The Thursday night game this week turns its attention to the ACC Atlantic Division and what promises to be a rowdy atmosphere in Carter-Finley Stadium when Louisville shows up to play NC State. Both teams are 4-1 and nationally ranked, fighting to stay in contention in a division that's been dominated by Clemson over the last three seasons.
It's a huge game for NC State -- a team that's been bowling each of the last three years but nationally ranked for the first time since the end of the 2010 season. Stopping (or even slowing) Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson will be a huge part of remaining in the rankings after this week. Last year, Jackson lit up the Wolfpack for four first-half touchdowns on the way to a 54-13 Cardinals win.
Viewing information
Date: Thursday, Oct. 5 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Carter-Finley Stadium -- Raleigh, North Carolina
TV: ESPN | Live stream: WatchESPN
Storylines
Louisville: Welcome back to the national stage, Cards! After losing to Clemson, Louisville put in two weeks of light work against Kent State and Murray State (combined score 97-13). While the athletic department dominates the headlines, the football team has two of the biggest games of the season coming up in the next three weeks, starting with Thursdays spotlight game in Carter-Finley Stadium.
Since the start of the 2015 regular season, Clemson is the only ACC team to beat Louisville. Most defenses haven't figured out a way to slow down Lamar Jackson and if the Cardinals show up in a big way on the road at NC State and later this month at Florida State (Oct. 21), then we're talking about a 10-win season and possibly the first New Year's Six bowl game for the program since Charlie Strong and Teddy Bridgewater took down Florida in the Sugar Bowl.
NC State: Thursday night can be a breakthrough moment for Dave Doeren. Tom O'Brien and Chuck Amato coached NC State to memorable home upsets of ranked teams, but the last time the Wolfpack beat a top-25 team as a ranked team in Raleigh was 1992. The Thursday night home atmosphere in Carter-Finley Stadium has always been a trap for ACC title hopefuls, but against Louisville, it can be a springboard into the 2017 ACC title conversation.
A win on Thursday gives NC State a head-to-head advantage against two of the top teams in the division (Louisville, Florida State) with Clemson coming to visit on Nov. 4. In four years as coach, Dave Doeren has yet to win more than three conference games in a season and suddenly, with his best team, there's a chance the Wolfpack could be in the mix for a division title.
Prediction
NC State defensive lineman Bradley Chubb is a unique player. He could have gone in last year's NFL Draft, but returned to the program for another year, and his fiery intensity and elite play has made him not only the team's best player but the face of this breakthrough season. Chubb was a dominant force against Florida State and I expect him to be in rare form on Thursday night against the least sack-able quarterback in America. This game could get high-scoring, but I think it's won by NC State's defense. Pick: NC State +3.5
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| NC State +3.5 |  |  | | | | | |
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