick, Va.: Falcons, handcuffed by coaching situation, have scored just two touchdowns.

Drake (2-2) at Campbell (2-2), 2 p.m., Barker-Lane Stadium, Buies Creek: Camels try to bounce back after giving up game-winning touchdown pass in final minute at Butler.

This story was originally published October 2, 2015 at 12:51 PM with the headline "Look for solid matchup in NCSU, Louisville."