NC/ACC Week Three College Football Preview:

NC State-Wake, Richmond-UNC, Duke-Tulane
Among Intriguing Challenges For In-State Teams
(DG’s “This Week In CFB” YouTube Show = Below)

By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
(last updated Sept. 9, 2025)

The 2025 college football season continues Thursday through Saturday during a compelling Week Three schedule, with NC State and Wake Forest enjoying ESPN’s exclusive Thursday night TV window and Duke’s new multi-million-dollar quarterback taking a road trip to face his former team.

The most prominent games nationally this time include a pair of Top 25-vs.-Top 25 contests, plus a head-to-head clash between Atlantic Coast Conference contenders: #12 Clemson at Georgia Tech (Sat., noon, ESPN), #6 Georgia at #15 Tennessee (Sat., 3:30 p.m., ABC) and #18 South Florida at #5 Miami (Sat., 4:30 p.m., The CW).

From the wide-ranging schedule (see below) in the Old North State, here are more details from this week’s “Three To See” selections:

In-State “Three To See,” Game One

NC State (2-0) at Wake Forest (2-0), Thurs., 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
(An “Old North State Tailgate & Traveling Sports Circus” Game)

Historically, this traditional matchup has been tilted heavily in favor of NC State, but thanks to Jim Grobe and Dave Clawson — Wake’s two best coaches of the 72-year-long ACC era — this has been a dead-even rivalry lately.

In fact, during coach Dave Doeren’s lengthy tenure at NC State, the Wolfpack and the Demon Deacons have faced each other 12 times, and each side has won six, so it doesn’t get any more even than that.

When this matchup has been played in Winston-Salem, as is the case Thursday night, Doeren’s record is only two wins and four losses. So there’s clearly an intriguing historical backdrop to this one.

In terms of this year’s personnel, everyone knows a lot more about NC State than they do about Wake Forest, mainly because of the teams’ opponents thus far.

The Wolfpack has gone 2-0 against a feisty East Carolina squad and an improved Virginia team, and the Pack’s offense appears to be much more dangerous than it has been in recent years.

New offensive coordinator Kurt Roper, who was previously the team’s quarterbacks coach and who directed some of David Cutcliffe’s explosive offenses at Duke years ago, has a confident quarterback in sophomore CJ Bailey, a highlight-reel running back in Hollywood Smothers, an All-ACC-caliber tight end in Justin Joly and a talented receiver room that includes speedy Wake Forest transfer Wesley Grimes.

On defense, State has given up a lot of yards so far this season, but the Pack did stuff the run against ECU and — with the game on the line — came up with a big turnover late to preserve its win over UVa.

There are far more unknowns surrounding Wake Forest, in part because the Demon Deacons have a first-year coach in Jake Dickert and a lot of new players, but also in part because their 2-0 start has come against Kennesaw State (one of the lesser FBS teams this year) and Western Carolina (an FCS program).

One thing everyone does know about Wake is that senior running back Demond Claiborne is an absolute stud. He ran for almost 200 yards (on only 10 carries) last week against the Catamounts, after leaving early against Kennesaw State because of a rib injury.

Wake’s new quarterback, Robby Ashford, is a sixth-year senior who started for Auburn in 2022 before serving as a backup for the Tigers (2023) and South Carolina (2024) over the past two seasons. His game can be described as that of a tremendous athlete who’s dangerous with his legs but an extremely inconsistent passer.

Ashford’s favorite receiver so far has been redshirt freshman Chris Barnes, a little guy with great speed who followed Dickert from Washington State after redshirting for the Cougars last fall.

Wake’s defensive players, who collectively have stellar numbers right now, will be facing their first 2025 opponent that actually has an offensive line capable of blocking them, so that will be another fascinating aspect of this game to watch on Thursday night.

Overall, NC State (a seven-point favorite) appears to have more proven talent in this one, as you’d expect with Doeren in his 13th year at State and Dickert in his first year at Wake.

The Wolfpack is far more difficult to defend than Wake’s first two opponents, so it likely will be up to Ashford to make some big plays in the passing game against an NC State defense that certainly will have the Deacons’ running game — i.e., Claiborne — as the focus of its game plan.

In-State “Three To See,” Game Two

Richmond (1-1) at North Carolina (1-1), Sat., 3:30 p.m. (ACCN)

We’re profiling this game not because it’s a particularly compelling matchup — it’s not — but because North Carolina is going to have to show week-to-week improvement if the Tar Heels are going to get to a bowl game this season.

One way to frame UNC’s first season under legendary coach Bill Belichick thus far is that, when the Tar Heels opened against a high-quality opponent in TCU, they got absolutely dominated on both sides of the ball and looked like one of the bottom-tier teams in the ACC. Then, when they played one of the weakest opponents on their 2025 schedule, a rebuilding Charlotte squad under a first-year coach, the Heels did often dominate, but only on defense.

Carolina smothered the 49ers during a 20-3 victory, with Boise State transfer Andrew Simpson looking especially good at linebacker, ECU transfer Gavin Gibson having a strong game at safety, and Washington transfer Thaddeus Dixon continuing to look outstanding at cornerback. The Heels were not very good offensively, though, compiling only about 300 yards and 15 first downs.

UNC still needs to improve everywhere, but against Richmond the most intense spotlights will be on offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens and transfer quarterback Gio Lopez.

In this kind of game — at Kenan Stadium, against an FCS opponent (even one that’s played very good defense so far this season) — the Tar Heels simply must show that they can put up big numbers.

Lopez did play much better against Charlotte than he did in his nightmarish opener against TCU. He made a bunch of plays with his legs, often picking up first downs, and he made better decisions and threw more accurately. But he needs to be a lot better as the season moves along, as do the players around him on offense.

