North Carolina State University Athletics
ACC Action Starts with Trip to Florida State
9/22/2017 9:00:00 AM | Football
Game Day Central | Thursday Football Notebook
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RALEIGH, N.C. - A list of the NC State football program's most memorable wins is littered with marquee victories over Florida State. On Saturday afternoon, this year's Wolfpack seniors will have a final chance to add to that list when the Pack (2-1) tangles with the 12th ranked Seminoles (0-1) in Tallahassee in the ACC opener for both teams.
Kickoff time from Doak Campbell Stadium is set for 12 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on either ABC or ESPN2 – depending on your location.
"I enjoy playing them every year because they're one the great opponents that we get a chance to play," said NC State senior tight end Cole Cook. "It's always a good challenge for me and a challenge for our team because they have really good players. I just love playing them because I love playing good teams. We haven't been able to beat them since I've been here. That's been a goal of mine before I leave is to beat them at least one time."
Cole and the other NC State seniors have been tantalized more than once against coach Jimbo Fisher's team. Less than 12 months ago, the Wolfpack owned the upper hand most of the game before the Seminoles rallied for a late score and a 24-20 victory at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. In 2014, Carter-Finley was deafening when the Wolfpack snagged 24-7 lead in the opening quarter when the Seminoles were ranked No. 1 nationally. That's when FSU quarterback Jameis Winston looked like a future Heisman Trophy winner by engineering a huge Florida State comeback in a 56-41 win.
The Wolfpack's last triumph over the Seminoles came in 2012, when quarterback Mike Glennon helped the Pack overcome a 16-0 halftime deficit. The 17-16 final marked NC State's seventh victory in the series since 1998.
After coming so close in games against FSU during his tenure, fifth-year Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren knows how badly his players, especially his seniors, would like to knock off the Seminoles.
"It would be great to have that for the program," Doeren said. "To me, it's all about the players. The work that they've put in for four years, they've been fighting to put themselves in a position to win games like this and it's time to go win one. I'd love to see them do it. That would be the pleasure I get from the win, seeing their faces and seeing their emotion in the locker room afterwards. It's about the kids who have given us everything thing that they've got for four years that are seniors who don't get a chance to play Florida State ever again." Â
After falling to No. 1 Alabama on the opening weekend of the college football season, Florida State was forced to postpone two games in back-to-back weeks due to Hurricane Irma. Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher hopes Saturday's game will contribute to restoring a sense of normalcy in his program and around the Tallahassee area.
"We want to play," Fisher said. "It feels weird to know that other people are playing and you're not, there's no doubt about that. It was for a reason that's a lot bigger than football, and there's still a lot of families out there that are still suffering. Maybe we can give some of those folks a few hours of pleasure when they get a chance to watch us play."
Fisher will be breaking in a true-freshman quarterback in the aftermath of a season-ending knee injury sustained by regular starter Deondre Francois late in the Alabama game. One year ago, James Blackman was a four-star quarterback playing at Glades Central High School in Belle Glade, Florida. On Saturday, the 6-5, rookie will be making his first college start in an ACC game against NC State. Fisher probably doesn't know what to expect from Blackman, while Doeren is even more in the dark.
"He's been coached by Jimbo since he's been on campus, so he's going to be better than he was in high school," Doeren said. "They're going to run their system like they have with every other quarterback that's played prior to him. How much they run him, we'll just have to see and adjust during the game. What they're going to do with him is a game of adjustments for us on defense."
On the flip side, Doeren's quarterback is not a mystery man at this point. Ryan Finley has been one of the nation's most efficient players at his position through three games, completing 75.6 percent of his throws for 987 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions. Dating back to last season, Finley has thrown a 192 consecutive passes without an interception, the longest such streak in the nation.
"You want to go into every game looking to play at your highest level and looking at every opponent the same way," said Cook. "You also realize that this is a conference game, so you really want to focus on the details and do what you've got to do so that you can play a good game."
The Wolfpack Sports Network will begin pregame coverage on Saturday starting with the Matthews Motors Pregame Show at 10 a.m. In the second hour of the pregame, Gary Hahn, Johnny Evans and Tony Haynes take over from the booth. Once again this season, Evans, a former Wolfpack All-American, will take questions from fans about Pack football on 'Ask the Analyst.' Send Johnny questions on Twitter @packradio or click HERE to submit a question.
