Coach Tom O’Brien was asked if the Florida State game this Thursday night is the most significant in his tenure at State, and he responded, “Yeah, certainly. Without question it is.”
Sometimes O’Brien can be known to drift into hyperbole. His declaration that NC State was “the best football program in the state” after beating Carolina, Wake and ECU was just a *smidge* over the top, you could say.
But on the matter of this week’s game, he’s dead on: none of the games against Carolina in prior years or any against other foe, other than perhaps the bowl game against Rutgers, carries the weight that the Florida State game will Thursday night. At stake is the upper hand in the Atlantic Division race; the winner will take it while the loser will likely be playing the remainder of the year merely to improve its bowl prospects.
Having the week off to prepare for the Noles gives NC State a great chance to win, of course, but the advantage gained is nullified because the Noles enter the game off a bye as well. NC State showed they could turn extra time into a positive when the nine days in-between the Cincinnati game and Georgia Tech yielded a surprisingly strong showing against the Jackets and their spread option. One hopes having 12 days to prepare for Florida State will reap similar improvement.
But in its two losses, NC State has shown difficulty rising to the occasion. The Pack couldn’t cash in a 17-point lead against Virginia Tech and was completely out-of-sync on the road against East Carolina on the 16th. Both games were huge at the time—the Virginia Tech game, to prove the Pack belonged among the unbeaten, and the ECU game, to prove it could win against a rival when they were the favorite.
Can NC State shake those “big game” jitters and play the “perfect game” they’ll need to against FSU?
Oddly, the fact NC State is an underdog at home may work in its favor. It’s much easier to get players hungry and focused when they face a team supposedly better than them. If this were Wake Forest rather than the Noles, I might feel uneasy about State playing well.
But I think NC State will play well this week. FSU quarterback Christian Ponder is ailing a bit, they’re a player down on the offensive line and few crowds in the ACC can match a Carter-Finley crowd on a Thursday night. The weather is an x-factor—right now it’s hit-or-miss for rain Thursday night—but if it holds off and both teams are able to fully utilize their offensive weapons, I think State’s got a good shot.
For O’Brien, it would be critical for him to win this one, especially if NC State builds a lead at any point. If the Pack go up by a score or two and can’t close the deal, folks will wonder if he can close the deal on the big games.
In that sense, it truly is O’Brien’s biggest game so far.
