What's the vibe like for NC State football fans this week?

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Visit us at Capital Financial USA.com. This is the Adam Gold Show. 53 years ago today Abby road was released. 53 years ago. Abby road was released. One of the, I don't know, this might be the best Beatles album.

I don't know. My particular favorite is the White Album. Now, Beatle Red, Beatle Blue, those were greatest hits. Beatle White was not. Beatle White was its own thing. And that's my favorite. That's a weird Beatles album though. Probably because my favorite Beatles song is Rocky Raccoon.

Isn't that strange? Yeah. I love Rocky Raccoon. Okay. It's okay.

It's a cute little funky little Western story, isn't it? But man, Abby Road is legendary. Anyway, Roddy Jones is going to join us in just a couple of minutes. ACC network analyst, ESPN college football analyst, and a Georgia Tech grad as well. Anyway, we're actually going to move Roddy back so we can absolutely do that. All right, so here's a question for all of you state fans. What's the vibe? What's the vibe for you right now as we sit here six days away, five days away now from game time? Because I said yesterday that with everything that is about this week, that it's sort of, to me it's almost like a Super Bowl. This is going to be the longest week. This is going to be the longest week for a long time for NC State fans. And that's just true. It's going to take forever. So I'm curious, what's your vibe for this game?

What are you doing to distract yourself from the fact that it's just Tuesday? Because when, this is not something, this is a little new to state. That's the thing that, I'm not saying it worries me about the game because Clemson is used to playing in these games. They are used to playing, whether it's an ACC championship game, which to be perfectly honest, those are big games, but in most cases they have been heavily favored. And it's not, they're not a heavy favorite in this game. I'll bet you can count on one hand the ACC games in which Clemson was favored by less than a touchdown. And that last look Clemson was just a six and a half point favorite.

That's it. Six and a half points. Dave Doran, NC State's head coach, had his media session yesterday and he will join the program on Thursday in advance of heading down. And again, we have a lot of weather things to hope work out in the area's favor. Forget about the game.

The games are always secondary to, you know, property destruction and personal issues that come about with these types of storms, but all things clear. We're going to talk to him Thursday in advance of this game. And this is as big a game as they have ever played. Here's Dave Doran. Dave, thank you so much for being here. It's great to have you here. It's great to have our university and our alumni.

And it's great. You know, we've worked really hard to move ourselves up in the national footprint of this sport. It's taken a lot of time, blood, sweat and tears and commitment from a lot of people. So I know that it's not a stationary spot either.

You go up or down based on your performance, but you still have to get to that spot. And we know a lot comes with it. So, you know, I think it's something to celebrate for sure. It's not something to say we've arrived yet because obviously the rankings at the end matter a lot more than they do after the fourth week. I'd be curious if you asked state fans, not even state fans, if you asked people who have played football at NC State, can you recall an opportunity like this? I kind of made reference to a similar one in yesterday's program. I don't know how many years ago it was now. Tom O'Brien was the head coach.

So we're going back a ways. But NC State got to the last game of the season. You beat Maryland.

You win the Atlantic Division. It was obviously before the Clemson run, which began, I think, what in 2012? Somewhere around the Clemson run of dominance in the Atlantic until last year. So that was the last time that state did not win that game. They lost that Maryland. But that state team wasn't as good as this state team. Again, it's not something I'm worried about. Clemson is used to these games.

NC State is not. And for a fan base that allows negative thoughts to creep in too easily, this is going to be an incredibly long, long week. Like to the point where you'd like to distract yourself from everything so you could just go about the business of this week. Go to the Canes game tonight. That'll get your mind off it for a little bit.

Right, just go to the Canes. Again, I'm just curious about a vibe check as we get closer to this game. I know there are nerves. I know there is. You hope that your team's offense catches up to its defense. All right, Dennis, you and I have not had a chance to speak because you have this senior producer role now and I can't talk.

Yeah, I'm doing a lot of different things. I'm not allowed to talk to you anymore. Yeah, it's forbidden. Am I crazy to think that North Carolina just didn't look like they were equipped to handle anything that Notre Dame did? No, you're not wrong. I was on the sidelines during that game. Didn't it look like Carolina was playing up in class? Sort of like when, I don't even know if I have the weight classes correct, but like when a lightweight fights a middleweight.