UNC has a massive offensive line — two starters (left tackle William Boone and right guard Daniel King) tilt the scales at 340 pounds each — and in theory that should be a huge advantage against any FCS opponent.

Right tackle Jakai Moore, a 6-6, 318-pound seventh-year senior transfer from South Carolina, has looked good for the Tar Heels after missing all of last season with the Gamecocks because of injury. UNC also likes its #1 center, Holy Cross transfer Christo Kelly, but he’s been limited by an ankle injury. Meanwhile, veteran center/guard Austin Blaske isn’t expected back until October, after suffering a broken foot during preseason camp.

Carolina also would like to see someone stand out from its crowded tailback room, which includes steady senior Caleb Hood, returnee Davion Gause (last year’s primary backup to All-American Omarion Hampton), Michigan transfer Benjamin Hall and true freshman Demon June. An in-state product from Jacksonville High School, June left a positive impression last week with some very quick, explosive runs against Charlotte.

The main goal — every week, for every team — is to win, of course, but against Richmond the Tar Heels also want to show enough improvement and consistency that it leads to a dominant victory over the Spiders.

In-State “Three To See,” Game Three

Duke (1-1) at Tulane (2-0), Sat., 8 p.m. (ESPN2)

You can call this one the Darian Mensah Bowl, and it should be a lot of fun to watch on Saturday night.

After leading Tulane to the American Conference championship game last season, his first as the Green Wave’s starter, Mensah entered the transfer portal, where he was rated among the top quarterbacks available. He ultimately got a multi-million-dollar deal — the most ever paid to a Duke football player, by far — to play for the Blue Devils.

Duke coach Manny Diaz and his staff said, beyond Mensah’s obvious production for Tulane, they liked his poise in the pocket, his decision-making, his ability to run better than last year’s Duke QB (Maalik Murphy) and his overall leadership qualities. Impressively, after enrolling in January and going through spring practice with the Devils, Mensah had made such a positive impression on his coaches and teammates — on and off the field — that he was voted one of the team’s four permanent captains for the 2025 season.

Oddly, while ESPN Analytics gives Tulane a whopping 72 percent chance of winning this game, the betting line has at times shown Duke as the favorite.

The Green Wave has gone 2-0 against Big Ten lightweight Northwestern and Sun Belt middleweight South Alabama. Duke’s only loss came when the Devils mostly matched Illinois (a quality team now ranked in the top 10 nationally) in the trenches but ultimately were doomed by a bunch of turnovers.

Tulane is led by coach Jon Sumrall, who was on UNC’s radar before the Tar Heels hired Belichick. Sumrall was extremely successful during his two seasons at Troy, and he’s been really good in his season-plus at Tulane. A lot of people in college football believe he’s going to end up leading an SEC program one of these years.

Tulane’s new quarterback is fifth-year senior Jake Retzlaff, a BYU transfer who’s on his fourth school in five years. He’s a former junior college star and a serious dual threat — he runs much more often than Mensah has run for Duke so far — and he led BYU to an 11-2 record last season.

Retzlaff left BYU after being told that the school was going to suspend him for seven games because he had admitted to engaging in premarital sex, which is not allowed at BYU. So he hit the transfer portal, and Tulane — needing a new high-level QB, after Mensah’s departure for Duke — jumped in and signed him.

Through the Green Wave’s first two games, Retzlaff leads the team in both passing, of course, but also rushing. He has 23 carries for 177 yards, so obviously Duke will have its hands full on defense, just as Tulane may have its hands full dealing with Mensah, who’s now going against some of his former coaches and teammates.

NC Football Bowl Subdivision (Seven Teams)
(Games Saturday Unless Otherwise Indicated)

NC State (2-0) at Wake Forest (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) — (Thursday)
Richmond (1-1) at North Carolina (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (ACCN)
#18-FCS Monmouth (2-0) at Charlotte (0-2), 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Appalachian State (2-0) at Southern Miss (1-1), 7 p.m. (ESPN+)
East Carolina (1-1) at Coastal Carolina (1-1), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Duke (1-1) at Tulane (2-0), 8 p.m. (ESPN2)

Atlantic Coast Conference (17 Teams)

NC State (2-0) at Wake Forest (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) — (Thursday)
Colgate (0-2) at Syracuse (1-1), 7 p.m. (ACCN) — (Friday)
#12 Clemson (1-1) at Georgia Tech (2-0), noon (ESPN)
William & Mary (1-1) at Virginia (1-1), noon (ACCN)
SMU (1-1) at Missouri State (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (CBSSN)
Pitt (2-0) at West Virginia (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Richmond (1-1) at North Carolina (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (ACCN)
#18 South Florida (2-0) at #5 Miami (2-0), 4:30 p.m. (The CW)
Old Dominion (1-1) at Virginia Tech (0-2), 7 p.m. (ACCN)
Duke (1-1) at Tulane (2-0), 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
Minnesota (2-0) at California (2-0), 10:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Boston College (1-1) at Stanford (0-2), 10:30 p.m. (ACCN)

NC Football Championship Subdivision (Seven Teams)

Davidson (0-2) at #16 Tennessee Tech (2-0), 1 p.m. (ESPN+)
Elon (1-1) at Western Carolina (0-2), 2:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
Furman (1-1) at Campbell (0-2), 3:30 p.m. (FloCollege)
Fayetteville State (0-2) at NC Central (1-2), 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Hampton (1-1) at North Carolina A&T (0-2), 7 p.m. (FloCollege)
The Citadel (1-1) at Gardner-Webb (1-1), 7 p.m. (ESPN+)