NC State vs Virginia Preview With Eric Mac Lain - Tuffy Talk

Eric Mac Lain from the ACC Network joined us to preview NC State at Virginia, and he picked the Cavaliers.

But the part worth staying for is what he said about Dave Doeren. Asked about the fans who want a change, a national voice with no stake in it said what a lot of Wolfpack fans will not: you have had double digit wins once, ever, he is the best coach you have ever had, so why are you trying to get rid of him?

His score is 24-21 Virginia, though he also thinks that if CJ Bailey is feeling it this could be a Wolfpack blowout, and that there is no middle outcome he can picture.

He says the biggest thing NC State did all offseason had nothing to do with the transfer portal. It was keeping Bailey home, and how Bailey said it.

Plus why Virginia's offensive line is the best in the ACC on paper, why he would force Beau Pribula to beat him with his arm, what Cam Robinson coming back changes, which coordinator battle he is watching, and the thing fans miss most when they watch offensive line play, from a man who was All-ACC at it.

Mac Lain is a studio analyst on The Huddle, a former Clemson offensive lineman who holds the record for most wins by a single player in Clemson history, and a Hope Mills, North Carolina native. He will be in Charlottesville on Saturday with The Huddle crew, live at 10 AM out on the hill.

3 days until NC State at Virginia.

Follow Tuffy Talk wherever you listen, and catch us live every Monday at 8:30 PM on YouTube.

Support the show on Patreon, 3 members-only videos a week for $5: patreon.com/c/tuffytalk

#ad Powered by Oconee Gold BBQ. Code TUFFYTALK for 15% off your entire order. oconeegoldbbqsauce.com

#NCState #GoPack #Wolfpack #TuffyTalk

Oconee Gold Small Batch BBQ Sauces & Rubs

Do you LOVE to barbecue? Our sponsor Oconee Gold makes small batch sauces and rubs down in Statham, Georgia, and they've won Flavor of Georgia twice. Use code TUFFYTALK for 15% off your ENTIRE order, every single time you order. #ad

Oconee Gold Small Batcj BBQ Sauce & Rub
Do you LOVE to Barbecue??? Check out our sponsor Oconee Gold Small Batch and all of their BBQ Sau

