Photo by: Charles Wainwright
Orange Eye Primetime Matchup with No. 22 NC State
10/22/2018 4:00:00 PM | Football
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Another week, another home game, and another matchup against a team from the Tar Heel state.
The Orange (5-2, 2-2 ACC) host ACC Atlantic Division foe No. 22 NC State (5-1, 2-1 ACC) Saturday night inside the Carrier Dome. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
It's Syracuse's penultimate home game of the year, and head coach Dino Babers expects the Dome to be rocking. The Orange are a perfect 4-0 in the Loud House this season, and a fifth win would be the most since the Orange finished their 2003 home slate with a 5-2 record.
"NC State's an outstanding football team," Babers said in his weekly press conference inside the Iocolano-Petty Football Complex Monday. "Coach [Dave] Doeren does a fantastic job. With it being Family Weekend and an ESPN2 game at 7 p.m. in the Loud House, we expect it to be wild and crazy in there."
A win on Saturday would also improve Syracuse's record to 6-2, a mark that makes the team bowl-eligible for the first time since 2013. The Orange's four-year bowl drought is tied for the second-longest among current Power-Five teams.
"We're not there yet," Babers said. "We still have goals out there we're trying to reach. We're trying to win our next game and go 1-0 this week. If we do, it'll accomplish some things we haven't accomplished around here in a long time."
To get that sixth win, Babers and the Orange will have their work cut out for them. The nationally-ranked Wolfpack are led by quarterback Ryan Finley, one of the nation's best signal-callers. He's thrown for 1,777 yards with 10 touchdown passes. Finley currently ranks seventh in the country in completions per game (25.7) and No. 15 in completion percentage (.683).
Behind Finley, and the ACC's most productive receiving duo in Jakobi Meyers and Kelvin Harmon, NC State's passing attack ranks No. 12 nationally in yards per game (311.7). Meyers is seventh in the country with 7.6 receptions per game, while Harmon leads the conference at 91.2 receiving yards per game.
"[Finley's] proven year after year after year that he's been the best guy," Babers said. "His throwing percentage is so high, I'm envious of how well they throw the football. He's only been sacked three times, which means he doesn't get hit. When someone's throwing for a high number like that and never gets hit, that mean's they're going to be healthy game after game after game.
"This is a really good football team. I'm sure they're not happy with their performance [at Clemson last weekend], and they want to take it out on somebody. We've got to work really hard in our house to make sure they don't take it out on us."
For complete coverage of Syracuse football, follow us on Twitter (@CuseFootball), Instagram (@CuseFootball) and like us on Facebook (Syracuse Football).
The Orange (5-2, 2-2 ACC) host ACC Atlantic Division foe No. 22 NC State (5-1, 2-1 ACC) Saturday night inside the Carrier Dome. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
It's Syracuse's penultimate home game of the year, and head coach Dino Babers expects the Dome to be rocking. The Orange are a perfect 4-0 in the Loud House this season, and a fifth win would be the most since the Orange finished their 2003 home slate with a 5-2 record.
"NC State's an outstanding football team," Babers said in his weekly press conference inside the Iocolano-Petty Football Complex Monday. "Coach [Dave] Doeren does a fantastic job. With it being Family Weekend and an ESPN2 game at 7 p.m. in the Loud House, we expect it to be wild and crazy in there."
A win on Saturday would also improve Syracuse's record to 6-2, a mark that makes the team bowl-eligible for the first time since 2013. The Orange's four-year bowl drought is tied for the second-longest among current Power-Five teams.
"We're not there yet," Babers said. "We still have goals out there we're trying to reach. We're trying to win our next game and go 1-0 this week. If we do, it'll accomplish some things we haven't accomplished around here in a long time."
To get that sixth win, Babers and the Orange will have their work cut out for them. The nationally-ranked Wolfpack are led by quarterback Ryan Finley, one of the nation's best signal-callers. He's thrown for 1,777 yards with 10 touchdown passes. Finley currently ranks seventh in the country in completions per game (25.7) and No. 15 in completion percentage (.683).
Behind Finley, and the ACC's most productive receiving duo in Jakobi Meyers and Kelvin Harmon, NC State's passing attack ranks No. 12 nationally in yards per game (311.7). Meyers is seventh in the country with 7.6 receptions per game, while Harmon leads the conference at 91.2 receiving yards per game.
"[Finley's] proven year after year after year that he's been the best guy," Babers said. "His throwing percentage is so high, I'm envious of how well they throw the football. He's only been sacked three times, which means he doesn't get hit. When someone's throwing for a high number like that and never gets hit, that mean's they're going to be healthy game after game after game.
"This is a really good football team. I'm sure they're not happy with their performance [at Clemson last weekend], and they want to take it out on somebody. We've got to work really hard in our house to make sure they don't take it out on us."
For complete coverage of Syracuse football, follow us on Twitter (@CuseFootball), Instagram (@CuseFootball) and like us on Facebook (Syracuse Football).
Built in the 315 | Episode 1: The Foundation
Friday, March 06
Built in the 315 | Episode 1
Friday, March 06
John Wildhack Interview
Wednesday, February 11
Calvin Russell Interview
Tuesday, January 13
