Busy with holiday festivities? How to watch, stream NC State play ECU in Military Bowl
On the eve of N.C. State’s final game of the 2024 season, there’s plenty of gratitude around the team that the Wolfpack made it to this point.
The Pack opened the season in the preseason AP Top 25, but fell short of its goals and expectations. Despite the disappointing results, N.C. State beat rival North Carolina and added another bowl game appearance to its resume. Now, it has a chance to defeat in-state opponent East Carolina in the Military Bowl and generate additional motivation and momentum as the offseason nears.
N.C. State has not won a bowl game since 2017, when it defeated Arizona State, 52-31, in the Sun Bowl.
It has the pieces to make that happen. With the exception of KC Concepcion, who entered the transfer portal, the starters on the depth chart remain the same. The majority of backups are the same, as well. Meanwhile, the Pirates have lost several key players on both sides of the ball.
In the leadup to the bowl, there have been multiple benefits for N.C. State, notably for less-experienced players and interim assistant coaches. The players earned reps in practice and will hopefully see the field, while interim defensive coordinator Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay and interim linebackers coach Isaiah Moore are honing their own skills. Moore was a Wolfpack linebacker when N.C. State and ECU played in 2022.
“It’s really important that those guys get a chance to see how it feels,” quarterback CJ Bailey said of his teammates. “It takes time, I learned. I know that myself. It takes time to get adjusted to everything.”
Aughtry-Lindsay and Moore are leading the defense for the bowl game after the departure of Tony Gibson, who is now the head coach at Marshall. Fans shouldn’t expect anything wildly different — “I feel like my fingerprints have always been on this game plan,” Aughtry-Lindsay said — because of the staff’s longtime collaboration.
“We’ve been a staff that’s been together, right? Everybody has had ownership in what we’re doing, even with Coach Gibson here,” Aughtry-Lindsay said. “We’ll continue to do things that have been really good for us. We will enhance some things in this defense. But, for this bowl game, I want our guys to play fast, confident and dominant. It’s not going to be too much change, but we’re going to make sure that we’re doing things so they can play that way.”
For those who aren’t making the trip to Annapolis, here’s how to watch the Wolfpack from home:
Kickoff time + TV channel for the Wolfpack’s bowl game
N.C. State faces ECU on Dec. 28 at 5:45 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
Other viewing options for the NC State, ECU game
Without cable, viewers can still watch ESPN on a variety of streaming services. fubo TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream and Sling TV all carry ESPN networks.
NC State vs East Carolina game and TV info
Teams: N.C. State Wolfpack (6-6, 3-5 ACC) vs. East Carolina Pirates (7-5, 5-3 American Athletic Conference)
Where: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, Maryland
Date: Saturday, Dec. 28
Time: 5:45 p.m.
TV: ESPN
Stream: fubo TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV Stream, Sling TV
Series history: N.C. State leads the all-time series, 19-13, and has won the past three contests. It most recently defeated the Pirates, 21-20, in the 2022 season opener at ECU.
Betting line: The Wolfpack opened as a 5.5- to 6-point favorite among most U.S. sports books. That shifted in recent days, with the majority of betting services listing N.C. State as a 6- to 6.5-point favorite.