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Transcript

Copy Transcript Copied

0:22

Tuffy talk fired up and loud the Wolf Pack Nation wear a hell of a crowd from the first pitch to the final play Tuffy talk let's roll Today what's going on Wall Pack nation We're back and we're ready we're ready for football season And if we're gonna do football season and we're gonna do a week zero which is still a stupid number week zero let's let's just call it week one Uh we got our man from the ACC Network Mr Eric McLain What is going on EMAC brothers Great to see you Football is here I would like to say that I had this like picture perfect Monday morning the other day where walked out of my house there was a crisp fall in the air Uh but but Layton just so you know I live in hell in Columbia South Carolina and it's hot and it sucks and you know it's terrible here So there was no fall weather for me but it felt good that football is here Well I'm down here in Brazil No I'm not Hey can we say first of all the backdrop just gets better every time I see you But can we just say praise the Lord that it's not in Brazil Are we all static about that or what ish I mean I had I still went for my money They still owe me money so what's up You know I don't know anything about that That's on you you got Let's figure that out Oh man hey let's get into it right away Uh lots of changes in this era of nil and transfer portal Give me your first thoughts on what NC State did the most improve their team over the off season Hmm uh it it's actually has maybe a little bit to do with nil but not the portal It's keeping your boy keeping CJ home And I I I don't think there was ever any um there wasn't maybe any doubt but maybe outside expectation just okay quarterbacks good he's gonna go somewhere bigger right like that's just what everybody kind of thinks He's gonna go get more money somewhere Um and again not knowing the financial situation at all I didn't see state but I love that I love what he said I love how he said it I love how we got on top of it and just saying like I love this school I love this city They believed in me I believe in them Let's do something special And to me that is such a it's crazy that that's a weird thing to say or that's like an outlier type thing to say but I absolutely love it So I think that by far and away is the biggest thing Um and then just looking at some of the key additions When you look at your popo coming from Miami look at JoJo come Popo and JoJo coming from Miami there Both those guys should be you know instant impact big time players I love what JoJo has done to his body Obviously the connection that he's gonna have with CJ is gonna be bar not Yeah uh huh uh for me Dave Dorn Year 14 Um you know he's better reputation on consistency and fans will argue what consistency means So what we won't get into that argument but what actually though should we argue that I'm sorry I'm such a stickler about this and if y'all are on the other side of the fence of I am I'm sorry I don't think so Well you've had double digit wins once ever What why do we complete Like let's just figure it out Hopefully you get another one But to me like some of the and I'm glad y'all are I guess on my side yeah we have the fans that I have constantly like we gotta get this guy out of here for what he's the best you've ever had Why are you getting rid of him So anyway I'm sorry No no it does it always gets me and people say something like that look and I like it because I need a national perspective on this right Like we have our little local local perspective but getting it from a national it does bring some some truth there But anyway what has to be quote unquote different right to for us to be able to contend in the ACC this year and make that trip to Charlotte It's a good good question Um you know I think from a year ago you obviously defense needs to be better And I know all the surrounding things like you know the tragedy and and how the heck do you even remotely coach during that how to how to are people inspired when there's real life situations like that happening But you're getting back to to what we expect from an NC State defense from a Dave Doran LED team defensively Um are those guys on the roster We'll see you know bring it in a couple of linebackers as I already mentioned But I just think of that span of you know six years whatever it was of just like monster linebackers and you know with have an Isaiah on staff Hopefully you the guy see it every day They feel it every day They wanna get back to that But like Peyton and Drake and Isaiah I mean it was and others it was just monsters And you had super high expectations from those guys and what they were going to lead to So I think overall just the defense you know picking it up and being what we expect but then the biggest stickler for me And it's such an odd thing when I think of this team Because my perception of NC State when I was in high school when I was playing against you and now when I cover you is that it is a blue collar tough physical team And usually that means you can run the football really well And that hasn't quite been the case as consistently as you would want I think there was progress a year ago and I think certainly we'll see more progress this year with with Duke I mean he's a freak It's so fun to watch him now that he's fully the guy for the whole season Um and with what CJ Bailey is gonna provide getting bigger getting stronger need him to run the football as well That's the second thing You talk about championship level football when it's third and two fourth and one everyone in the stadium knows we're running the football You have to be able to do it Can the Wolf Pack take that next step That's what I I can't wait to see And I think that's gonna be relevant in this game on Saturday Like Virginia's defense is gonna be good They're going to test you and see if you can run the football We'll find that out really early Yeah speaking of quite quite good if you got something good well I was gonna say I mean so cause one one of the things which I want to ask you Eric to as well because you know everybody's obviously talking about CJ Bailey uh you know and the elite potential that he has going to scan Everybody's talking about Virginia and how they're one of the most senior LED teams in the country Yeah they don't have any FL guys either Okay so I just want to bring that that's that's yeah that's that's that's that's a weird one there But but besides those two which I think are kind of made headlines what would you say Eric is a headline in your opinion about this game that nobody's really talking about Hmm I mean I think this is dark horse like conference championship participant I mean I think you lose whoever loses this game Like you're you're behind you're in the eighth you're back so you win it man Obviously you're in a great spot with the standings