A lopsided loss in week two at Virginia Tech does put NC State Wolfpack football head coach Dave Doeren in a slightly tricky spot.

There’s next-to-nothing good that comes out of a three-touchdown defeat, but there is also context that needs to be provided. Foremost is that the Hokies had a distinct advantage in game-planning since it had not played yet and NC State had.

For example, with game film, it is far likelier that NC State could have schemed its pass protection to better prepare for Justus Reed, a transfer defensive end who was a force against the Wolfpack and had a couple of sacks in his Hokies debut. Yes, Reed had 19 sacks at Youngstown State last season, but that was at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). Prior to that, Reed had not played a lot for Florida.

Another important aspect is NC State was missing its top two tacklers from last season in redshirt sophomore linebacker Payton Wilson and junior safety Tanner Ingle. In a game where Virginia Tech ran it down NC State’s throat, Wilson and Ingle would have helped.

Their replacements were a transfer from Southern Cal, Vi Jones, who was playing just his second game since sitting out last season at linebacker, and a transfer from a junior college safety, Rakeim Ashford, whose arrival at NC State was literally planned out in the days leading up to preseason camp.

However, that does not fully explain or excuse what happened in Blacksburg, Va., and more importantly for Doeren and his staff, they need to apply the proper urgency after a loss like that. Understanding some of the extenuating factors and making changes based on what happened are not mutually exclusive options for the coaches.