Two ranked teams that faced FCS opponents in their openers will take a step up in competition on Saturday when the NC State Wolfpack host the Tennessee Volunteers at Bank of America Stadium.
The Volunteers had their way in Week 1, blowing out Chattanooga 69-3, and our Tennessee vs. NC State predictions are laying the points with the Vols as they hit the road in Week 2. Read more in our college football picks below.
Tennessee vs NC State predictions
Early spread lean
Tennessee -7.5 (-115 at BetMGM)
My analysis
The goal for all teams in Week 1 of the college football season is simply to win, and both the Tennessee Volunteers and NC State Wolfpack accomplished that much, avoiding what would have been monumental upsets. It is, however, notable that the Wolfpack struggled for much of their game against a team they should have dominated.
NC State came into their game against Western Carolina as a massive 32.5-point favorite but trailed at multiple points against the Catamounts. That included being down 21-17 heading into the fourth quarter before the Wolfpack scored three times unanswered to secure the win.
Western Carolina isn’t a terrible FCS team — it finished the year ranked in 2023 — but has gotten blown out by FBS competition in recent years. The Wolfpack struggled to stop the Catamounts on the ground, allowing 6.3 yards per carry, and continuously found ways not to put the game away, with quarterback Grayson McCall missing a surprising number of open throws against an overmatched defense.
The Volunteers had no such problems. Tennessee watched redshirt freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava go 22-for-28 with three touchdowns before coming out after an easy half of work against Chattanooga. Dylan Sampson averaged over 10 yards per carry while rushing for three touchdowns, while the Tennessee defense held the Mocs to just 227 yards of total offense.
Yes, that’s what we should expect of Tennessee, but the complete performance was still an impressive display and a warning to future opponents, particularly on the offensive end.
McCall will have to step up his game significantly against a strong Volunteers defense, and that’s just to give the Wolfpack hope to keep up with the onslaught we can expect from this Tennessee offense. While the early line has already moved over the key number of -7, I'm sticking with the Vols.
Early Over/Under lean
Over 59.5 (-110 at BetMGM)
My analysis
For all my concerns regarding McCall’s performance, the Wolfpack still showed some exciting offensive talent against Western Carolina when they needed to.
Running back Jordan Waters ran for 123 yards and two TDs on 20 carries, including breaking off a 50-yard run. The best player on the field may have been sophomore wide receiver Kevin Concepcion, who made nine catches for 121 yards and three scores.
That’s a promising sign for an NC State team that sometimes struggled on offense last year. The Wolfpack averaged a mediocre 26.2 points per game in 2023 and were twice held to 10 or fewer points — a rarity for a solid power conference school in the modern game.
Presumably, McCall will settle in and make more throws in Week 2, as the former Coastal Carolina starter has thrown for 91 touchdowns and over 10,000 yards in his college career. That should give NC State more than enough firepower to put some points on the board against Tennessee.
The bigger problem for the Wolfpack will be slowing down the explosive Volunteers offense. Iamaleava looks ready for the college stage, while Sampson proved to be a terror on the ground. Tennessee also has big-play potential from its receiving corps, including Dont’e Thornton Jr., who went for 105 yards and two scores on just three receptions in Week 1.
With this much offensive talent on both squads and NC State’s uninspiring defensive performance against a much weaker Catamounts squad, we should expect a shootout on Saturday — even if Tennessee gets the best of the battle.
Tennessee vs NC State live odds
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