North Carolina State at Maryland

Written by Steve Janus

This Saturday the No.23 North Carolina State Wolfpack will try and secure a spot in the ACC Championship game when they go on the road to take on the Maryland Terrapins. With a win the Wolfpack would be tied with Florida State at 6-2 in the Atlantic division, but since they beat Florida State they would be the ones who faced Virginia Tech in the title game. The Wolfpack come in off a 29-25 win over in-state rival North Carolina, while the Terrapins lost 30-16 at home to Florida State. The home team has won four of the last five in the series, but will Maryland come to play with nothing on the line. The oddsmakers are giving the slight edge to North Carolina State in this one, as the current college football odds have the Wolfpack favored by 2.5-points over the Terrapins.

NC State (8-3, 5-2 ACC): Things didn’t look good for the Wolfpack in their last game against North Carolina, as they trailed 19-10 with just over four minutes to play in the third quarter. Owen Spencer then made an improbable catch off a tipped pass in the endzone, and T.J. Graham returned a punt 87 yards for a touchdown, and after a field goal by Josh Czajkowski the Wolfpack were up eight. North Carolina scored a touchdown, with just over a minute to go, but was unable to convert on the two point conversion to tie the game.

The Wolfpack finished the game with just 275 yards of total offense, compared to the 404 yards North Carolina racked up. Russell Wilson completed just 15 of 29 attempts for 163 yards with two touchdowns and an interceptions. James Washington and Mustafa Green combined for 88 yards on 21 carries, but it was the big plays that kept the Wolfpack alive in the ACC.

Last week the Terrapins forced Florida State to punt just once all game, so don’t be surprised to see the Wolfpack offense get back on track this week. Maryland has had its struggles stopping the pass this season, and Wilson figures to have a big game in what is the biggest game of the season for NC State.

Maryland (7-4, 4-3): The Terrapins had a chance to force overtime against the Seminoles last week, but after Danny O’Brien drove Maryland to the Florida State 19, he threw an interception that was returned 96 yards for a touchdown. Turnovers were the story of the game for the Terrpains, who finished with four on the game. The Terrapins had a ACC-low eight turnovers in their previous 10 games.

O’Brien finished 25 of 45 for 269 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions and a fumble. The Terrapins did most of their damage on the ground, as Da’Rel Scott and Davin Meggett combined for 159 yards n 21 carries, but neither was able to find the endzone.

The Wolfpack defense doesn’t exactly set up well for the Terrapins, as they are much stronger against the run than the pass. NC State comes in allowing just 124 yards a game on the ground, but are 50th in the country against the pass, giving up an average of 210 yards a game. I expect Maryland to try and get the ground game going, but will likely have to turn to O’Brien at some point to make a big play or two if they are going to win this game.

Looking at the Odds: I think your money has to be on the Wolfpack to cover the 2.5-point spread in this one, as I just don’t think the Terrapins are going to come out with the same intensity level as the Wolfpack. NC State is 8-2 ATS in all games this season, and are 11-2 ATS after playing their last game on the road over the last 3 seasons. My final score prediction is North Carolina State 31, Maryland 24.

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