In NC State’s 10-51 loss to Tennessee in Week 2, 5 different players rushed the ball. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the Wolfpack players that ran the ball against the Volunteers.

Rushing Yards

RB Hollywood Smothers – 25 yards
QB CJ Bailey – 7 yards
QB Grayson McCall – 6 yards
RB Kendrick Raphael – 5 yards
RB Jordan Waters – -4 yards

Carries

QB Grayson McCall – 9
RB Jordan Waters – 7
RB Hollywood Smothers – 6
RB Kendrick Raphael – 4
QB CJ Bailey – 2

Yards Per Carry

RB Hollywood Smothers – 4.5
QB CJ Bailey – 3.5
RB Kendrick Raphael – 1.3
QB Grayson McCall – 0.7
RB Jordan Waters – -0.6 yards

Yards After Contact

RB Hollywood Smothers – 25
QB Grayson McCall – 15
RB Jordan Waters – 12
RB Kendrick Raphael – 8
QB CJ Bailey – 0

Rushes for 10+ Yards

RB Hollywood Smothers – 2
QB Grayson McCall – 1
QB CJ Bailey – 1

Missed Tackles Forced

RB Hollywood Smothers – 1
RB Kendrick Raphael – 1
QB Grayson McCall – 1

Rushing Direction

Short Yardage on 2nd, 3rd and 4th Down (1-2 Yards to Go)

2nd Down – 1 attempt/-3 yards/0 1st downs

4th Down – 1 attempt/0 yards/0 1st downs

NC State Defensive End Noah Potter met with the media earlier this week after practice. You can watch the video ABOVE, or read the transcript BELOW.

You got to play 45 snaps. When was the last time you guys played that much? You’ve had quite a journey.

Yeah, I played that much at Cincinnati, but obviously dealing with injuries last year, it was good to finally be able to get a lot more plays, which is what I’ve been working for.

How did you feel you did?

I thought I made some plays that came my way.

There were some plays that I probably could have finished more. But overall, I think I did good, but we lost, so there’s obviously more stuff to work on.

Did you get some good leadership on this team that will help you guys get through what happened on Saturday?

We had a team meeting, and we kind of just aired some stuff out, things that we need to work on.

It was a good talk, it wasn’t berating one another, but just uplifting guys, but still holding people accountable. We didn’t come out the way we needed to on Saturday. Obviously, all of our goals are still in play, so it’s not the end of the world or anything, but there’s a sense of urgency there that we know we need to play better if we want to reach those goals.

It happened early in the year, so if it’s going to happen early in the year, it’s probably better than later in the year, I imagine. I mean, yeah, you don’t want to lose any game, but obviously all of our goals, if we win the ACC, that’s our goal, obviously. We kind of had a similar situation last year in the Notre Dame game, and we still let it affect us by losing to Louisville and Duke.

Coach Doeren’s message was, ‘We’re not doing that again’, and I agree with him. We’re not going to let one game affect us, it’s just a one-off, and we do not lose the attack.

Coach talked about last week, for a football play to work, it has to be 11 guys doing their job. How do you have that sense of urgency, but yet still abide by the game plan and not try to do too much?

Yeah, I think in our defense, and probably offense too, it’s just like if you don’t do your job in every play, the play’s not going to work. Coach Doeren was talking about if 10 guys do the right thing, but one guy doesn’t, it could end up in a touchdown on the defensive side, or a pick-six, or a tackle for loss. So I think that’s the sense of urgency, like I don’t want to let my teammate down and the team down by not doing what I’m supposed to do.

But on the flip side, you’ve got to have that confidence that if you’re in the right spot, you’re going to make the play for your team. So I think obviously there’s a sense of urgency, but if you play within the scheme, they say if you do your job, you’re going to make the plays that count for you. So I think that’s the mindset you’ve got to have.

NC State starting Safety Bishop Fitzgerald met with the media earlier this week after practice. You can watch the video ABOVE, or read the transcript BELOW.

1 bad performance doesn’t make you a bad football team

Yeah, if you look back at the game, it’s 10-3 with three minutes left to go at halftime, we’re in the red zone and then unfortunately get a pick six and then mess up a kickoff and that’s a 14 change of points and that was 20 to three going into halftime. So if that doesn’t happen, it’s a 10-10 game at half and things aren’t looking too bad for us. So we know we can compete with anyone, we just have to learn how to capitalize on our opportunities.

How do you deal with negativities surrounding the team?

Definitely, we kind of have to take this loss to the chin for the next five days until we play again. And that’s kind of been the thing for us, just go out there and show people, and most importantly, show us that we can do it and we are the team we think we are.

How important was it for you guys to get back on the field of practice and did that help a little bit?

Yeah, we got up there, coaches getting after us, trying to pick up the intensity, we’re running around a lot.

Trying to hit our max velocity, that’s kind of what they’ve been harping is, practicing as hard as we can and not being soft at practice.

So with that said, what kind of team should we expect out there? What kind of game y’all gonna play on Saturday against Louisiana Tech?

We think, obviously, it’s the biggest game of the season. The game on Saturday is the biggest game of the season for us.

It’s taking it one day at a time, and we just kind of have to go out there and show people that we are who we say we are. And all this hype around us, you guys should be able to believe in us confidently, and we should go out there and play our best game of the season.

All your goals are still out there, aren’t they?

Yeah, we lost, I guess, an SEC opponent. Our goal is the ACC championship, so that necessarily doesn’t affect our ACC record. And we know that ACC play starts two weeks from now, and just taking it one game at a time, and winning this game, and being able to move forward with momentum.

Does it matter how you look at this? I mean, does it matter how you win this game as much as winning the game?

I mean, a win is a win. Winning is hard at any level, and that’s the thing. But we know that if we play our brand of football, that nobody can beat us. And that’s what we’re trying to play, is get back to our brand of football. Defense flying around, offense scoring points, and getting the run game going. So that’s kind of what we’ve been harping on.

NC State packed the house in Week 1 for the season opener against Western Carolina, filling it 56,919 people, which was the most of any team in the ACC.

No place like home. #1️⃣ in the ACC for fan attendance in week 1 ✔️#1Pack1Goal pic.twitter.com/6MNcXfFJ22

— NC State Football (@PackFootball) September 12, 2024

The Wolfpack ranked 24th nationally in attendance in Week 1.

ACC Home Attendance in Week 1
24. NC State – 56,919
28. Florida State – 51,719
35. Louisville – 47,067
37. Pittsburgh – 44,616
42. Virginia – 40,811
44. Georgia Tech – 40,113
46. Syracuse – 37,225
50. Stanford – 36,026
52. California – 32,275
55. Wake Forest – 29,450
59. SMU – 27,080
78. Duke – 18,466

Tomorrow’s game vs. Louisiana Tech is also sold out, making it 15 straight home games NC State has sold out, which is a school record. The Wolfpack’s next home game against Northern Illinois is already sold out as well.