Maryland @ NC State preview
Carter-Finley Stadium
Last Meeting ( Nov 27, 2010 ) North Carolina State 31, Maryland 38
THE STORY: North Carolina State has been a difficult team to figure. The Wolfpack have wins over nationally-ranked Virginia and Clemson, but lost at struggling Boston College. N.C. State can seal an over .500 record when Maryland visits in the regular-season finale Saturday. The Wolfpack’s defense has continued to shine, allowing just three touchdowns and 27 points the last three weeks and leading the nation in interceptions with 22. Cornerback David Amerson has 11 of those picks, four more than anyone else in the nation. Maryland has lost seven straight for first-year coach Randy Edsall and will be trying to avoid matching the program’s worst record in 2009. The Terps have beaten N.C. State in eight of the last 11 meetings.
TV: ACC Network, ESPN3.com. LINE: North Carolina State –12.5.
ABOUT MARYLAND (2-9, 1-6 ACC): When Danny O’Brien went down with an injury against Notre Dame, C.J. Brown was given the keys as the full-time quarterback. He threw for 186 yards, connecting with nine different receivers, and rushed for 110 in the loss at Wake Forest. In the three games he has gotten significant playing time, Brown has four touchdown passes and one interception. He has rushed for 497 yards, most ever for a Maryland quarterback in a single season. Defensive lineman Joe Vellano has double-digit tackles in four of his last seven games.
ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA STATE (6-5, 3-4 ACC): Linebackers Audie Cole and Terrell Manning, along with Amerson, lead a defense ranked fourth in the nation in turnover margin (plus-13). Quarterback Mike Glennon is completing almost 62 percent of his passes and has thrown 23 touchdowns, the fifth most in a single season at N.C. State. Only Phillip Rivers and Russell Wilson have thrown more. T.J Graham is still the biggest threat with 607 yards receiving, but Tobias Palmer has 82 or more yards in two of his last three games.
EXTRA POINTS
1. N.C. State and Maryland are two of the five least penalized teams in the nation.
2. Terps’ senior running back Davin Meggett has 2,320 yards, ranking eighth on the school’s all-time list.
3. Graham, already the all-time ACC leader in kickoff return yardage, needs 11 more for 3,000 in his career.
PREDICTION: North Carolina State 31, Maryland 17 – The Wolfpack have more to play for at this point, and a defense that’s playing well enough to cover for the team’s inconsistencies.