CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2020 NC State

8–⁠4 (7–⁠3 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Dave Doeren.

Schedule and results

NC State in 2020, game by game: won vs. Wake Forest 45–42; lost at No. 20 Virginia Tech 24–45; won at No. 24 Pittsburgh 30–29; won at Virginia 38–21; won vs. Duke 31–20; lost at No. 14 North Carolina 21–48; lost vs. No. 11 Miami 41–44; won vs. Florida State 38–22; won vs. No. 21 Liberty 15–14; won at Syracuse 36–29; won vs. Georgia Tech 23–13; lost vs. Kentucky 21–23+17−27Won 45–42 vs. Wake Forest+3Wake ForestLost 24–45 at No. 20 Virginia Tech-21No. 20 Virginia TechWon 30–29 at No. 24 Pittsburgh+1No. 24 PittsburghWon 38–21 at Virginia+17VirginiaWon 31–20 vs. Duke+11DukeLost 21–48 at No. 14 North Carolina-27No. 14 North CarolinaLost 41–44 vs. No. 11 Miami-3No. 11 MiamiWon 38–22 vs. Florida State+16Florida StateWon 15–14 vs. No. 21 Liberty+1No. 21 LibertyWon 36–29 at Syracuse+7SyracuseWon 23–13 vs. Georgia Tech+10Georgia TechLost 21–23 vs. Kentucky-2Kentucky
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 19vsWake ForestW 45–⁠4248%
Sep 26at20Virginia TechL 24–⁠4529%
Oct 3at24PittsburghW 30–⁠2925%
Oct 10atVirginiaW 38–⁠2126%
Oct 17vsDukeW 31–⁠2062%
Oct 24at14North CarolinaL 21–⁠4833%
Nov 6vs11MiamiL 41–⁠4441%
Nov 14vsFlorida StateW 38–⁠2266%
Nov 21vs21LibertyW 15–⁠1443%
Nov 28atSyracuseW 36–⁠2962%
Dec 5vsGeorgia TechW 23–⁠1369%
Jan 2Bowls & playoffvsKentuckyGator BowlL 21–⁠2347%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Kentucky 23–⁠21 in the Gator Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 4th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 52nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 125 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 8: 23
  2. Wk 16: 24
Record
8–⁠4
Conference
7–⁠3 tied for 4th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 23
Points
363–⁠350
Coach
Dave Doeren
Elo
1529 +88 this season
SP+ rating
0.0 No. 70 of 130; offense No. 54, defense No. 80
Returning
60% of last season’s EPA, No. 76 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 41 roster talent No. 31 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Tim Beck and George McDonald
Defensive coordinator
Tony Gibson
Offense
Spread option
Defense
3–⁠3–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense63rd of 127
  • Defense52nd of 127
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted72nd of 127
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted58th of 127
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1142%1.3263rd of 127
Defense0.0941%1.3452nd of 127
Opponent-adjusted0.10 off
0.10 def		42% off
41% def		—72nd off
58th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.9own 3017% allowed
Defense3.8own 2818% caused

CORE rating 0.1, 63rd of 127 (offense -0.6, defense -0.7).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsBailey Hockman QB2,088 yds
Passing touchdownsBailey Hockman QB13 TD
Rushing yardsZonovan Knight RB788 yds
Rushing touchdownsZonovan Knight RB10 TD
Receiving yardsEmeka Emezie WR738 yds
Receiving touchdownsCary Angeline TE6 TD
TacklesPayton Wilson LB108 tkl
SacksDaniel Joseph DL6.5 sacks
InterceptionsAlim McNeill DT1 INT

Top recruits in the 2020 class

Porter Rooks WR★★★★No. 212
Davin Vann DT★★★★No. 234
Jayland Parker ILB★★★No. 554
Aydan White CB★★★No. 693
Ben Finley PRO★★★No. 745

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2020 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.00.855
Receivers63.20.860
Offensive line43.00.857
Defensive line33.30.872
Linebackers23.00.872
Defensive backs43.00.865
Athletes and specialists12.00.790
Whole class223.00.859

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2021

The 2021 draft
Rd 3Alim McNeill DTDetroit Lions

Roster 122

The 2020 roster

122 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2020 line; 65 have a stat line. See the roster

2020 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Notre Dame9–⁠010–⁠25
Clemson8–⁠110–⁠23
Miami7–⁠28–⁠322
North Carolina7–⁠38–⁠418
NC State7–⁠38–⁠4
Pittsburgh5–⁠56–⁠5
Boston College5–⁠56–⁠5
Virginia Tech5–⁠55–⁠6
Virginia4–⁠55–⁠5
Wake Forest3–⁠44–⁠5
Georgia Tech3–⁠63–⁠7
Louisville3–⁠74–⁠7
Florida State2–⁠63–⁠6
Duke1–⁠92–⁠9
Syracuse1–⁠91–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.