This past Saturday NC State played inspired football as they put together their best performance of the year against the Heels at Kenan Stadium. How did the Pack back up their pre-game comments prior in the week to secure a big time win on the road against bitter rivals? Here is our take on why the Pack dominated the Heels!

The Trenches

The importance of winning the battle for the line of scrimmage in football cannot be overstated, the team that is more physical at the point of attack is usually the victor. Case and point this past Saturday, NC State absolutely whipped UNC upfront. Our veteran O-Line consistently fired off the ball to de-cleat Carolina’s D-Line, which opened up huge running lanes for the Pack. In total the Wolfpack rushed for 388 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Our D-Line was also instrumental in disrupting UNC on offense. Marquise Williams was unable to find any rhythm due to being plagued by a constant barrage of NC State players that yielded a total of 4 sacks and numerous knockdowns! The physical beating was too much for Marquise, as he had to exit the game due to an apparent leg injury.

Jacoby Brissett

From the get go Jacoby was dialed in as the offense landed the first punch scoring on their first possession. Throughout the game Jacoby used all of his strengths to over match a helpless UNC defense by using both his arm and legs to create big plays. Countless times Jacoby improvised with his legs to break off big gains on the ground. A couple of runs Jacoby had were highlight worthy as he was able to juke his way around multiple defenders. In the red-zone Jacoby was surgical in finding open Wolfpack receivers to cap off long drives. Brissett finished the day with 172 yards rushing and 66 yards passing while accounting for a total of 4 touchdowns on the day.

Ground Attack

Racking up 388 yards rushing is a feat that should be celebrated especially in today’s pass happy colligate landscape! The Pack made a statement that they were the tougher of the two teams that were playing this past Saturday and wanted to make sure everyone who watched knew this. Shadrach Thornton was the workhorse on the day carrying the rock 28 times for 161 yards and a touchdown.

I truly believe Shadrach is one of the best running backs in the ACC, however; too often his talent has been overshadowed by his off field misconduct. This season he has displayed excellent vision and burst hitting the hole, which has resulted in him averaging over 5 yards a carry on the season. In our upcoming bowl game pay close attention to Shadrach as he uses slows down to read his blockers and then explodes for big gains.

Confidence

It was evident after the first scoring drive of the game that the Wolfpack knew they were going to win. Many fans probably watched the first half anxiously awaiting something bad to happen or for our guys to fall apart. I have been guilty of this at times this season, however; this game was different in the way NC State used superior energy and toughness to break Carolina’s will. The defense put itself front and center due to comments made in the week leading up about Marquise Williams and how our their goal was to make him quit. They backed up their comments and played a flawless game defensively that left the Tar heels baffled.

The game was never in doubt due to our teams focus and willingness to play hard. You could tell that our guys wanted this win and just how much they respected the rivalry. Hats off to Coach Doeren and his staff for getting the guys ready for the Heels.

Look for the Pack to ride this momentum into a bowl game in one of four top tier options for the ACC. These options include the following:

• The Belk Bowl in Charlotte versus a SEC team. December 30^th
• The Sun Bowl in El Paso, TX versus a Pac-12 team. December 27^th
• The Pinstripe Bowl in New York City versus a B1G Ten team. December 27th
• The Music City Bowl in Nashville versus a SEC team. December 30^th

The Pack should learn its’ destination this coming weekend following the ACC Championship game featuring Florida State vs. Georgia Tech.