No. 23 NC State senior wide receiver Emeka Emezie met with the media via Zoom to discuss the Wolfpack’s upcoming matchup with No. 14 North Carolina.
Did you notice any change in Bailey Hockman’s demeanor between his showing at Virginia Tech and when he was inserted into the Duke game?
“He always stayed ready. He’s taken practice one day at a time. Coach [Dave] Doeren always talks about being ready, about the opportunities that could come when players go down. He’s always been ready and has prepared like a starter always. He’s started and won games here before, so I know he’s ready.”
Have you tried the Thayer Thomas helmet catch in practice any this week?
“I had one of those in practice during the Wednesday practice during the week of the Virginia game during one-on-ones. We always joke around as receivers. C.J. [Riley], Devin [Carter], Thayer, and I all have had one-handed catches during games. We’re part of the one-handed club, as we call it.”
Who do you think North Carolina most resembles defensively?
“I’d probably say Virginia because they press and also try to shove off. Pitt and Duke were straight press, and Wake and VT played off of Cover 4, Cover 3. I feel like Virginia played a little bit of both, trying to press, Cover 4, Cover 3, and Carolina does the same thing, as well.”
Is your confidence as high as it’s ever been in your collegiate career?
“Probably. I don’t really try to be too confident or too low. I try to stay the same. I wouldn’t say it’s too high, but it’s pretty good right now.”
As a senior leader, what do you tell the younger players about the emotions of this rivalry game? How do they control that in a game situation?
“Whenever you play the game, you’ve got to be smart. You don’t want to put your team in a negative situation just because it’s still a big game. Every game is a big game. Controlling your emotions is huge. As for the rivalry, everybody knows it’s a big game. Everyone wants to say it’s just one game, but it is a big game. You’ve just got to control your emotions, play the game how you know, play hard like we’re supposed to, and do the right things.”
Do you have any notion that the offense will need to put points on the board to keep up with Carolina, or do you think the defense will have the Tar Heels contained?
“They have a good offense, but we have a good team, too. Whatever we need to do to win the game, that’s what we’re going to do. I don’t know what the situation’s going to be, but we’re just going to try to put more points up than they do.”
Does the Wolfpack’s placement in the Top 25 give the team any satisfaction, especially considering the infamous ACC Network comments questioning whether the team would win a single ACC game?
“Personally, I don’t care about [the rankings]. It’d be better if we weren’t even ranked. That’s just how I feel. Being the underdog is better. We see what everyone thinks about us, and that’s fine, but we keep that as a chip on our shoulder. Ranking us now is cool, but we’re going to keep attacking like we had been.”
Do you have a favorite rivalry memory?
“Yeah, [Nyheim Hines’] game my freshman year. That was really cool. He had a really, really good game that [year]. It was fun seeing that team win and how [Bradley] Chubb manhandles those boys. It was fun watching all those guys. I miss them."
