It feels like it’s been a rough offseason for the football program, what with the personnel losses on the defensive side and the unknowns that come with changing both coordinators. But maybe it’s really not been all that bad?
I was a bit surprised to see that NC State came out of the spring at No. 42 in SP+, which is a 14-spot improvement from where the Wolfpack finished the 2024 season. SP+ even projects NC State’s defense to be a bit better this fall.
Much of State’s success rides on CJ Bailey’s continued improvement, of course, and SP+ also expects the offense to be better in 2025. It helps that State managed to retain its most important skill position players, and a full offseason of work with Bailey will hopefully pay dividends when the lights come on. I’m staying in believe-it-when-I-see-it mode with the offense, though—it’s been a while since this unit has been legitimately good.