Week 1: NC State

Moose gave you his take here and our pal at the Garnet&Black gave a good take here but this is my view of the game...for what it is worth - -

NC State 2008 ANALYSIS:

OFFENSE: The Wolfpack return six starters from last year's offense and that seemed to be a plus heading into the summer. However much like last year, NC State has been ravaged by injuries in the preseason, leaving O'Brien with some uncertainty as the season approaches. Tailback Toney Baker (knee) and wide receiver Donald Bowens (back) are significant injuries.

Now the team is extremely raw in the receiving corps, with sophomore Owen Spencer (five receptions, for 73 yards) as the most experienced wideout.

The quarterback situation is an obvious area of concern with redshirt freshman Russell Wilson taken over the starting job.

Although Toney Brown is banged up in the backfield, they have returning tailbacks Jameele Eugene (667 yards and five TDs) and Andre Brown (447 yards, five TDs) ready for action.

The offensive line returns three starters.

DEFENSE: Defensively, the Wolfpack struggled in 2007, ranking 11th in the conference in total defense (393.9 ypg) and scoring defense (28.2 ppg). The real problem came in stopping the run, something NC State did very little of last season (last in the conference at 186.4 ypg).

The team returns just four starters on the defensive side of the ball and to make matters worse, depth in the secondary has taken a hit, with Clem Johnson suffering a broken jaw, leaving him out indefinitely. Senior cornerback Jeremy Gray is the top returning tackler on the squad after posting 62 tackles and three INTs a year ago.

The linebacking corps is weak.

Up front, the team must replace Martrel Brown and DeMario Pressley, but they should be okay with the return of tackle Alan-Michael Cash (50 tackles, 3.5 sacks) and rush end Willie Young (48 tackles, 10 TFLs, six sacks).

SPECIAL TEAMS: The kicking game is a bit of an unknown. The punting job is secured with the return of senior Bradley Pierson, although his average of 37.2 yards per punt could use some improvement. The placekicking job falls to a new guy in sophomore Josh Czajkowski. Also with Bowens hurt it leaves NCSU with no true return man.

Summary - The fact that they bring back so few starters and seem very inexperienced can only be a positive thing for usc. The gamecocks return 17+ starters this could prove to be a big advantage on thursday. USC usually plays well on thursday nights and the environment this thursday will no doubt be a loud crowd not to mention a gamecock walk.

LOHD 5 Keys to the Game -

1. Carolina must control the line - Both on Offense and Defense the line battle must be won by Carolina. The O line has to step up this year and protect Beecher (or whomever) and provide time. They must creat running lines and help USC control the ball. On D...well they have to stuff the run this year and NC State will run the ball a lot so they have to be ready. The D line has to push deep in the backfield of NCSU to disrupt the new NCSU QB.

2. Carolina QB play - We know that Spurrier will keep the offense vanilla so it will be up to Beecher and Company to execute.

3. Carolina WR/TE play - Simple we need a 2nd or 3rd option to appear after McKinley to free him up but to keep the USC offense moving the ball.

4. Carolina D must shut'em down - The strength of Carolina has to show why they are deemed to be so good...time to go to work boys.

5. Weather - I truly hope no rain ruins this game b/c if the weather gets sloppy, I feel this may cause the offense to get sloppy and lead to a long night and a close game.

My prediction --- USC 23 NCSU 10

Other notes -
Series Record: N.C. State leads 26-25-4; in Columbia, USC leads 18-9-1
Last Meeting: N.C. State 10, USC 0 (Sept. 4, 1999 in Raleigh)
Current Streak: N.C. State has won the last 4 meetings
-A USC win would snap the Gamecocks' five-game losing streak, their longest drought since losing the final five games of the 2002 campaign.
-Steve Spurrier owns a 2-1-1 record against N.C. State, with the first three meetings while he was the head coach at Duke.
GO COCKS!