NFL
By: Brad Sherrod
If you ask me which team has the potential — and the most to prove — in this year’s ACC football race, it has to be NC State.
The Wolfpack enter the 2026 season with something that has become increasingly valuable in college football: stability at quarterback.
While several programs around the ACC are entering the season with new quarterbacks and new faces under center, NC State brings back one of the best quarterbacks in the conference, CJ Bailey.
Bailey threw for 3,105 yards and 25 touchdowns last season while completing nearly 69 percent of his passes. He also added six touchdowns on the ground. Now entering his junior season, Bailey isn’t just another returning starter. He’s a legitimate ACC Player of the Year candidate, finishing fourth in the conference’s preseason voting.
That continuity alone gives NC State a major advantage.
But the Wolfpack didn’t just bring Bailey back. They spent the offseason trying to build around him.
NC State was able to leverage Bailey’s South Florida connections by bringing former Miami wide receivers JoJo Trader and Chance Robinson to Raleigh. Trader, a former five-star recruit, and Robinson both attended Chaminade-Madonna in South Florida, the same high school as Bailey.
The receiving room will still have something to prove after losing some of its top production from last season, including Wesley Grimes and tight end Justin Joly. But the potential is there. Along with Trader and Robinson, NC State added Davion Dozier while returning Keenan Jackson, giving Bailey a collection of new weapons that could determine just how high the ceiling of this offense goes.
And Bailey shouldn’t have to do everything himself.
Running back Duke Scott could become one of the more important players on the Wolfpack offense. Scott rushed for 581 yards while averaging 5.5 yards per carry last season, and his development allows NC State to create more balance offensively. His importance to the program was reinforced this offseason when Dave Doeren awarded him the Wolfpack’s No. 1 jersey, given to a player who represents the program through his work ethic and leadership.
Then there’s the offensive line.
In an era where entire position groups can change in one offseason, NC State returns important experience up front. Teague Andersen and Spike Sowells are back, while Kamen Smith also brings starting experience. The Wolfpack supplemented that group through the portal with players such as East Carolina transfer Jimarion McCrimon and Texas transfer Daniel Cruz.
That’s a big deal when your biggest strength is the quarterback standing behind them.
The Schedule Gives NC State a Real Opportunity
Then you have to look at the schedule.
NC State avoids preseason ACC favorite Miami. They don’t play Clemson. They don’t play SMU.
Those are three of the four teams picked ahead of everyone else in the ACC preseason media poll.
Instead, the Wolfpack open ACC play at Virginia before getting Richmond, Vanderbilt and Appalachian State. Their first matchup against one of the conference’s preseason top four doesn’t arrive until October 3 against Louisville — at Carter-Finley Stadium.
That Louisville game could tell us a lot.
The Cardinals were picked third in the ACC preseason poll and enter the season ranked No. 24 in the AP poll. If NC State enters October playing the way many believe it can, that game could quickly turn into one of the biggest early-season matchups in the ACC.
And look at what follows.
Wake Forest. Stanford. California. Duke. Syracuse.
There are no automatic wins in college football, but that’s a stretch where NC State should have an opportunity to stack victories if it truly belongs in the ACC title conversation. The season closes with road trips to Florida State and North Carolina, meaning the Wolfpack could enter November controlling much of its own destiny.
That’s why I keep coming back to NC State as the team with the most to prove.
At Some Point, Potential Has to Become Something More
This isn’t Dave Doeren’s first or second season trying to build NC State into a contender.
It’s Year 14.
Doeren is already the winningest head coach in NC State history. His program has consistently produced winning seasons, NFL talent, and bowl appearances. During his tenure, NC State has put together multiple eight- and nine-win seasons and established itself as one of the ACC’s more consistent programs.
But there’s still one thing missing.
An ACC Championship Game appearance.
That’s what makes this season different to me.
At some point, the conversation has to move beyond whether NC State can win eight or nine games. We’ve seen that before.
The question now is whether the Wolfpack can take the next step.
The ACC media picked NC State seventh entering the season, behind Miami, SMU, Louisville, Clemson, Georgia Tech and Virginia. Yet only 19 voting points separated Virginia at No. 6, NC State at No. 7 and Virginia Tech at No. 8.
So the Wolfpack aren’t entering the season as one of the favorites.
Maybe that’s exactly where they want to be.
They have an experienced quarterback who has already proven he can produce in this conference. They have continuity along the offensive line. They’ve added potential playmakers around Bailey. They addressed needs through the transfer portal on both sides of the football. And perhaps most importantly, they have a schedule that gives them a legitimate path to stay in the ACC race deep into November.
There are still questions.
Can the new receivers become consistent weapons? Can the defense replace the production it lost? Can NC State finally win the games that separate a good season from a championship-level one?
Those are fair questions.
But that’s also why NC State is my most-to-prove team in the ACC.
The pieces are there. The quarterback is there. The experience is there. And the schedule is there.
For years, NC State has been a program capable of knocking off the teams competing for the ACC championship.
In 2026, it’s time to prove the Wolfpack can be one of them.
