North Carolina State and East Carolina will open up their respective seasons on Saturday afternoon in Greenville. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our college football odds series, which includes a NC State-East Carolina prediction and pick we have laid out below.
NC State is coming off a 9-3 season before an unfortunate COVID breakout forced a cancellation of their Holiday Bowl against UCLA. Head coach Dave Doeren has won at least eight games in four of his last five seasons and is poised for a big year of contention in the ACC.
East Carolina went 7-5 last season, also sufferers of a canceled bowl game against Boston College. Head coach Mike Houston is entering his fourth season at the helm of East Carolina, bringing momentum into the 2022 season.
Here are the NC State-East Carolina College football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: NC State-East Carolina Odds
North Carolina State Wolfpack: -11.5 (-110)
East Carolina Pirates: +11.5 (-110)
Over: 51.5 (-110)
Under: 51.5 (-110)
Why NC State Could Cover The Spread
NC State welcomes back one of the better quarterbacks in the ACC in Devin Leary. Leary dominated last season, tossing 35 touchdowns to just five interceptions, throwing for 3,433 yards. Leary completed nearly 66% of his passes and could have declared for the draft, but chose to come back instead. Most of the production around Leary in 2021 has since left, but Thayer Thomas, the team's second-leading receiver last season is back. Thomas caught 51 passes for 596 yards and eight touchdowns. The team hit the transfer portal to sure up those holes, adding former Maryland receiver Darryl Jones, who was a four-star recruit out of high school. Jones totaled 319 yards and two touchdowns for the Terps last season. Also added in the recruiting cycle was four-star running back Michael Allen, the highest-ranked recruit in the Wolfpack's class.
NC State's defense was the highlight of their season, allowing just 19.7 points per game, ranking 14th in all of Division 1. Last season's leading tackler Drake Thomas is back after totaling 99 tackles and six sacks last season, also leading the team with three interceptions. Thomas will once again anchor a strong linebacker crew. NC State also added Auburn transfer Dreshun Miller, who totaled 31 tackles as a defensive back in 2020.
Why East Carolina Could Cover The Spread
East Carolina also returns their star quarterback, with Holton Ahlers returning as signal caller in 2022. Ahlers is entering his fifth season with the Pirates, throwing 69 career touchdown passes and 10,225 passing yards. Ahlers also can get it done with his legs, totaling 1,264 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns in his career. Last year's leading rush Keaton Mitchell is back after running for 1,132 yards and nine touchdowns last season. Mitchell also added 253 receiving yards. CJ Johnson who led the team with 520 receiving yards last season also returns. ECU added two key transfers in former North Carolina running back Kamarro Edmonds and former Duke receiver Jarett Gardner.
East Carolina's defense struggled a bit last season, allowing 26.2 points per game. Linebacker Jeremy Lewis is back after totaling 42 tackles and three sacks last season. Myles Berry is the team's leading returning tackler, with 53 tackles in 2021. Three different Pirates led the team with three sacks in Immanuel Hickman, Suirad Ware, and Lewis.
Final NC State-East Carolina Prediction & Pick
Expect more of a shootout than anything in this one, but give the nod to NC State and Leary.
Final NC State-East Carolina Prediction & Pick: NC State -11.5 (-110), over 51.5 (-110)
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