Notre Dame heads to Raleigh to play football for the first time- ever.
As strange as this sounds, I’ve had this game highlighted ever since it was announced. Why? Well, for two reasons:
- Payback must be dealt for the only other time these two programs played one another in the 2003 Gator Bowl when NC State won 28-6. This game was so bad, my girlfriend at the time broke up with me because of how insane I got during the game. No [insert former girlfriend name that need not be whispered to current wife] I don’t want to talk about whatever it is you want to talk about… Ty Willingham is killing this program.
- My brother-in-law was a professor at NC State and was living in Holly Springs. Notice how I used past tense there? Yeah, he left NC State to teach at Notre Dame- and i was the only one to bitch about it. That was a real cushy place to stay for free for a road game. Bastard.
So NC State it is. Last year they went 7-6 and started the season off with a 4-0 start against Troy, Eastern Kentucky, Old Dominion, and South Alabama.
That doesn’t come anywhere near the level needed to be even considered as an “okay” schedule for a power five school. Oddly enough though, they didn’t really get blown out of the water in any of their losses until their Belk Bowl loss to Mississippi State 51-28. (Yes they lost to Clemson 56-41 but that is still only 2 scores).
They lost their quarterback Jacoby Brissett to the NFL, and all things considered, they could win 6 in 2016 or they could lose 9. It’s an odd situation for the Wolfpack.
Next: First Thoughts On Syracuse
Slap The Sign will have more on the North Carolina State game and the rest of the schedule in our Schedule preview in June.