NC State Football: CBS Sports picks Wolfpack as ACC most overrated

The NC State football team is entering the season with high expectations, one writer believes those expectations may be a little too high.

The NC State football team is hoping that this year they can finally reach the ACC Championship Game and end Clemson’s streak.

The Wolfpack certainly has the talent at the right positions, specifically quarterback Ryan Finley. The senior quarterback is considered one of the top quarterbacks in college football and a top prospect for next year’s NFL Draft.

However, one CBS Sports’ writer believes the hype may be a little too much and picked the Wolfpack as the most overrated team in the ACC. Barrett Salee wrote:

"NC State: When you lose an all-star team up front on the defensive line, you’re going to have issues. NC State is going to have issues. Yes, Ryan Finley is a great quarterback and might have a stellar career when he leaves Raleigh, North Carolina, but with massive defensive turnover and a tough division that still includes Clemson, Florida State and a sneaky Boston College squad, I just don’t see the Wolfpack contending. — Barrett Sallee"

It is certainly hard to argue with Sallee’s reasoning for why the Wolfpack may struggle. This defense had one of the best defensive lines in the country, led by defensive end Bradley Chubb. They actually had all four starters (Chubb, B.J. Hill, Justin Jones, Kentavius Street) from last year be drafted in the first four rounds of the NFL Draft.

However, one of the reasons the drop may not be as severe as it might be for other teams is that the players stepping into replace them have experience. This defense will likely have two seniors, Darian Roseboro and Eurndraus Bryant, redshirt junior James Smith-White, and redshirt sophomore Shug Frazier as the starters entering this year.

The second point Sallee makes, in regards to the tough division, isn’t as important for what the Wolfpack hope to achieve. If they want to make the ACC Championship Game, which Finley believes they can, they should be expected to win games over Florida State and Boston College.

This should be an exciting season for the NC State football team and will be interesting to see at the end of the year if they were truly overrated or where able to play up to expectations.

They open the season September 1st against James Madison University.