Actually, it's better to go the other way. We have this top like middleweight boxer who can put on 20 more pounds and get to a heavy or a light heavyweight who I can put on another 15 pounds and fight a heavyweight and then you realize, oh my gosh, there is such a massive difference between the light heavyweight and the heavyweight. That's what it looked like to me. Yeah that North Carolina just wasn't it like big boy football in them. Yeah, their defense got worn out eventually because they couldn't get it off. They couldn't get off the field on third down. And like you said, the big the big guys up front for Notre Dame just continue to wear down both fronts for that team. And what really hurt them was my being was the start of the third quarter when they give up a touchdown and then one play they fumble the ball right back to him and then Notre Dame goes down and scores again. I know there's the past interference call or was it not? I'm not getting into that but still it called it. Yeah, they called it and but but still they were in that situation. They played about 20 snaps and the offense played one. So big but that was just being worn down. You mentioned number seven the big dude. I think he's listed at like 5'11", 225, 230 something like that.

Yeah, they do as a monster. See how it's down their field level. I was like that dude's bigger than any linebacker North Carolina has. That's what struck me.

I'm like, wait a second. Number seven, a defensive tackle or is he a running back? And that's the difference and this is why like not it's not about Notre Dame North Carolina. UNC can be really good in their weight class.

Yeah, right. So which is why like I watched the Clemson Wake Forest game. I want to I want to say something real quick about Wake Forest in a second. I don't know that North Carolina is equipped to beat either of those two teams may be better against slightly better against wake slightly. I know they won the game last year right slightly better against wake but I just don't think they're equipped to beat Clemson if they if that ended up being a matchup because Clemson at least on the defensive line. Clemson's offensive line isn't quite what Notre Dame's is but on the defensive line Clemson just got I mean, they've got.

Dudes yeah in North Carolina doesn't have dudes. They have some really nice football players a lot of a lot of four stars. And it's time to develop these guys. I thought like I said it yesterday.

I said already said it once today. This is not about recruiting. It's not about that. It's about developing.

Carolina's got to get better at developing. I will point this out. Roll. I know we got to go to break.

I'll point this out real fast. There are multiple times. I noticed defensively for UNC that they were trying to scramble to get into the right alignment depending on the formation like they're scrambling pre-snap. It felt like guys trying to like wait. I thought we were in this thought we were that guys moving each other around. I know there's sometimes you got to slide and adjust but it seemed like it was just they were rushing just to get aligned.

I don't know if that's a just a trans, you know stuff being translated from the sideline of the coaching staff to the players on the field. I don't know where that that comes in but it just it felt like that at moments for their defense like the Denver Broncos offensively in the opener against Seattle, right? We're like, wait a second. Why why is this? Why is the play clock at 2 again?

It seems like it was always at 2. Yeah, and I remember we used to talk to John Bunting every month like this goes back a long time when Bunting was the head coach at North Carolina. We would talk to John Bunting every Monday right out of the gate during the football season. And it was the first time I had ever heard a head coach saying we couldn't get lined up, right? Yeah, and all I could think of was a day of practice. And B it's really amazing to admit that in public that we couldn't get lined up, right? So I wonder if some of that is going on first two things they teach you in defense football alignment and assignment.

I guarantee you hear that all the time. All right, are you aligned properly? And what's your assignment? I know you're a senior producer now Dennis, but are you available to help out over there? I could. Okay, bring a five-man fronts.

Whatever. Do they need a five-in and eight a 12-man front? I mean like a five-down line.

Oh, I saw five on the line. Yes. Well, I don't I knew what you were talking about. They need to be able to stop the run.

But then again, they don't cover very well in the secondary as approved in that game as well. No, I didn't seem right. Is it? Yeah, maybe you're right. I don't know. I was born in 66.

Okay, so got it. I'm hoping 53 is the right number there. I was don't do this to my head.

I was like, did you think it was less or more? I don't know. I don't know.

Are you kidding? My brain already has been it's not even one o'clock. My brain is already spent and I got to be on the radio until six o'clock today just because I'm filling in for V to the Victoria, but I still have to do the afternoon show and I got to do this all again tomorrow.

You got a lot you got a lot. Yeah, so it's all right. I'm I'll make it through. All right. The Dallas Cowboys beat the New York Giants last night or beat the New Jersey Giants last night.

Yes. You know, no hearty, hearty applause there. Dude, I think they're a good football team.

I've not said anything other than that about Dallas. They stop and get donuts. I where was where was the donut shop? I think I got rid of the donuts. We got rid of the donut. It was a long list of donuts.

