When NC State and Florida State play tonight on ESPN, it won’t be quite the same spectacle it has been. In recent years, it was the old and mighty versus the young and frisky. Pupil vs. Mentor. A very Oedipal feel as NC State tried to validate their new “Florida State Junior” attitude by beating the real Florida State. And they did beat them several times.
This year though, not so much. This game seems to be more about who’s gonna lose than who’s gonna win. If the Wolfpack lose, it’ll banish them to their first losing season under Chuck Amato. If the Seminoles lose, it would be their first three-loss ACC season.
Throwing away the larger meanings and just looking at the game, I gotta say this one smells a bit like an upset. I’m not just saying that to appease the few State fans who still read my site after my recent criticisms. It just feels like that to me. The Pack actually made a lot of big plays in the first half against Miami, but offset them by turning the ball over four times and allowing the Hurricanes more than a few big plays of their own. If NC State can make fewer mistakes (no small feat, I know) they can win this one.