Saturday, November 21
Raleigh, N.C.
12:30 PM
NC State
vs
Syracuse - Military Appreciation Day
NC State Returns Home to Face Syracuse
11/20/2015 9:48:00 AM | Football
Game Day Central | Thursday Football Notebook | Doeren Media Availability
Security Enhancements at Carter-Finley Stadium
A Closer Look at NC State This Week
Game 11: NC State Wolfpack (6-4, 2-4) vs. Syracuse Orange (3-7, 1-5)
November 21, 2015 • 12:30 p.m.
Raleigh, N.C. • Carter-Finley Stadium (57,600)
TV: ACCN/ESPN3 | Radio: Wolfpack Sports Network, Sirius 132, XM 193
Live Stats | Game Notes | @PackFootball Twitter | Ask the Analyst
RALEIGH, N.C. - As the curtain is quickly falling to close out the 2015 college football season, NC State continues its quest to raise the bar.
The Wolfpack (6-4, 2-4 ACC) needs wins in its final two games to surpass last year's regular season win total. To get it done, the Pack will need to knock off both Syracuse and North Carolina at Carter-Finley Stadium the next two weekends.
Step one in the process begins Saturday when State hosts the Orange (3-7, 1-5) at 12:30 p.m.
"This season has gone by so fast," Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren said after practice on Thursday. "Part of it has been enjoying the process, and I've definitely enjoyed the process with these players. We just want to send them out the right way. We've got nine days, two great opponents and a chance to do something we didn't do last year, that's to win eight regular season games. We've got to win seven to make that happen."
With the rival Tar Heels lingering on the horizon in next week's season finale, there are always going be the proverbial questions about looking ahead and overlooking a Syracuse team that will come to Raleigh saddling a seven-game losing streak.
"We've had a good week and that hasn't been an issue," Doeren said. "I haven't heard one person talk about what's coming. They all have the same goal I do, and that's to put ourselves in the best position we can be in for the postseason. You can't go to next week and lose this one and feel like you did your job. We have a job to do to get them ready and they have a job to execute. We've challenged them and they've had a good week of practice."
Perhaps the tape of last week's Syracuse-Clemson game was a sobering reminder of just how meaningless pregame chatter and predictions can often be. The top-ranked Tigers left the Carrier Dome with their unbeaten record intact, but it didn't come easy. Executing a triple option attack piloted by feisty third-string quarterback Zack Mahoney, Syracuse kept it interesting deep into the fourth quarter by rushing for 242 yards. The speedy Mahoney accounted for 156 total yards and two touchdowns, doing much of the damage on option keepers.
"There are no easy wins in the ACC," said NC State offensive tackle Joe Thuney. "We watched the film against Clemson and they played with a lot of heart and a lot of energy. They were flying around the field. We're not going to take them lightly. We know they're going to come in here and play hard and physical."
In recent years, this series has featured marquee wins for both schools. Two years ago in Raleigh, the Orange picked up its first win as a member of the ACC with a 24-10 victory over the Pack. And last season, State earned Doeren his first conference triumph, a come-from-behind 24-17 victory at the Carrier Dome, a win made possible by defensive end Pharoah McKever's 82-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter. It was a play and victory that ignited a late-season surge that would land the Wolfpack in the Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl.
"I've thought about Pharoah a lot this week because of what he did in this game last year," Doeren said. "It's a totally different offense this year, but Pharoah is a great young man and that was a turning point in that season. Obviously, we've built off that and moved forward. That was a game that put us where we needed to be mentally. We had a pretty good run from there. I'd love to get this game to equal last year's win total."
Ideally, Doeren would like to see NC State's rushing attack return to form after watching Florida State hold the Pack to just 79 yards on the ground last week.
In its four losses this season, State has averaged 133 yards on the ground. In its six wins, the Wolfpack has run for an average of 237 yards per game. Of course, the loss of veteran tailbacks Matt Dayes and Shadrach Thornton has forced Doeren and offensive coordinator Matt Canada to make adjustments they couldn't have anticipated at the beginning of the season.
Dayes was well on his way to becoming the Pack's first 1,000-yard rusher since 2002 before suffering a season-ending foot injury against Clemson on October 31.
Jaylen Samuels, Nyheim Hines, Dakwa Nichols and Reggie Gallaspy have all gotten reps at tailback since Dayes went down.
"I talk to Coach Canada a lot about who's making the most plays, who can make more things out of nothing, who are we going to get the ball to and how can we do it? Jaylen has a lot on his plate and so does Nyheim, so how do you balance it all out? They want the ball, but you want them to be able to do the things that they do well. My hat is off to both of those guys for how many different things they're doing in our offense."
Samuels has proven to be a match-up headache for most opponents through his versatility, whether he's lining up in the backfield, at tight end or split out in space. Hines, a former star running back at Garner High, has spent most of the season as a slot receiver.
The big-play potential of both could figure prominently against a Syracuse defense that tends to employ blitzing pressure from a variety of spots and angles.
A year ago, State finished strong thanks in part to a huge win over the Orange. Now the Wolfpack hopes for more of the same this season.
"Momentum is huge," Thuney said. "It's huge at the end of the year to send the seniors out right and to set the tone for next year, too. I think it is important to finish strong and to show the conference that we're getting stronger each week and to finish with two big conference wins and hopefully a bowl win."
Saturday's 12:30 p.m. kickoff will be preceded by Wolfpack Sports Network coverage, which begins at 10:30 a.m. In the second hour of the pregame show shortly after 11:30 a.m., former NC State All-American and color analyst Johnny Evans takes your questions about Pack football on 'Ask the Analyst.' Send Johnny a question on Twitter/@packradio or through email by clicking here.
