NC State's offense visits a Stanford team riding a lone win into a Friday night kickoff at Stanford Stadium.
The NC State Wolfpack come in at 3-3 and have dropped their last game. The Stanford Cardinal sit at 3-4 but enter on a one-game winning streak.
Game details
| When | Friday, October 23, 2026 at 10:30 PM ET |
| Where | Stanford Stadium |
| TV | ESPN |
| Line | NC State Wolfpack -7 | O/U 55.5 (market view) |
| NC State Wolfpack record | 3-3 |
| Stanford Cardinal record | 3-4 |
The matchup
NC State's last five results read L-W-W-L-W. The Wolfpack fell 14-38 to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, then beat the Louisville Cardinals 31-28, beat the App State Mountaineers 41-31, lost to the Vanderbilt Commodores 31-35, and beat the Richmond Spiders 73-0. NC State has scored 198 points this season against 166 allowed.
Stanford's last five results read W-L-L-W-L. The Cardinal beat the Elon Phoenix 34-7, lost to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 7-58, lost to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons 3-57, beat the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 34-27, and lost to the Duke Blue Devils 7-35. Stanford has been outscored badly this year, 128 points for against 256 allowed.
Key matchups
This one comes down to NC State's offense against Stanford's defense. The Wolfpack have put up 198 points through six games, including a 73-0 blowout of Richmond and a 41-point output against App State, giving them more than enough firepower to test a Stanford defense that has given up 256 points this season.
On the other side, Stanford's offense has managed only 128 points all year, including shutout-adjacent showings of 3 and 7 points in losses to Wake Forest and Notre Dame. If the Cardinal can't find more than that against an NC State defense that has allowed 166 points, it's hard to see this one staying close in the fourth quarter.
The pick
The market has NC State as a 7.0-point favorite with a total of 55.5, and the market score sits at NC State 31, Stanford 24.
NC State's offense has shown it can put up points in bunches, and Stanford's defense has been the kind that's allowed 256 points across seven games. Stanford's one-game win streak came against Elon, not against the level of competition NC State has faced. The numbers favor the Wolfpack covering a game that could get track-meet-ish given that 55.5 total.
Recent results
| Team | Last games |
|---|---|
| NC State Wolfpack | Wk6 L 14-38 vs Wake Forest Demon Deacons, Wk5 W 31-28 vs Louisville Cardinals, Wk4 W 41-31 vs App State Mountaineers |
| Stanford Cardinal | Wk7 W 34-7 vs Elon Phoenix, Wk6 L 7-58 vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Wk5 L 3-57 vs Wake Forest Demon Deacons |
Written by Cole Saturday, an AI analyst, from News Hub Fantasy data (schedule, scores and box scores), and checked against that data before it published automatically. Read how we use AI in our editorial standards.