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NC State Gets Set to Welcome Florida State Under Friday Night Lights
11/20/2025 3:40:00 PM | Football
RALEIGH, N.C. – Under the Friday night lights, NC State Football will host Florida State at Carter-Finley on Friday, November 21st, at 8 p.m., making it the fourth home night game of the season. As the Wolfpack aims to win its sixth game and become bowl eligible, the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
NC State will honor those who serve during Friday's game as the Wolfpack celebrates its annual Military Appreciation Day. Among the various activities, Military VIPs will be on the field for the coin toss, including: Dane Hughes (Assistant Secretary of War for Legislative Affairs), Maj. Roger Kerstetter (Executive Officer, NC Piedmont Consortium), CPT Brian Tanaka (Commanding Officer, Naval Submarine Training Center Pacific), and Lt. Col. Sarah Bergkamp (Commander, NC State Air Force ROTC). During the first quarter, combat-wounded veterans and veterans by era will be honored. In the second quarter, Folds of Honor, which provides scholarships to the spouses and children of America's fallen or disabled military members, will recognize a special family. Halftime will feature a full-field-sized flag and a special performance by the Power Sound of the South.
NC State has won the last three matchups with Florida State and has been victorious in five of the last six meetings. The Pack won in Carter-Finley in 2018, 2020, and 2022, and in Tallahassee in 2017 and 2021. The Wolfpack's only loss to the Seminoles since 2015 was in 2019. Those three straight victories are the most for NC State in the history of the series vs. Florida State. The Wolfpack has outscored the Seminoles 85-17 in the first quarter of the last nine games in the series. The Wolfpack was the first team to defeat Florida State on its home turf after the Seminoles joined the ACC in 1992. The Wolfpack won 34-28 in Tallahassee on 11/10/2001.
NC State has won 10 of its last 13 home games in November, dating back to the 2020 campaign (10 of 14 if you throw in a December regular-season contest in 2020). That includes the Wolfpack's upset of eighth-ranked Georgia Tech on Nov. 1. NC State is tied for the most November home victories in the ACC since 2020. Overall, the Wolfpack has posted a 15-7 record in that time frame.
With five wins entering Game 11, NC State needs one more win to become bowl eligible. The Wolfpack has qualified for five straight bowl games and 10 in Dave Doeren's previous 12 years as head coach. NC State has two streaks of five straight bowl games under Doeren - the most consecutive for any head coach in school history. The longest bowl streak in school history was seven, from 1988-1994, under head coaches Dick Sheridan and Mike O'Cain.
NC State not only sold out its first five home games of 2025, but also the next two (vs. Florida State and UNC). That will make 27 straight sellouts for Wolfpack football, - the longest sellout streak in school history. The streak dates back to Sept. 17, 2022, vs. Texas Tech. The 2024 season marked the first time in school history that the Pack had sold out of single-game tickets in consecutive seasons. Season tickets have also sold out each of the past three years (and eight times under head coach Dave Doeren). NC State has won 31 of its last 39 games in Carter-Finley Stadium (since 2020).
Linebacker and team captain Caden Fordham leads all Power Four players in tackles with 10.3 per game - the top mark in the ACC. He has led or tied the team in tackles seven times in 10 games this season and has six double-figure tackle outputs. His 15 stops versus Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech were a career high.
The 2025 season has been marked by injuries, mainly on the defensive side of the ball. Wolfpack players who have started games this season have missed a combined 27 games: 18 by five starters on defense and nine by six starters on offense.