cause you you know you have a conference game But just how good I think both of these teams are going to be then it gives you a real edge um into this game And quite frankly you know it it's something where you want that right You want that as a player as a coach you want all the stakes Like I remember when when we were opening with with people at Clemson we would have Georgia we would have Auburn we would have whoever But then when when we would have like an upstate no disrespect or we would have a Troy no disrespect cause they almost whipped us It's a little bit different right Like the level of intensity So the fact that you do have this conference game that you have been staring down the barrel all of camp the level of intensity the level of attention to detail it is heightened because as we know an ACC season a conference season is its own animal especially when you play you had a conference people that you do Yeah this is unique for NC State This is only the third time that we've started with the P 4 slash P 5 team in the Dave Duran Dave Duran era and only the second time ever uh that we've opened the conference or the conference schedule and our opening game And that was during Covid and we all know how weird that was right Um it's super important for both of these teams to get off to a hot fast start What what do you think state has to do in order to establish dominance early in the game Uh and it because now this game is not in Brazil so now you have a home crowd that you have to deal with Forensea State Uh so give me comment your thoughts on how state gets off to a hot start in this game Yes it's it's not gonna be easy I mean this is a you mention the experience of this Virginia team like they know how the to do it they know what to do This isn't a bunch of freshmen rolling out there that are playing football for the first time These are dudes that have been there done that for a while and know what to expect and know you how to be very business like in their approach I think they also have the best offensive line on paper like in the preseason Right now Virginia is loaded everybody's back and some of the guys that we thought we were going to be starting last year that got hurt they're back too So that this line is deep They are old they are big and strong and so how are they going to lean on them And and how can NC State slow that down You have a new quarterback coming in and Beau Perbula who who is you know very athletic can kill you with his legs But that aligns gonna pave the way So I I'm I would be fascinated to see if I'm you know DJ defensive coordinator I'm forcing Virginia to throw the ball like show me bow that you can beat me with your arm That would be my mentality kind of coming in And then offensively like I said like can we pick up rushing yards on first down So we have short to medium on second and third down So we can get CJ going We can take some shots get him comfortable and again let him run I think that first hit as a runner for a quarterback is so important So when does that come Is it the first drive Is it the first play Is it whenever sometime in the first quarter I wanna see him get going in a in a hurry with his legs real quick Wolfpack Nation Lane Smith and Greg Leg here and real quick We want to talk to you about our amazing sponsor Coney go Barbecue Sauce and rubs If you haven't checked out their amazing products yet first of all they got amazing sauces amazing rubs for all all meat So whether you're grilling frying if you wanna take your your your cooking level oven your grilling level up a notch you gotta make sure to leverage our amazing sponsor cone to go barbecue sauces rubs Greg I know you're an elite elite cook and elite tailgator say to least here If you had to pick one product Greg that you wanted to highlight what would what would you go to Man they're all so good I I could go on and on but I won't I I love the spicy I love the jalapeno I love I am going on this is not what I wanted to do Look if I'm gonna pick one it's always gonna be wingy every day That's a great sauce for your chicken wings it works on other things too but if you're smoking or grilling wings you gotta get you some wingy sauce so make sure go Wolf Act Nation go to WWW dot aconigo BBQ sauce.com Use codes up you talk to get 15 off your entire order That's sauces that's rubs that's merchandise too as well whether it's a hoodie a hat you name it make sure to go check out our amazing sponsor come to go barbecue sauces today I kinda wanna talk a little bit too about uh last year's game which again I think from a hindsight 20 20 approach was a huge win for Doran Looking at that whenever UVA last year but in today's day and age like like you mentioned with the transfer portal era and how just there's so many teams that have so many new pieces to where any preseason talks is Just you know let's just be clear It just doesn't mirrors it Who knows who knows how things are actually gonna come together But do you do you feel like it all I mean I look at Chandler Morris look at Brooke Bo Perpula I gotta practice saying the name a little bit more I see a lot of similarities between the two where you know both are primarily more of a thrower but definitely can hurt you with with the run game 2 as well Do you see Coach Dorn using last year's footage at all to prepare for this game A good bit or do you kind of use it as a I'll look at a little bit but really it's it's so much different Like how much do you feel like last year's game really affects this year's game Well schumatically yeah it's gonna look the same I mean that's Virginia is gonna do what they do So yeah I like your assessment there that they are very similar I would think that Chandler's probably the better passer and bows the better runner you know just in holistically what they do So I think you take it with you know a grain of salt but understand that that's what they're doing You know Virginia is gonna be who they are and what Coach Elliot brings you know to the table here So yeah I think you certainly can look at that tape and get a good grasp now again like you said with a portal the the the personnel is lightyears different There's not a wide receiver running back or quarterback that you're gonna see on that tape that will be playing in this game on Saturday So if you wanna get a grasp on who those guys are you're gonna have to to look around the country and look at their tape from different schools So speaking from last year right this was hold on to that moment for a second Cam Robinson didn't play that game Uh he was coming back from a broken collarbone and then ended up tearing his ACL in November Um he may or may not play It sounds like he probably will At least I think it sounds like he's been practicing again I don't know to what level but if he is available and healthy so let's assume that he is that's a big game changer for the Virginia defense