NC State bowl projections: Where the Pack could play in postseason after earning sixth win

NC State coach Dave Doeren has accomplished something no one else in program history has done: earn six straight bowl bids. The Wolfpack clinched a postseason berth with its 21-11 win over Florida State this past Friday night, opening the door to a possible eight-win season if the team wins out. 

The Pack, which hosts UNC in the regular season finale on Saturday night (7:30 p.m., ACCN) at Carter-Finley Stadium, could end up playing in the Birmingham, Gasparilla, Fenway or First Responder Bowls, according to projections by national experts this week. 

Of the nine bowl projections compiled by TheWolfpacker.com, the Birmingham Bowl was the most popular with four experts sending NC State to Protective Stadium on Dec 27. Athlon Sports placed Troy as the opponent, while ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and On3’s Brett McMurphy had James Madison on the other sideline, and Sports Illustrated predicted the foe to be Western Kentucky.

The Fenway Bowl, which is hosted at the home of the Boston Red Sox on Dec. 27, was also a popular pick for the Wolfpack to play in. The Athletic and ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura had Army as the opponent, while College Football News pitted NC State against North Texas in the historic venue. 

If NC State were to play in the Fenway Bowl, it wouldn’t be the first time Doeren took the Wolfpack into a baseball stadium for a postseason contest. The 13th-year coach guided the Pack to a 34-27 win over UCF in the 2014 St. Petersburg Bowl, which was held at Tropicana Field, the home of the Tampa Bay Rays.

While the Birmingham and Fenway Bowls were the most-popular selections, CBS Sports had NC State playing against Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl on Dec. 19 in Tampa, and Pro Football Network logged the Pack against Memphis in the First Responder Bowl on Dec. 24 in Dallas.

The Pack has previously appeared in nine bowl games (qualified for 10, but the 2021 Holiday Bowl was canceled due to positive COVID-19 tests within UCLA’s program) under Doeren, but NC State has not won in the postseason since it beat Arizona State 52-31 in the 2017 Sun Bowl. The Wolfpack most recently lost the 2024 Military Bowl to ECU in 26-21 fashion at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis, Md.

NC State has also played in the Belk, Duke’s Mayo, Gator, Independence and Pop-Tarts Bowls during Doeren’s tenure.