NC State football countdown to kickoff: 58

The NC State football season opener for 2022 is at East Carolina on Sept. 3 — or 58 days away from Thursday. The Wolfpacker continues its countdown for the season with a note about the number 58.

58: Significant moments involving the number 58 in NC State football history

• One of the promising young players on this year’s NC State football team wears No. 58.

Redshirt freshman defensive lineman Travali Price was one of the more heralded pickups for the Wolfpack in the 2021 class. His impressive offer list included, among others, Louisville, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Penn State, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia Tech.

Ultimately, his decision came down to NC State and Tennessee, and even after committing to the Pack in the summer, the Vols continued to make a big push on Price.

Last fall, Price was named the Co-Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year, and he is expected to compete for a spot on the two-deep this fall.

• One unique aspect about the 1958 season is that was the last year during which NC State did not attempt a single field goal. That has only been done three times overall in Wolfpack history.

• The fewest passing yards ever allowed in a bowl game by a NC State defense was 58, against Mississippi State in what was a 16-12 loss for the Pack in the 1963 Liberty Bowl in Philadelphia.

• The NC State football 2022 season opener is against East Carolina. The last two times the teams have played each other, the Wolfpack has rolled both times by a combined score of 92-9. That included a 58-3 win over the Pirates in the 2018 regular season finale.

That contest was a late addition to the schedule. Both NC State and East Carolina had games canceled during the regular season by Hurricane Florence. For the Wolfpack, that meant a highly anticipated non-conference showdown with West Virginia in Carter-Finley Stadium did not happen.

The Wolfpack led that ECU game 58-0 until the Pirates avoided a shutout by kicking a field goal as time expired. As fate would have it, the two teams met in the 2019 season opener, and NC State rolled to a 34-6 win. As part of the agreement to add that 2018 contest, the two teams agreed to games in 2025 (Greenville) and 2028 (Raleigh).

• On the opposite end of the spectrum, the most points NC State has ever allowed in Carter-Finley Stadium was in 2000 to Florida State, a 58-14 thumping in a highly anticipated showdown.

NC State was off to a surprising 5-1 start under first-year head coach Chuck Amato, and the lone setback was a close 34-27 loss at No. 5 Clemson.

Fresh off ending a seven-game losing streak to archrival North Carolina by beating the Heels 38-20 in Chapel Hill, the Wolfpack climbed to No. 21 in the poll and FSU was No. 6, but the Noles left no doubt in this contest.

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