Noah Cahill
With each convincing victory, Notre Dame grows closer and closer to re-entering the national conversation. Helped by shock upsets to Texas and Penn State, the Irish have now vaulted to No. 16 in the AP Poll. Their two losses look better by the week as well, with Texas A&M rising to No. 5 and Miami staying put at No. 2. Like last season, head coach Marcus Freeman’s team must handle success and take care of business with what remains of a manageable schedule. Should they do so, a place in the 12-team field will be waiting.
NC State recovered from a two-game slide with a dominant 56-10 win against Campbell last weekend. Running back Hollywood Smothers put on a show, taking four carries for 123 yards and a touchdown, along with 30 receiving yards and another touchdown grab. With CJ Bailey performing well at the helm and Smothers next to him in the backfield, the Wolfpack offense will pose a threat. The Irish defense will need to smother the ACC Running Back of the Week if they want to continue their positive trend.
However, between the recent improvement from defensive coordinator Chris Ash’s unit and the prolific production of the offense, I see another comfortable win on the horizon. Unlike the weird-weather history of this matchup, Saturday’s weather should see smooth sailing for Notre Dame.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 38, NC State: 17
Chris Dailey
It feels as if every game Notre Dame walks into is a “trap game” — at least in the eyes of most. Arkansas initially seemed to be the epitome of this label, as the Irish had to enter a rowdy SEC environment. Now, NC State has a similar vibe since it’s yet another power conference opponent. In reality, this is not a trap game for Notre Dame because of anything that NC State will do. The Irish are superior to the Wolfpack in just about every positional group. Instead, it can be seen this way because the Irish are soaring upward in the AP Poll and may get ahead of themselves.
Thankfully, Notre Dame has Marcus Freeman as its head coach. He takes each game, each day and each rep one at a time. It’s a lesson the young coach learned the hard way. On the field, the Irish are rolling. Freshman CJ Carr looks like the young quarterback the Irish faithful have longed for, and junior Jeremiyah Love is a serious Heisman candidate. Oh, not to mention the defense is finally playing the part. Expect Notre Dame to take an early lead and not look back.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 38, NC State: 10
Ben Hicks
Notre Dame is more talented and more experienced than NC State at nearly every position on the field. The Irish offense has been humming since week two, and the defense has started to perform up to expectations over the last two weeks. The only concern heading into this showdown with an inferior Wolfpack team, who recently dropped a home game to hapless Virginia Tech, is the dreaded trap game phenomenon.
This is the middle week of a three-game homestand, and also presents the final test before vaunted rival USC travels to South Bend next weekend. NC State quarterback CJ Bailey has proven to be an effective pocket passer, slicing up defenses in all but one of his starts this season, presenting a play style that has plagued the Irish defense thus far. If the Irish overlook their opponent, they could be on upset watch. After the experience of last year’s playoff chase, I just don’t see head coach Marcus Freeman’s group doing that. Notre Dame will come out with energy on Saturday, dominating NC State in all three phases, earning much-needed style points en route back to the College Football Playoff.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 41, NC State: 14
Henry Lytle
The last three matchups between these teams have been plagued by extreme weather conditions, from hurricanes and thunderstorms in Raleigh to gusting winds in South Bend. This time, the game will take place on a sunny fall afternoon and I expect the Irish to roll again. The offense started slower than it has all season against Boise State, not scoring on the first drive, but defensive coordinator Chris Ash’s defense showed up in a big way to hold the Broncos to a touchdown. As Ash’s unit continues to improve, sophomore cornerback Leonard Moore gets healthier and the Irish figure out the blitz, it will only get tougher for opposing offenses to move the ball.
In an emotional game between colleagues, Ash will have to motivate his defense to shut down the NC State offense that was rolling through its first three games. Ultimately, I think the Irish will have no problem stopping the Wolfpack at home, despite their offense looking strong through six games. They have not faced a defense the caliber of the Irish. I expect another big performance from the running back tandem and Notre Dame to control this one from start to finish.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 38, NC State: 10
Tyler Reidy
It’s hard to say what kind of NC State we’re going to see inside Notre Dame Stadium come Saturday. On one hand, the Wolfpack looked excellent in their 3-0 start to the season, defeating Virginia and Wake Forest. However, they’ve fallen off more recently with losses to Duke and lowly Virginia Tech.
One thing is constant with the Wolfpack, though. Their offense can play. Led by quarterback CJ Bailey and consistent running back Hollywood Smothers, NC State is averaging 33.8 points per game. Even in their losses, the Wolfpack managed to post 54 combined points. If they can establish an early run game and keep the pocket clean for Bailey, I can see this game being very much up for grabs in the fourth quarter.
Notre Dame doesn’t lose these games, though. Since 2018, the Irish are 37-3 in regular-season contests against the ACC. Two of those losses came in the non-competitive 2023 season, the other this year against a Miami team that I firmly believe will go 13-0. When the Irish are a Playoff contender, they take care of business against lesser ACC squads, and I think they’ll do just that this weekend.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 35, NC State: 17
Claire Watson
Last week, I was wildly off with my score prediction, as Boise State kept the Irish offense at bay despite losing 28-7. However, I think that Notre Dame has a good chance to post a higher number this week against NC State.
The Broncos did their job as a defense, but there were still some monumental moments that should translate into the game against the Wolfpack. First and foremost, a notable statistic is that Notre Dame is currently ranked 7th in the country in team passing efficiency (179.68), eighth in passing yards per completion (14.89) and 13th in scoring offense. Freshman quarterback CJ Carr, who was placed on the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award watch list, is a big reason why. While he may not have had his strongest performance against Boise State, the Michigan native is up to 1,280 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns and 26 rushing yards on the season.
Should Carr continue to produce along with the rest of his offense, especially the junior running back duo of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, Notre Dame should win handily on Saturday.
Prediction: Notre Dame: 45, NC State: 14
