NC State ties program's highest preseason selection in AP poll
There has been no shortage of media hype this offseason for NC State football. After five selections to the preseason All-ACC team, numerous award watch list appearances, the nationwide excitement around the Wolfpack culminated in a No. 13 ranking in the Associated Press preseason poll.
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That is the Wolfpack’s highest ranking in the annual end-of-summer poll since 1975 when the program was also No. 13. The AP has not included NC State in its preseason ranking since 2003. In 2021, the program appeared in the poll a total of 10 times throughout the year, reaching as high as No. 18.
NC State landed between Oklahoma State and USC in the ranking. Clemson is the only ACC school to debut higher in the poll. The Tigers are fourth, with Notre Dame closely trailing them in fifth. Five ACC programs overall made the list, with Miami (16), Pittsburgh (17) and Wake Forest (22) also making the cut. The SEC leads all conferences with six teams on the list, with the ACC and Big Ten in second and third place, respectively.
In-state rival North Carolina appeared in the ‘others receiving votes category,’ essentially finishing No. 39 in the poll.
“The Associated Press began its college football poll on Oct. 19, 1936, and it is now the longest-running poll of those that award national titles at the end of the season,” the AP website reads. “The preseason poll was started in 1950. A panel of 62 sportswriters and broadcasters from around the country votes on the poll weekly.”
Adding to NC State’s preseason hype
In addition to its impressive standing in the AP poll, the Wolfpack also landed No. 13 in the coaches poll. NC State received a total of 726 votes, sandwiching itself between Oregon, No. 12, and Michigan State, No. 14 on the list. Clemson is the only ACC team ranked higher than the Wolfpack at No. 4, with Notre Dame directly behind the Tigers in fifth.
A total of five ACC teams made the cut, similar to the AP Poll, with Pittsburgh (No. 16), Miami (No. 17) and Wake Forest (No. 19) all appearing on the list. Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren is a voter on the poll. The highest NC State appeared on the 2021 coaches poll was No. 18.
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The team is well aware of the preseason hype surrounding the program and will not run away from that pressure. Anthony Belton, the potential starter at left tackle for the Pack this year, is embracing the hype.
“We like having that target on our back,” Belton said last week. “I feel like, either way, we are still going to do what we have to do to try to win the ACC.”
Belton added that everyone is ready to be back on the field and competing alongside each other once again.
“Everybody is ready to go out there and play ball, especially those injured guys that missed the season,” Belton added. “Everybody is hungry.”
