Duke basketball: 15 programs who hate Coach K’s success
By Matt Giles
. Wolfpack . 3. team. 442. .
Ranking haters of Duke basketball greatness: No. 3 North Carolina State
If you don’t live on or near Tobacco Road, then you might not be too familiar with what the bulk of North Carolina State fans are all about: pitiful excuses, uninformed complaints during games, conspiracy theories as to why Duke and North Carolina are more successful, and pipe dreams of the day the Tar Heels acknowledge them as The Rival.
That last part, of course, is primarily why the Wolfpack fanbase ranks No. 3 here. See, while embracing the “Wait until next year!” slogan and acting as if their 1974 and 1983 NCAA Championship banners arrived just yesterday, Wolfpackers exhibit resentment over the fact that they really don’t even have a rival anymore.
Some are in denial. But deep down, they all must blame that know-it-all rival-thief Mike Krzyzewski and may even secretly view the Blue Devils as the Tobacco Road foes they most desire to see fall.
Series-wise, Duke leads, 148-102. Sure, NC State has won only once in Durham since 1996. Sure, the Pack has not returned to the Final Four since ’83. Sure, the teams in Raleigh typically hang out in the middle of the pack in the ACC standings and for years have routinely failed to show up against inferior opponents. No worries, though. Just wait until next year!