A full recap of the NC State-Syracuse game will be available on the Dave Doeren TV Show, which will air in the Triangle on Sunday night at 11:30 p.m. on WRAL TV-5. For other times and stations, visit here.
Security Enhancements at Carter-Finley Stadium
A Closer Look at NC State This Week
Game 11: NC State Wolfpack (6-4, 2-4) vs. Syracuse Orange (3-7, 1-5)
November 21, 2015 • 12:30 p.m.
Raleigh, N.C. • Carter-Finley Stadium (57,600)
TV: ACCN/ESPN3 | Radio: Wolfpack Sports Network, Sirius 132, XM 193
Live Stats | Game Notes | @PackFootball Twitter | Ask the Analyst
RALEIGH, N.C. - As the curtain is quickly falling to close out the 2015 college football season, NC State continues its quest to raise the bar.
The Wolfpack (6-4, 2-4 ACC) needs wins in its final two games to surpass last year's regular season win total. To get it done, the Pack will need to knock off both Syracuse and North Carolina at Carter-Finley Stadium the next two weekends.
Step one in the process begins Saturday when State hosts the Orange (3-7, 1-5) at 12:30 p.m.
"This season has gone by so fast," Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren said after practice on Thursday. "Part of it has been enjoying the process, and I've definitely enjoyed the process with these players. We just want to send them out the right way. We've got nine days, two great opponents and a chance to do something we didn't do last year, that's to win eight regular season games. We've got to win seven to make that happen."
With the rival Tar Heels lingering on the horizon in next week's season finale, there are always going be the proverbial questions about looking ahead and overlooking a Syracuse team that will come to Raleigh saddling a seven-game losing streak.
"We've had a good week and that hasn't been an issue," Doeren said. "I haven't heard one person talk about what's coming. They all have the same goal I do, and that's to put ourselves in the best position we can be in for the postseason. You can't go to next week and lose this one and feel like you did your job. We have a job to do to get them ready and they have a job to execute. We've challenged them and they've had a good week of practice."
Perhaps the tape of last week's Syracuse-Clemson game was a sobering reminder of just how meaningless pregame chatter and predictions can often be. The top-ranked Tigers left the Carrier Dome with their unbeaten record intact, but it didn't come easy. Executing a triple option attack piloted by feisty third-string quarterback Zack Mahoney, Syracuse kept it interesting deep into the fourth quarter by rushing for 242 yards. The speedy Mahoney accounted for 156 total yards and two touchdowns, doing much of the damage on option keepers.
"There are no easy wins in the ACC," said NC State offensive tackle Joe Thuney. "We watched the film against Clemson and they played with a lot of heart and a lot of energy. They were flying around the field. We're not going to take them lightly. We know they're going to come in here and play hard and physical."
In recent years, this series has featured marquee wins for both schools. Two years ago in Raleigh, the Orange picked up its first win as a member of the ACC with a 24-10 victory over the Pack. And last season, State earned Doeren his first conference triumph, a come-from-behind 24-17 victory at the Carrier Dome, a win made possible by defensive end Pharoah McKever's 82-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter. It was a play and victory that ignited a late-season surge that would land the Wolfpack in the Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl.
"I've thought about Pharoah a lot this week because of what he did in this game last year," Doeren said. "It's a totally different offense this year, but Pharoah is a great young man and that was a turning point in that season. Obviously, we've built off that and moved forward. That was a game that put us where we needed to be mentally. We had a pretty good run from there. I'd love to get this game to equal last year's win total."
Ideally, Doeren would like to see NC State's rushing attack return to form after watching Florida State hold the Pack to just 79 yards on the ground last week.
In its four losses this season, State has averaged 133 yards on the ground. In its six wins, the Wolfpack has run for an average of 237 yards per game. Of course, the loss of veteran tailbacks Matt Dayes and Shadrach Thornton has forced Doeren and offensive coordinator Matt Canada to make adjustments they couldn't have anticipated at the beginning of the season.
Dayes was well on his way to becoming the Pack's first 1,000-yard rusher since 2002 before suffering a season-ending foot injury against Clemson on October 31.
Jaylen Samuels, Nyheim Hines, Dakwa Nichols and Reggie Gallaspy have all gotten reps at tailback since Dayes went down.
"I talk to Coach Canada a lot about who's making the most plays, who can make more things out of nothing, who are we going to get the ball to and how can we do it? Jaylen has a lot on his plate and so does Nyheim, so how do you balance it all out? They want the ball, but you want them to be able to do the things that they do well. My hat is off to both of those guys for how many different things they're doing in our offense."
Samuels has proven to be a match-up headache for most opponents through his versatility, whether he's lining up in the backfield, at tight end or split out in space. Hines, a former star running back at Garner High, has spent most of the season as a slot receiver.
The big-play potential of both could figure prominently against a Syracuse defense that tends to employ blitzing pressure from a variety of spots and angles.
A year ago, State finished strong thanks in part to a huge win over the Orange. Now the Wolfpack hopes for more of the same this season.
"Momentum is huge," Thuney said. "It's huge at the end of the year to send the seniors out right and to set the tone for next year, too. I think it is important to finish strong and to show the conference that we're getting stronger each week and to finish with two big conference wins and hopefully a bowl win."
Saturday's 12:30 p.m. kickoff will be preceded by Wolfpack Sports Network coverage, which begins at 10:30 a.m. In the second hour of the pregame show shortly after 11:30 a.m., former NC State All-American and color analyst Johnny Evans takes your questions about Pack football on 'Ask the Analyst.' Send Johnny a question on Twitter/@packradio or through email by clicking here.
A full recap of the NC State-Syracuse game will be available on the Dave Doeren TV Show, which will air in the Triangle on Sunday night at 11:30 p.m. on WRAL TV-5. For other times and stations, visit here.
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