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NC State Football

NC State Falls to South Carolina 28-35 in Opener

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7 years ago

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NC State entered Bank of America Stadium like a balloon full of hype, and when NC State quarterback Ryan Finley threw an incomplete pass on 4th and goal with 6 seconds to go, the last of the air seeped out of it.

If you were to just look at a few numbers on the box score, and hadn’t watched the game, you would be dumbfounded to find that the Wolfpack lost to the Gamecocks. NC State had 504 yards of total offense compared to South Carolina’s 246. The Wolfpack had 29 first downs compared to the Gamecock’s 12. NC State had the ball for 36:54 compared to South Carolina’s 23:06. How do you post those numbers and lose? Dear God, HOW?

Well what the first glance at the box score doesn’t show you is Deebo Samuels returning the opening kickoff of the game 97 yards for a touchdown. It doesn’t show Jarius Morehead looking up at a guaranteed interception like it’s a wide open punt return, and fails to go up and get it, and the South Carolina drive continued. At first you might not notice is Steph Louis fumbling the ball giving the Gamecock’s the ball on the Wolfpack 40-yard line, which they turned into 7 points. Then there is Wolfpack place kicker Conner Wise missing his first field goal attempt in red-and-white from 29 yards out smack dab in the middle of the field. You might not notice Ryan Finley fumbling the ball giving South Carolina the ball on the Wolfpack 13 yard line, which the Gamecock’s once again turned into 7 points. Finally, it doesn’t show you NC State turning the ball over on downs when every bit of the eye test, including the eyes of the commentators, showed that the ball was good for a first down.

With my diatribe over, even with the catawampus statistics mentioned before, it’s a wonder NC State was in a position to tie the game and go into overtime at the end of regulation.

The most disheartening aspect of the game for me was the way that NC State came out of halftime, compared to the ferocity and intelligence in which South Carolina did so. The Gamecock’s came out with adjustments, and the Wolfpack seemingly did not. South Carolina came out with energy and passion, and NC State looked like deer in the headlights.

Despite the loss, I’d be wrong to not point out the fact that Ryan Finley was outstanding (except for the final two pass attempts…). He completed 45 (a new school record) of his 64 pass attempts (2nd in school history) for 415 yards and 2 touchdowns (1 rushing touchdown). NC State H-Back Jaylen Samuels caught 15 passes (tying Torry Holt’s NC State record) for 85 yards and a touchdown, despite dealing with some sort of discomfort in his hamstring. Sophomore wide receiver Kelvin Harmon caught 10 passes for 115 yards, and Nyheim Hines played with more passion than any other Wolfpack player, rushing 15 times for 81 yards and a touchdown. He also had 4 catches for 32 yards, 2 kickoff returns for 39 yards, and 3 punt returns for 40 yards.

At the end of the day, the Wolfpack lived by the Law of the Wolf, and crumbled under high expectations. There were plenty of areas of promise, and there are still 11 more games in the regular season, but if NC State ever wants to get over the hump, they have to learn not to shoot themselves in the foot continually, and make the plays at the end of the game that sets great teams apart from mediocre teams.

NC State traditionally plays better without the national hype, so here’s to exceeding expectations for the rest of 2017.

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Matthew is Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He writes for all sports, with a focus on football and recruiting, and is in charge of business strategy. He is an NC State alum who majored in business. Matthew is also the lead pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

NC State Football

A Look at NC State’s Draft Picks Year-by-Year

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3 hours ago

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April 26, 2024

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NC State didn’t have any players drafted in the 1st round of the 2024 NFL Draft last night, but I expect Linebacker Payton Wilson to hear his name called tonight.

Heading into the draft, NC State ranked 10th in NFL Draft Picks according to the ACC Media Guide.

Under Dave Doeren’s watch, 24 players have been taken in the NFL Draft.

Here’s a look at NC State’s NFL Draft Picks year-by-year.

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NC State Football

Auburn Transfer Linebacker Cam Riley Decommits from NC State

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11 hours ago

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April 26, 2024

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Auburn Transfer Linebacker Cam Riley (6’5″/242) announced tonight that he is decommitting from NC State.

Back on February 26th, Riley verbally committed to NC State. Players out of the Transfer Portal don’t sign a National Letter of Intent like players out of high school, making it easier for them to change their mind.

247Sports and ESPN both ranked Riley as a Top-300 4-Star prospect in the 2020 recruiting class. 247Sports ranked him as the #229 overall player nationally in the 2020 class, the #14 Outside Linebacker, and the #10 player in the state of Alabama.

In 2020 and 2021, Riley played in 22 total games (2 starts), playing in 160 snaps, tallying 23 tackles. In 2022, Riley broke out, starting in 7 of the 11 games, ranking 2nd on the team in tackles, with 65.

This past season, Riley played in 13 games, but only started in 1. He had 32 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. His PFF grade of 66.7 was the highest of his career.

Over 4 seasons, Riley played in 46 games (10 starts) for Auburn, tallying 948 snaps.

In my mind, there was a good chance that Riley was going to earn the starting role at the SAM Linebacker position at NC State, with Sean Brown at the WILL and Caden Fordham at the MIKE.

Unless NC State grabs a Linebacker out of the Portal now, I would expect Redshirt Freshman Kelvon McBride to be at the starting SAM position at the beginning of Fall Camp.

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ON3: NC State’s Dave Doeren is 1 of the Top-25 Best Coaches in College Football

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18 hours ago

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April 25, 2024

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ON3’s Jesse Simonton ranked the Top-25 College Football Coaches heading into the 2024 season, and NC State’s Dave Doeren ranks 23rd.

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Here’s what Simonton had to say about Doeren:

23. Dave Doeren, NC State

Doeren became the Wolfpack’s all-time winningest head coach last season, overcoming all manors of offensive ineptitude to win eight games for the fourth straight season. He still hasn’t busted through the glass ceiling and taken NC State to an ACC Championship, but the Wolfpack have legitimate conference title hopes in 2024 with the offseason work Doeren has done via the portal (quarterback Grayson McCall, tailbacks Jordan Waters and Hollywood Smothers and receivers Noah Rogers and Wesley Grimes). 

In 11 seasons in Raleigh, Doeren’s program has been steadily consistent and has become a model for development (17 NFL Draft picks since 2018) and strength and conditioning. (ON3)

ACC Coaches in the Top-25

6. Dabo Swinney (Clemson)

7. Mike Norvell (FSU)

20. Jeff Brohm (Louisville)

23. Dave Doeren (NC State)

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NC State has Produced 19 1st Round NFL Draft Picks

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1 day ago

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April 25, 2024

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The 1st round of the 2024 NFL Draft will begin this evening at 8pm on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network. NC State has had 19 players drafted in the 1st round.

NC State ranks 8th in ACC history in 1st Round Picks.

Three of the Wolfpack’s 1st Round Picks have come under Dave Doeren’s watch, which ranks 2nd all-time in school history. Chuck Amato had 5 players drafted in the 1st round, which is the most ever under a coach at NC State.

Chuck Amato – 5
Dave Doeren – 3
Mike O’Cain – 2
Dick Sheridan – 2
Bo Rein – 2
Earle Edwards – 2

While most projections don’t have Wolfpack Linebacker Payton Wilson going in the 1st round tonight, a few do. Wilson was invited to attend the NFL Draft, but he will be tuning in from his home in Hillsborough. We’ll have to tune in tonight to see if Wilson hears his name called on the 1st night of the 2024 NFL Draft.

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