Matthew Dayes closing in on 1,000 yards

Dayes is 169 yards away from reaching 1,000 for the season, which would be the first time a NC State running back has achieved that mark since T.A. McLendon in 2002. Dayes has rushed 167 times for 831 yards and four touchdowns through nine contests this season and ranks third in the ACC with 92.3 yards per game.

There have been some near misses in recent years either due to injury (Dayes last year) or suspension (Shadrach Thornton). It has been a goal for Dayes and the offensive line, and they hope to make it happen at Syracuse (12:30 p.m. kickoff).

“Matt Dayes, and I think everyone in this facility knows, is the best running back in the nation, from what we think and what we see,” NCSU junior right guard Tony Adams said.

Syracuse’s high-octane offense has actually made it difficult for its defense in some ways. The Orange are allowing 34.1 points per game, which ranks 13th in the ACC. Syracuse ranks last in allowing 463.4 yards per contest and 13th with 198.8 rushing yards per game. The latter statistic is one Adams is well aware of.

“We’ve had an emphasis the whole year because we haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher in quite a while,” Adams said. “We’ve been really trying to work on and emphasize being more dominant and physical on the line of scrimmage. Some games we fell off.

“We are going to try and attain it this next game. We know Matt Dayes can reach 169.”

Dayes has rushed for more than 100 yards in six games, including Saturday in the 24-20 loss to Florida State. Adams said that Dayes hasn’t gotten the offensive line anything yet, but perhaps a pizza binge could be in the works when he reaches 1,000 yards.

“We love Matt regardless,” Adams said. “I think he’s going to do something at the end of the year, but he’s just holding us accountable. He isn’t letting us get too hyped about anything.”

NC State head coach Dave Doeren knew this season would be Dayes’ defining moment in a Wolfpack uniform. He is fully healthy and not splitting carries with the aforementioned Thornton. Fifty-three percent of his rushing yards (442 of 831) this year have come after contact .

Only eight times has NC State had a 1,000-yard running back. Doeren just wants Dayes to make some history while the team also wins games.

“Individual statistics are good, and it’s a goal for Matt and a goal in the O-line, and they’ll take pride in it,” Doeren noted. “I promise you that Matt would rather win.”

Doeren was an assistant coach at Wisconsin, where it was a yearly expectation. He hopes that Dayes can start a tradition at NC State.

“From a recruiting standpoint, the backs that we recruit understand what our offense is,” Doeren said. “We talk to them and show them the film. They know we believe in that and that we do it under center or behind the quarterback.”

Doeren added that running backs on the recruiting trail find out that the NC State offense will give them a chance to know what is expected of a pro ball carrier.

“We aren’t always offset, which a lot of guys want to learn how to do that, so they can have a chance to play at the next level,” Doeren said.

The ultimate goal is still to take steps toward bowl eligibility, and the Wolfpack need two wins over the last three games to get there. Doeren expects his group to bounce back in a season that has become defined by the team having to emotionally pick themselves off the mat.

“We have to keep battling,” Doeren said. “I’ve never met a champion that is a quitter, and there isn’t one [quitter] in this building, I can tell you that. Our guys will keep fighting.”

Syracuse is coming off getting hammered 54-0 at Clemson last Saturday. Star sophomore quarterback Eric Dungey was knocked out in the first quarter, and he has a long history of past concussions. Junior Austin Wilson went 17-of-27 passing for 116 yards with two interceptions in relief.

Whoever the quarterback ends up being, Maryland graduate transfer Amba Etta-Tawo will be the featured wide receiver. He has 75 catches for 1,158 yards and seven touchdowns, shattering his pre-SU numbers of 61 catches for 938 yards and three touchdowns from 2013-15.

“Coach Dino Babers is a really good offensive football coach,” Doeren said. “He has a talented stable of receivers to throw the ball, too.”

Tidbits

• NCSU junior defensive end Bradley Chubb knows the Orange will be playing up-tempo with a controlled passing game that is looking to get the ball out of quarterback’s hands within a few seconds.

“I was looking at one game, not too long ago, and it said, a 100 plays [on offense],” Chubb said. “That is a lot of plays in a football game.

“You just have to keep your head on the target and stay focused. I know it’s going to be a frustrating game at times because you’ll almost be there, and he’ll get the ball out. You just have to keep rushing.”

Chubb knows it is now or never when it comes to making a late push to reach six wins and become bowl eligible.

“As of right now, we aren’t eligible and that is definitely a major goal that everyone is fighting for,” Chubb said. “Everybody is excited about these last three games. We just have to stick together and stay as a team.”

• Doeren ideally didn’t want an off week in late September, creating nine games in a row to end the season. That said, Doeren understands what the players and coaches have put into this season.

“I don’t think a lot of people outside this building know how hard these kids work and coaches work, and what goes into it with our football family,” Doeren said. “It is our everything.”

• Perhaps lost in the shuffle of Saturday’s heartbreaking loss to Florida State is how well the NC State defense did against star junior running back Dalvin Cook. He rushed 18 times for 65 yards and a touchdown, just above his season low (54 yards) against Louisville Sept. 17. He has he rushed for at least 83 yards in every other contest this season.

“I thought defensively, we did a great job,” Doeren said. “There was one run where he broke three or four tackles, but other than that he was sewed up most of the day.”