especially with CJ last year having one of his better games running the ball And so what does Cam Robinson how does Cam Robinson change what NC State does Or or does that change at all Well I don't think it changes what you do but it does change who you Obviously you're doing against like he he's a great player You need to know where five is whether that's pressures whether that's in coverage Like he is a very good linebacker sideline to sideline guy explosive as it gets And you know quite frankly I mean I hope he plays We need everybody out there right for you know our conference for the ACC to to look as good as it can And and a star player like that needs you know to be on the field But yeah he he is an electric player so I don't think it alters your game plan It's not like oh we're not gonna run this way You'll still go at them You just need to be aware of where he is when you're targeting him uh you know running backs and pass Protection your offensive line or you gonna slide a certain way because of where he is Uh he he's certainly a type of caliber player It's kind of where's Waldo Every time you get down to take a snap I'm finding five every time Yeah now I do want to ask you though Eric you know being that former office of Lyman faced you know a lot of defense of Lyman Two of the biggest questions I think the NC State fans have about this team in this upcoming season is first of all just the kind of open questions at their stands around the offensive line more on the depth side also to on the defensive line side Obviously the big news with K Tron Evans being eligible for the Virginia game You have Isaiah Shirley coming back at a d Ray 2 as well But there's a lot of concerns about okay behind that you know what is NC say really have here Can you kind of give me from from again that outside perspective the thoughts on both sides of the of the NC State Line Because in my opinion a lot of the season really comes down to how well can the offensive line protect CJ and open up options for Duke and then how much can the defense of line put pressure on on opposing quarterbacks this season Yeah well you know you look at the offensive line and again when you have a player as talented as CJ he's an eraser Right so he is going to cover up you know some some false He's gonna cover up some AMAs with just his ability to escape his presence in the pocket Like he does such a good job since he was a freshman of feeling pressure and keeping his eyes up Like he's gonna move he's gonna evade but he's not looking down to see where that pressure is coming from He just feels he has it That's a very good trait for a quarterback So I think he's gonna help you there a ton And same thing with Duke Like I played with running backs where I didn't have to be a mauler every time and blow this guy three yards off the ball I just needed to cover them up but yeah you're just gonna add on a hat but we might still have but you know can you just cover a guy up And you get a hat on a hat So there's no color showing and let that guy be as special as he is So I I hear you with the depth I think coach 2J is as good as it gets I think he is gonna have these guys ready but this might be a type of year that the backfield makes us better up front right And most people deal with that There's you would love to have an elite offensive line that makes everybody else better but it's hard to come by and it's hard to keep So I think that might be where we are offensively on the defense of side It's kind of funny It's kind of the same thing like historically I know there's been greats like best of all time type players on this NC State defensive line But in this type of defense I just need you taking up space I I just need you you know having that offensive line not allowing them to get to the second level and letting our you know back seven work Let them do their thing And so would you like to get pressure Would you like to cause chaos for sure but I think the way that it's historically built with Dorin You don't have to have those game breakers up front You just need them to hold on a little bit Don't let those guys get to the next level We talk about position matchups a lot when we're talking about football Right uh what I wanna take it off the field for for this one what coordinator um intrigues you the most Like which which in which coordinator battle intrigues you the most Well I think it's again because of everything that you know DJ face last year Like it's just just and I haven't spoken to him about this I don't know his words but like being able to just coach you know for football allows us as as fans as players as coaches whoever's around the game for a three and a half four hour span for you to be away from everything and and just be a gladiator in that arena And how much can he fully just do that and go and be the best that he can fully be to honor everything in his life And so just seeing him get back I think and and really to me this is almost it's almost like his first year all over again Like I'm kind of not that I'm discrediting what they were able to accomplish on the field but I'm kind of looking at this is his first real go around and just how does he able to do that So I think that versus the UVA offense is certainly the biggest thing that I'm watching And just curious for be curious on your vote for this Eric is too as well But one question that our buddy Ethan loves to ask Greg and I a ton is who's your prediction for leading NC State in receiving yards this year Who's who's gonna be the wide receiver one for NC State this year And obviously we talk about probably the the go to favorite which is JoJo Traitor even Victor Snow 2 as well fifth year senior Uh you know but Ethan I talk a lot about Keenan Jackson and the rapport that that he has being NC State now for you know but you know what Two years now Uh so so if you had to vote Eric in terms of who you expect to be the wide receiver wine for state this year who would you who would you cast your vote for You know what's fascinating to me is CJ has been asked this a lot by by us you know on on TV radio I'm sure you know different people that cover this team And he is adamant every time that he's got a deep room that he has a room When you say who's your go to guy says I got five guys I don't just have one Like and that to me is important and exciting to see just a his mentality He's gonna spread it around He's not forcing the ball to someone He's truly going to go through the offense one two three check down and and find the right guy Like that's that's important but I do have to think that a guy like JoJo understands like this is it this is this is kind of your last You wanna go to the NFL do it right now Like you have to make this happen You're probably not gonna find a better quarterback and I assume he might be leaving after this year so it's go time like let's make this happen and let's make