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| NC State (2-1, 0-0) at Florida State (0-1, 0-0) | |
| Date | Saturday, Sept. 23 |
| Time | 12:00 p.m. |
| Location | Tallahassee, Fla. |
| Stadium | Doak Campbell Stadium |
| TV | ABC or ESPN2 |
| Streaming | ACC Network Extra |
| Radio in NC | Wolfpack Sports Network |
| National Radio | Tunein, Sirius 81, XM 81 |
| Live Stats | Seminoles.com |
| Social Media | @PackFootball, PackFootball |
RALEIGH, N.C. - A list of the NC State football program's most memorable wins is littered with marquee victories over Florida State. On Saturday afternoon, this year's Wolfpack seniors will have a final chance to add to that list when the Pack (2-1) tangles with the 12th ranked Seminoles (0-1) in Tallahassee in the ACC opener for both teams.
Kickoff time from Doak Campbell Stadium is set for 12 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on either ABC or ESPN2 – depending on your location.
"I enjoy playing them every year because they're one the great opponents that we get a chance to play," said NC State senior tight end Cole Cook. "It's always a good challenge for me and a challenge for our team because they have really good players. I just love playing them because I love playing good teams. We haven't been able to beat them since I've been here. That's been a goal of mine before I leave is to beat them at least one time."
Cole and the other NC State seniors have been tantalized more than once against coach Jimbo Fisher's team. Less than 12 months ago, the Wolfpack owned the upper hand most of the game before the Seminoles rallied for a late score and a 24-20 victory at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. In 2014, Carter-Finley was deafening when the Wolfpack snagged 24-7 lead in the opening quarter when the Seminoles were ranked No. 1 nationally. That's when FSU quarterback Jameis Winston looked like a future Heisman Trophy winner by engineering a huge Florida State comeback in a 56-41 win.
The Wolfpack's last triumph over the Seminoles came in 2012, when quarterback Mike Glennon helped the Pack overcome a 16-0 halftime deficit. The 17-16 final marked NC State's seventh victory in the series since 1998.
After coming so close in games against FSU during his tenure, fifth-year Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren knows how badly his players, especially his seniors, would like to knock off the Seminoles.
"It would be great to have that for the program," Doeren said. "To me, it's all about the players. The work that they've put in for four years, they've been fighting to put themselves in a position to win games like this and it's time to go win one. I'd love to see them do it. That would be the pleasure I get from the win, seeing their faces and seeing their emotion in the locker room afterwards. It's about the kids who have given us everything thing that they've got for four years that are seniors who don't get a chance to play Florida State ever again." Â
After falling to No. 1 Alabama on the opening weekend of the college football season, Florida State was forced to postpone two games in back-to-back weeks due to Hurricane Irma. Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher hopes Saturday's game will contribute to restoring a sense of normalcy in his program and around the Tallahassee area.
"We want to play," Fisher said. "It feels weird to know that other people are playing and you're not, there's no doubt about that. It was for a reason that's a lot bigger than football, and there's still a lot of families out there that are still suffering. Maybe we can give some of those folks a few hours of pleasure when they get a chance to watch us play."
Fisher will be breaking in a true-freshman quarterback in the aftermath of a season-ending knee injury sustained by regular starter Deondre Francois late in the Alabama game. One year ago, James Blackman was a four-star quarterback playing at Glades Central High School in Belle Glade, Florida. On Saturday, the 6-5, rookie will be making his first college start in an ACC game against NC State. Fisher probably doesn't know what to expect from Blackman, while Doeren is even more in the dark.
"He's been coached by Jimbo since he's been on campus, so he's going to be better than he was in high school," Doeren said. "They're going to run their system like they have with every other quarterback that's played prior to him. How much they run him, we'll just have to see and adjust during the game. What they're going to do with him is a game of adjustments for us on defense."
On the flip side, Doeren's quarterback is not a mystery man at this point. Ryan Finley has been one of the nation's most efficient players at his position through three games, completing 75.6 percent of his throws for 987 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions. Dating back to last season, Finley has thrown a 192 consecutive passes without an interception, the longest such streak in the nation.
"You want to go into every game looking to play at your highest level and looking at every opponent the same way," said Cook. "You also realize that this is a conference game, so you really want to focus on the details and do what you've got to do so that you can play a good game."
The Wolfpack Sports Network will begin pregame coverage on Saturday starting with the Matthews Motors Pregame Show at 10 a.m. In the second hour of the pregame, Gary Hahn, Johnny Evans and Tony Haynes take over from the booth. Once again this season, Evans, a former Wolfpack All-American, will take questions from fans about Pack football on 'Ask the Analyst.' Send Johnny questions on Twitter @packradio or click HERE to submit a question.
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Players Mentioned
QB
/ FootballCoach Doeren Signing Day Presser (Dec. 3rd)
Wednesday, December 03
FB Players Postgame Presser vs UNC
Sunday, November 30
Coach Doeren Postgame Presser vs UNC
Sunday, November 30
Coach Doeren Weekly Press Conference (Nov. 24)
Monday, November 24