I got a list of 30 locations. I'm going to do with it. I'm going to do with it.

Anyway, we're going to have this conversation later. So this is what I've said about the about the Cowboys and you know, I wish I wish I could remember my opinion of where they'd be knowing that Dak Prescott was going to be out for really four weeks as it turns out. It might just be two, but I would argue that Dak should sit should sit tight and let Cooper rush play for at least one more game.

Maybe to make sure when you come back you come back 100% don't force it when you don't have to. I wish I remembered my thinking is that Dallas's defense was probably good enough to win them a couple of games. And I think when we talk about the Cowboys, we never start there.

We always start with Dak and Zeke and CD lamb and the and the weapons on offense that they no longer have. But Dallas's defense is legitimately good enough. Yeah, they between Micah Parsons and Trayvon digs. They have two of the best defensive players at their positions in the entire sport. I've already heard some people say that Micah Parsons might be the best defensive player in the NFL. I'm not I'm not endorsing that or what but if you're in the conversation we could just that's good enough. Top three with him Aaron Donald, TJ Watt.

Okay, there you go. TJ has TJ Watt by the way. It's getting better. Is he getting better? Was it a torn pectoral?

It was. A torn pectoral and he's coming back in six weeks. How do you guys I thought torn pectorals were like a whole year. They used to be he's a monster.

They don't they he is he's a cyborg. All right, so Dallas is good. What I'm saying go about the Cowboys is last night the fact that they beat the Giants. I'm just not all that bent out of shape over it because I don't think the Giants are very good. That doesn't mean I don't think the Cowboys are good.

So somebody on Twitter. Well, you're so up on the Eagles. How have they played?

Can't can't argue. They did play the Vikings who I think are good. But they played them in Philadelphia on a Monday night, which means that Minnesota is automatically going to stink because Kirk Cousins on Monday night is atrocious. Kirk Cousins on Monday night is 2 and 11 and the two wins are both against the Bears which barely count to be honest. So at this stage of the game, this is why like when somebody says, well is this MVP favorite like whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

We've played three times. We can't completely lose our minds. What's real about the Cowboys is their defense. What's real about the Cowboys is the fact that against a team like the Giants they can run as long as they stay close.

They can continue to run the ball because their defense will never allow a team like the Giants to get too far out in front because the Giants aren't good. The giant there's if you're still having the conversation about Daniel Jones. Is Daniel is Daniel Jones the guy because I hear it every morning on ESPN. I hear it every afternoon. If I'm watching or listening to people talk football.

Look, we know the answer. Daniel Jones is a career backup quarterback who happens to be the starter. Yeah, he's going to have a long career as a backup. Not unlike Mitch Trubisky is a backup quarterback who for the time being is a starter.

It should not be a denigration of somebody to call them a backup quarterback in the NFL. It's a league that starts a lot of backup quarterbacks. If you're paying attention right now, you know, scoring is down by a touchdown a game in the NFL.

Yeah, through three weeks. Some of that low scoring games this past weekend. Yes, we had an 11 to 10 game in which one of the quarterbacks a backup maybe Jimmy Garoppolo dropped back out of the end zone. So the other starting quarterback was Russell Wilson the other so yeah and Wilson isn't great either right now. The quarterbacking is not great in the league, but also if you went down and I'm just I can just use my own fantasy team. I hate talking about it because nobody cares and I don't really care about my own fantasy team, but half of my team is questionable every week.

Half of it. I have Dalvin Cook. He might not play this week. I have Julio Jones. He might not play again this week.

I have George Kittle. He missed the first two weeks and he was barely part of what the San Francisco 49ers did this past week. What else did I do? I like half of my team's got a queue. I'm glad it's just means questionable. So that's the that's the thing about right now. What's what we're dealing with right now in it Mike Evans by the way for the Buccaneers who was suspended Packer wide receiver. There's so much there's so many injuries to keep position players key skill position players that it's hurting offense right now in the league. There's very few teams that are scoring a ton of points like very few teams like the Ravens or to an extent the Dolphins that are really dynamic offensively the bills obviously are the chief stunk this past week. So I don't know the defenses are ahead of offenses as much as offenses are hampered by injury and there really aren't that many really good quarterbacks. Which is a bigger problem for the NFL and it's one that's probably not going to get better anytime soon. There's too many guys that just look like backups. This is the Adam Gold show.