this a thing um and let's go to the NFL draft together So that to me is important I think obviously their friendship and you know that they've been together since what they were in 8 years old or 9 years old and popcorn I mean is crazy So you know that report I hope you know shows up on the field and again physically what JoJo has done for his body he looks fantastic looks great And that that's what happens sometimes right Like guys need a reset guys need to be checked and they've got to go somewhere else And the great part is we have that opportunity And so I think the JoJo has a chance I've heard a lot about Vic and I know he's little but he's mighty and that dude is a freak So I'm really just super excited you know just to see what what does this offense look like Who are we going to Who's gonna be the key guy that the coaches are kind of calling place for on those critical third downs and others So if you're drawing up the game plan for NC State give me your No 1 priority both on offense and defense What do we got to do to be successful Yeah you've got to run the ball And I know I've said that but it is a priority for me and getting CJ involved in that getting uh you know Duke Scott involved with that early and often and and leaning on my boys up front Like we gotta go I have to be able to lean on you guys This is a big caliber game We are on the road what travels run rushing the football and stopping the run that that elite teams That's what they are able to do So that's what I wanna see offensively just to get going I think that will tell me if we've taken the necessary steps as a program at NC State if we can run the ball effectively on the defensive side Just again I'm not being rude but just competency not being in the wrong spot not being tricked You know there's gonna be some motions There's gonna be some some silly things that happen just to try to catch you off guard Yeah are you in the right spot Are you not getting burned Do we not have wide receivers haul and wide open down field catching touchdown passes or safeties or linebackers going in the a gap where they need to be in the B gap And here's a big long run so that to me is especially in the first week and Week 0 really important that I need to see from these guys Love it So Eric first of all do you have a score prediction at offer for this game or prediction Let me look up the spread real quick They always know don't they Somehow yeah six yeah one back up It went up a little bit yesterday It really hmm yeah that's probably a little too big I think this is a field goal type game Um hmm first game new QB at home now so y'all don't y'all will hate me Don't don't hate me don't hate me don't hate me don't hate me no I think this offensive line is really good from UVA I could see like a 24 21 home win for the Cavs But but if CJ's feeling it I could also see a blowout Like I think it's either a close Virginia win or the Wolf Pack run away with it Like that's yeah that's kind of where but there's some think there's more question marks for me for that to happen I wouldn't be surprised though I wouldn't be surprised You got time for two more questions Yeah hit me Let's go Alright alright first one and this is this is this is gonna hit home for you cause I want your perspective What's I'm sitting in the stands watching the game on Saturday right and I know ball a little bit you know as an offensive lineman what's the thing that fans miss the most when watching offensive line play Like what's the thing that they fancy key on a little bit in this first game cramping You're dehydrated especially if we run a lot I think what's fun in the first couple games that people it's maybe hard to look at just because we see five guys just like yeah us in five guys does either team rotate Like how is there a rotation Do you see in the third drive you know a couple other guys moving in and coming around Are we testing still you know just to see who our best five is or even on the opposite end have have six or seven guys earn the right to play and they get to go in there You know it's the only position group and it's the only five odds that we expect quarterback to the same guy to be in the whole game right Like those are the six guys we always expect to see And it's kind of weird right If you got seven play the other two guys to get them in there So that's something that you know is always fun for me to watch especially early as we maybe are still figuring out who our best five are I got you and I know you pick Virginia but win state wins and you're water this out I tried to like leave the yellow It's all good it's all good we love you buddy We love you When when state wins on Saturday and you're walking out of Scott Stadium off the set of the huddle Uh what's the thing that makes you think that NC State is a legitimate ACC contender I think CJ Bailing and I'll even say College Football Playoff contender I mean I think he is that good of a guy that good of a quarterback and that much of a difference maker right Like he can do a lot of good things and he has done that throughout his career But it is time take that next step You you need to be showing the whole country not just us on ACC Network not just us and Raleigh you know how good you are Everybody needs to see it and quite frankly you'll have that opportunity here on ESPN Everybody's gonna be watching a million plus people be watching this game You've you've got to go And and I think that's not pressure That's that's a privilege to be able to do that Yeah that's good for Revshare We need the money Alrighty Mac you're gonna be in Charlottesville on Saturday with the huddle Crew coverage time starts at what time on Saturday Uh ten o'clock we're live ten and go straight into the noon hour Come out if you're a Wolf Pack fan We'll be on oh hill super easy to get to Bring signs We'll be giving away some stuff and we wanna hear you we wanna hear you loud and proud This show took off last year with people being present signs interaction We'll get you on TV We'll have some fun Let's go Hey man we are so grateful that you stopped by for some of your time We look forward to your coverage all year along with the ACC Network Hey by the way shout out on your commercials for Eagles right Is that how you say it Eagles do your commercials this summer I had a blast like the grocery cart one with the green screen on it dude all time banger But you have when you have a two day year old you know you gotta do a podcast when you can I'm in Ingles right now Actually this is all fake By the way congrats on the new addition the new the new Tiger to the to the sir I don't know I will say Dave Dorn was his first offer though Dave offered him before he was even out So go loyalty matters in our household man We'll see and money but anyway we'll talk about that another time looking at Thanks so much for your time We'll see you down the road Thank you guys