St. Petersburg Bowl 2014: NC State vs. UCF TV Info, Spread, Injury News and Time
Central Florida went 0-2 in its two opportunities to beat a Power Five conference opponent this season, but it gets a much-deserved third chance in the 2014 St. Petersburg Bowl against the ACC’s North Carolina State.
College football fans have already seen a double-overtime thriller, a dramatic Hail Mary and a missed game-winning field-goal attempt in the pre-Christmas bowls. Now the Wolfpack and Knights will attempt to keep the postseason action rolling.
Here is a look at the key information for the St. Petersburg Bowl.
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NC State vs. Central Florida
Date: Friday, Dec. 26
Time: 8 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Spread: Central Florida -2.5 (via Odds Shark, as of Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. ET)
Injury Report (courtesy of USA Today)
| NaQuan Brown | WR | 12/08/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | leg |
| Coult Culler | LB | 08/31/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | undisclosed |
| Ty Linton | LB | 08/31/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| M.J. Salahuddin | LB | 08/11/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| Joey Grant | G | 12/20/2014 | will miss the St. Petersburg Bowl Friday against NC State | Out | shoulder |
| Colby Watson | G | 09/21/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | back |
| Dontravious Wilson | RB | 12/20/2014 | is questionable for the St. Petersburg Bowl Friday against NC State | Questionable | shoulder |
| J.J. Worton | WR | 11/23/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
Preview
Central Florida enters the St. Petersburg Bowl with four straight wins, including a dramatic victory in the final seconds against East Carolina. Despite a falloff from last season’s BCS appearance, head coach George O’Leary seemed thrilled with the postseason destination, according to STATS LLC, via ESPN.com:
"After a 9-3 season, we are very happy to go to the St. Petersburg Bowl. Obviously a bowl game is a great reward for the players, the program and the fan base. We are very anxious to get to St. Petersburg and enjoy the bowl and its festivities. It will be a great experience for our players and fans.
"
As for North Carolina State, the Wolfpack have some momentum after crushing rival North Carolina to finish the season.
That Wolfpack defense will have to deal with a Central Florida offense that features a different quarterback than it started the season with against Penn State. The Knights started 0-2, but Justin Holman took over for freshman Pete DiNovo and finished with 2,661 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
You can throw in an American Athletic Conference Championship as well.
North Carolina State finished 77th against the run but was 29th against the pass, which means Central Florida’s best chance could be through the rushing attack. The problem is, the Knights were 105th in the country in rushing offense and didn’t have a single runner tally 700 yards on the ground this season.
The one thing that does stand out in the matchup between Central Florida’s offense and North Carolina State’s defense is the turnovers. Holman threw 13 picks, and Central Florida had a minus-one turnover margin, while North Carolina State had a plus-five.
If the Wolfpack force the Knights to cough the ball up once or twice, it could swing the early momentum their way and put a red-hot offense in position to score.
North Carolina State picked up 362 rushing yards against Wake Forest and 388 against North Carolina. What’s more, quarterback Jacoby Brissett is a threat to run on every snap and gashed the Tar Heels for 167 rushing yards and a touchdown, while running back Shadrach Thompson posted 161 yards on the ground in that game.
Brissett threw for 22 touchdowns and only five interceptions, but the Wolfpack are much more effective keeping the ball on the ground (38th in rushing yards per game and 97th in passing yards per game).
Unfortunately for Brissett and company, that plays right into the hands of Central Florida’s strong defense.
The Knights were fifth in the country against the run, third in the nation in total defense and eighth in scoring defense. Pack Pride, a syndicated partner of Scout.com, pointed out just how effective Central Florida has been on defense this season:
In what is otherwise a tightly contested matchup on paper, Central Florida’s defense will make the difference down the stretch. The Knights are built to stop the run and will force a late turnover to come away with the St. Petersburg Bowl title.
It will set Central Florida up for another impressive season in 2015.
Prediction: Central Florida 24, North Carolina State 17
Follow me on Twitter: Follow @ScottPolacek
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