CHAPEL HILL — NC State quarterback Ben Finley etched himself as a Wolfpack legend Friday.
Finley could have been a character in the movie “Clerks,” whose lead character was called into work and kept saying "I'm not even supposed to be here today.” Finley joked he never expected to ever be playing Friday.
Finley toiled on the scout team for the majority of the season as NC State’s fourth-string quarterback, but there he was throwing for 271 yards and two touchdowns to help the Wolfpack upset North Carolina 30-27 in double overtime at Kenan Memorial Stadium.
Finley was so happy his teammates trusted him and he pointed out the offensive line made sure his uniform stayed clean.
“It is the greatest feeling ever,” Finley said. “Five weeks ago, being the fourth-string quarterback, I was just kind of messing around on scout team and still getting better.”
Finley combined with a stout NC State defense made just enough plays to take control of the game and then hold on in overtime. There were definitely several nervous moments.
North Carolina star redshirt freshman quarterback Drake Maye never truly felt comfortable against the scheme concocted by veteran NC State defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Tony Gibson. Maye went 29-of-49 passing for 233 yards and a touchdown, but also a costly interception. He added 14 carries for 32 yards and was sacked twice and the defense was credited with 11 quarterback hurries.
However, Maye came through at the end of regulation in leading the Tar Heels down the field, and eventually tossing a four-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Antoine Green to tie the game up 24-24 on the last play of the game.
The next momentous moment came when Raleigh native Noah Burnette made his second field goal of the game in the first overtime, but then missed a 35-yarder in the second overtime that would have forced a third overtime.
“Our guys were just resilient with a lot of grit, heart,” NCSU coach Dave Doeren said. “We just found a way to win, and that’s what we did. It has been a hard month.”
That set off a big celebration by the NC State players, who ended the regular season with an 8-4 record, and in-state wins over UNC, East Carolina and Wake Forest, which should help in recruiting.
“I told them all week nobody is going to care about anything other than this win, if we win this,” Doeren said. “This will make a lot of things feel better.
“It is a 365-day ‘you know what’ sandwich the other school gets to eat. We didn’t want to eat it.”
NC State’s veterans led the defense, with junior outside linebackers Payton Wilson and Drake Thomas combining for 21 tackles, one sack and three tackles for loss.
Senior safety Tanner Ingle added nine tackles and his second interception of his career. That helped set up Finley finding redshirt junior wide receiver Devin Carter for a 26-yard touchdown that gave the Wolfpack a 24-17 lead with 3:54 left in the game. Carter had his best game of the season with six catches for 130 yards and one touchdown. Finley figured it had been a year and a half when he last threw to Carter prior to a couple of weeks ago.
“Ben is just a carefree guy,” said Carter, who planted the Wolfpack flag after the game on the UNC logo at midfield. “We are a tight-knit team and know how to stay together and finish.
“Good things happen to the good guys.”
NC State faced Maye and the high-powered UNC passing attack without four different nickel’s. Senior Tyler Baker-Williams, junior Jakeen Harris, sophomore Devan Boykin and sophomore Joshua PIerre-Louis had all played nickel this season. The first three were injured and PIerre-Louis suspended.
NC State had to rework the secondary with cornerback Derrek Pitts playing nickel for the first time since he played for Gibson at West Virginia years ago.
The Wolfpack secondary held junior Josh Downs to six catches for 51 yards and zero touchdowns.
“I don’t think people understand what Derrek Pitts had to do today,” Doeren said. “[Sophomore] Jalen Frazier was a fourth-string guy [at nickel] and he came and gave some valuable minutes. They did a great job on Downs.
“I gave everybody a game ball, but if I had to give one, he’d [Pitts] be one of the guys I’d single out today.”
Finley, like the Wolfpack has proven resourceful this season. He never thought about transferring last August after falling to fourth string. The door opened up for Finley after redshirt junior Devin Leary suffered a season-ending pectoral injury Oct. 8, and then freshman MJ Morris got hurt two weeks ago. Senior Jack Chambers struggled throwing the ball in relief, and he ended up playing a few plays Saturday — rushing for a two-yard score but also fumbling at the UNC 16-yard line in the second quarter.
Finley, who will graduate in December in finance, joked that Kenan Memorial Stadium is “Carter-Finley West.” He also made sure to joke about Maye’s former comment that students who go to NC State are because he they don’t get into UNC.
“I wanted to graduate from NC State,” Finley said. “It was important for me to get my degree here.
“I never tried to get into UNC, but according to Drake, I wasn’t good enough. I’ll get a nice degree from NC State.”
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