Our own Chris Clark, who also writes for GamecockCentral.com, was on hand to watch last weekend's battle between South Carolina and North Carolina State. Today, he brings you his unique perspective from that game and fills Marshall fans in on what they can expect from the Wolfpack this Saturday.

NC State is a tough opponent to defend because of what offensive coordinator Eli Drinkwitz does on that side of the ball. This Wolfpack team is multiple. They’ll use different formations, motions, and shifts, and they’ll run similar plays out of those varying formations in an effort to mess with the defense’s keys.

It was relayed on ESPN’s broadcast of NC State’s opener that South Carolina defensive line coach Lance Thompson had remarked that he never saw a team run the “stretch” play like NC State did, creating some interesting cutback lanes in the run game. Quarterback Ryan Finley is efficient, and the ball often comes out quickly in the passing game. State has some bigger receivers in Stephen Louis and Kelvin Harmon and hit a trick type play downfield to tight end Cole Cook during the South Carolina contest. Running back Nyheim Hines is dangerous in the open field and as a returner and Reggie Gallaspy is a bigger back that will be utilized.

The State offensive line has plenty of experience, although projected starting right tackle Will Richardson was suspended for the South Carolina game and for the contest against Marshall. The right side is where South Carolina had success in creating pressure and making plays. USC was able to notch 11 tackles for loss and 4 sacks against NC State last Saturday, although those numbers could be inflated by the 100+ plays that NC State had against the Gamecocks.

The front four is where things get started for the Wolfpack. There are multiple NFL players in this group, including potentially a guy or two that does not even crack the starting lineup. There is size and athleticism. The unit is led by Bradley Chubb, who’s tough against the run and as a pass-rusher. There was plenty of hype surrounding this group heading into 2017, and one can tell that these guys can really move up front.

While South Carolina found little success in the run game against NC State, that can be attributed both to State being stout on Saturday but also to the fact that USC ran just over 50 plays in the game as well. NC State’s front four did not register a sack in the USC contest; the two sacks came from well-designed pressures from the secondary. Marshall will need to be mobile in the pocket and aware; USC quarterback Jake Bentley was able to elude pressures that would have normally resulted in sacks and made some plays.

The back end is a concern for NC State in terms of talent and experience. That will be exacerbated even more by the loss of secondary member Freddie Phillips, who was injured in the opener and is now out for the season. South Carolina had two touchdown passes when the Wolfpack sent blitz packages on Saturday. There are some matchups to be had for Marshall in the passing game, but the key will be to get rid of the ball quickly and to keep a clean pocket.

Last season this was a substantial problem area for the Wolfpack in terms of issues in the kicking game. The most glaring miss was a glorified extra point would have given NC State a signature win over eventual national champion Clemson. The kick was missed, and the Tigers won.

In the 2017 opener, NC State did not do much to answer those questions. South Carolina took the first kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. State missed a short field goal in a game that ended in a one-touchdown margin of victory, which meant that the offense could have been in position for a game-tying field goal at the end of the game instead of having to throw to the end zone on fourth down. South Carolina nearly took a punt return the distance as well, with the play instead limited to around a 20 yard gain due to the Gamecock returner slipping.

While NC State is going to present Marshall with some problems on offense and defense, perhaps this is an area in which Marshall can even things out and make some things happen.