The East Carolina Pirates will host the North Carolina State Wolfpack on Saturday in a non-conference matchup. NC State leads the all-time series 18 to 13 and has won the last two meetings; however, these programs have not met since 2019, when the Wolfpack won 34-6. The Pirates have won the last two meetings in Greenville, 33-30 in 2016 and 33-27 in 2010.
NC State went 9-3 in 2021, with notable wins over Clemson, Syracuse, and North Carolina. Their losses came at Mississippi State, Miami (Fl), and at Wake Forest. Coming into this season, the Wolfpack were selected as the second-best team in the ACC overall in the Media Preseason Poll, behind Clemson. NC State also comes into the season ranked No. 13 in the preseason AP Top 25, returning 10 starters on defense and seven on offense.
Get fired up for Saturday – tune in tonight at 7 pm! https://t.co/SFJCEczYyR
— NC State Football (@PackFootball) August 31, 2022
Devin Leary Jr is back to lead the offense. According to DraftScot, Leary is ranked as the fifth-best draft-eligible quarterback coming into this season. After seeing action in 2019 and 2020, Leary took off last season throwing for 3,433 yards with 35 touchdowns and five interceptions. On the defensive side of the ball, Drake Thomas is a man to watch out for rated as the No. 12 draft-eligible outside linebacker. He led the team with 99 tackles and was tied for the lead with six sacks in 2021.