Undefeated NC State, Wake Forest tangle in ACC opener

There are different preparation timetables for NC State and Wake Forest as they get ready for Thursday night's game at Winston-Salem, N.C.

Yet both teams want the same results they've experienced so far.

"For this football team, (it's) our first road test and the short week," NC State coach Dave Doeren said. "We've had a Thursday game coming out of training camp, a long prep getting ready for Game 2, now a short prep for Game 3. We have no routine, and that's our routine right now. It's different every week."

It's the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both, even though NC State (2-0) topped Virginia on Saturday in a nonleague matchup between ACC members.

Wake Forest (2-0) will play its third consecutive home game under coach Jake Dickert.

"I think the biggest message to our team is there's a lot of noise about it, a lot of talk about it," Dickert said of facing a traditional in-state rival. "... You're wrong if your preparation changes. You're wrong if your intensity toward this game changes."

Dickert said their opponents are "battle-tested" after NC State had narrow victories against East Carolina and Virginia.

Wake Forest cruised past Western Carolina 42-10 on Saturday in a game that involved three hours' worth of lightning-related delays. But the Demon Deacons were able to get running back Demond Claiborne out of the game early in the third quarter after he ran for three touchdowns and 193 yards.

"You can see what happens when Demond Claiborne is out there," Dickert said.

NC State will arrive with loads of confidence because of late-game playmaking in its first two games.

"It builds confidence, for sure," Doeren said. "We've had two good football games where we had to finish to win, and we did that in both cases. And so it definitely ratchets up guys' belief that they can win any game."

It also helps the Wolfpack to have quarterback CJ Bailey, whose versatility has been on display. He has thrown for 518 yards and two scores while rushing for 65 yards and three touchdowns.

The road team has won the past two meetings, with Wake Forest pulling off a 34-30 upset last year in Raleigh. Claiborne had two touchdown runs and 136 rushing yards in that game. Bailey threw for 272 yards in relief of Grayson McCall, who was carted off the field in the first quarter.

It will be NC State receiver Wesley Grimes' first game in Winston-Salem since he transferred from Wake Forest after spending 2022 and 2023 with the Demon Deacons. Grimes compiled 121 receiving yards and a touchdown in this year's opener vs. East Carolina.

These teams, who have met annually since 1910, have split their last 10 meetings. Since 2000, NC State has gone 3-9 on the road in the series.

--Field Level Media