NC State defeated James Madison 24-13 in the season opener in Carter-Finley Stadium to kick off the 2018 season. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the game according to the stat sheet.

Team Stats

• NC State had 25 first downs, compared to James Madison’s 23
• The Dukes beat the Wolfpack in the ground game, rushing for 163 yards (4.3 yards per carry), compared to 83 for NC Sate (2.9 yards per carry).
  • Not a good look for the NC State rush attack to start the year, and not a good look for the Wolfpack’s rush defense.
• Even though the Wolfpack passed for more yards (309 to 202), the Duke’s were technically more efficient. James Madison’s passing efficiency rating for the game was 147.56 compared to Ryan Finley’s 143.15.
  • That’s not to slight Finley. That rating is higher than his career average at NC State, which already ranks 3rd in school history.
  • It is concerning that the Wolfpack weren’t able to put a rush on DiNucci, and the secondary wasn’t really able to stop anything from being caught.
• NC State gained more yards on offense than James Madison: 392 vs. 365. Not as high as I’d like to see from NC State, and more than I’d like to see the Wolfpack give up to an FCS opponent.
• AJ Cole only punted twice for NC State, but they were way below his normal average (36.5 yards). The good news: neither of them were able to be returned.
• Each team lost a fumble.
  • Sadly Freshman Tyler Baker-Williams fumbled on his first ever collegiate reception.
  • Redshirt Freshman Defensive End Ibrahim Kante caused Dukes QB Ben DiNuci to cough it up, and Redshirt Senior Defensive Tackle Eurdraus Bryant recovered it (and then ran with it, and fumbled it, and then recovered it again).
• NC State only returned 1 punt, but it was a game changing return. Redshirt Freshman Thayer Thomas returned the first punt of his career 40 yards, setting up a drive that would lead to his first ever touchdown reception.
• The Wolfpack actually lost the time of possession battle (JMU – 31:42 vs. NC State – 28:18), and managed to win the game.

Individual

Offense

• Graduate Senior QB Ryan Finley threw for 309 yards, marking the 11th time he has thrown for over 300 yards at NC State.
  • From the eye test, it didn’t seem like that great of a game for Finley to be honest. But check it out:
    • His passing efficiency was higher than his career average (143.15 vs. JMU compared to 135.64 for his career).
    • His completion percentage was higher than his average (67.4% vs. JMU compared to 63% for his career).
• Redshirt Junior WR Jakobi Meyers had the best game of his career, reeling in 14 catches for 161 yards (both were career highs). He managed to do this while limping on and off the field throughout the game. The 14 catches is good for sole possession of the 2nd most receptions in a game by a Wolfpack receiver (Torry Holt and Jaylen Samuels sit at the top with a game of 15 receptions). Also, Meyers was nearly a guaranteed target, making a catch on 14 of the 15 times he was targeted.
• The #2 Receivers were phenomenal. For me, that is one of the biggest takeaways from the game. Sophomore Emeka Emezie stepped in for the injured captain Stephen Louis, and had 5 catches for 60 yards (the 5 catches tie a career high). Redshirt Sophomore CJ Riley had 4 receptions (career high) for 45 yards (tied career high) and a touchdown, the first of his career. Redshirt Freshman Thayer Thomas snagged his first career reception (16 yards), and hit happened to also be his first career touchdown.
• Junior WR Kelvin Harmon only had 4 catches (33 yards), though he was targeted 10 times (2nd most on the team).
• Senior RB Reggie Gallaspy rushed the ball 17 times for 68 yards and 1 touchdown. That’s an average of 4.0 yards per carry. Color me not impressed. His backups were even less productive. Freshman Ricky Person rushed 6 times for 5 yards, and Freshman Trent Pennix rushed 2 times for 1 yards. The team averaged 2.9 yards per carry against James Madison. That is very concerning.

Defense

• Redshirt Senior LB Germaine Pratt led the team in tackles, with 12. Redshirt Junior Safety Jarius Morehead had 10 (2nd on the team last year), and Redshirt Freshman LB Isaiah Moore also had 10. I found Moore to be very impressive.
• Redshirt Freshman DE Ibrahim Kante had a sack in his first collegiate snap, and then he picked up another one that caused a fumble, that the Wolfpack recovered. Kante stepped in quite well when Redshirt Junior DE James Smith-Williams went out with an injury.