North Carolina State Worthy Of No. 14 Ranking
Notre Dame Brian Kelly kicked off North Carolina State week with his Tuesday press conference. The Wolfpack beat the Irish in Hurricane Matthew a year ago, but things will be much different on Saturday, despite both teams returning the majority of the players on the field a year ago.
“We have to refocus quickly,” Kelly said of the big 49-14 win over USC. “We have to because we're playing a very good football team in North Carolina State.”
NC State’s offense has been very productive, and it’s led by junior quarterback Ryan Finley. The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder has completed 69.4 percent of his passes for 1,968 yards and 11 touchdowns. Finley has yet to throw an interception this year, and Kelly highlighted the efficient play.
“First on offense, I think the best way to talk about them is starting with their quarterback,” stated Kelly. “No interceptions on the season hasn't thrown an interception I think since Miami of last year. Finley is very smart, knows the system, a veteran quarterback. He knows exactly what his offensive coordinator wants from him. Just does a really good job of taking care of the football. Very smart.
“They do a great job of holding onto the football, sustaining drives, and scoring. I think they average 3.2 points per possession, which is really, really good. So they've got a number of weapons on offense.”
It’s not all on Finley as tight end Jaylen Samuels is one of the most explosive players in the country. The 5-foot-11, 223-pounder isn’t typical tight end, as he will line up at receiver, tight end and even running back at times.
On the year Samuels has recorded 54 catches for 453 yards and three touchdowns, but he has rushed for 191 yards and seven touchdowns on just 31 carries.
“Samuels is a matchup nightmare,” Kelly said. “He can match up against linebackers, safeties. He's just a really difficult guy to defend.”
Samuels isn’t the only player Notre Dame will need to account for on every play, as junior running back Nyheim Hines will line up all over the field too. The 5-foot-9, 197-pound speedster has rushed for 648 yards and six touchdowns.
“Hines, here is a guy, elite track speed now, has kind of taken that and translated that to the football field,” explained Kelly. “Big play potential. A very dangerous offensive football team. They've proven that.”
On defense, NC State doesn’t need much of an introduction. The Wolfpack defense ranks sixth in the country in rush defense and boasts one of the best front seven’s in the country.
“I think as good of a group that we're going to see,” said Kelly. “Comparable to Georgia. Physically very imposing. It's led by Chubb and Hill up front. Obviously, they're getting the accolades that they deserve. They are very good football players. Chubb obviously has the ability to rush the passer, as well, plays with a great motor. I think what I'm impressed with is that not only they're physical, but they play hard every snap.
“This is a defense that's very stingy against the run. They do a great job schematically of putting their guys in a very good position. You have to be worried about special teams with their ability to return kicks and punts, as well. We've got our hands full in all three facets.”
Kelly was also very open about last season’s 10-3 loss in Raleigh.
“We didn't even look at the film,” stated Kelly. “It wasn't even part of our breakdown because it really didn't give us anything. It was a poorly designed game plan by me. There was nothing there that we really wanted to go back and look at.
“We've changed our punt protection since that time, which obviously the punt was a huge play in the game. There's really nothing that we could garner from that game. It really didn't show truly who they were or who we were in that game because you just didn't have the ability to exert force against the ground and be explosive and powerful.”