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Monday morning quarterbacking: Georgia Tech 28, NC State 26

NC State football’s bowl hopes took a fatal blow Thursday evening with a 28-26 loss at Georgia Tech.

It’s time for a final look at the contest with some Monday morning quarterbacking:

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Key Moment Of The Game

A series of plays, in hindsight, cost NC State dearly. Trailing 14-0 in the second quarter and taking over at its own 4-yard line, the Pack executed a lengthy, time-consuming drive to reach first-and-goal at the Georgia Tech 5-yard line. After an incomplete pass and then a monster 12-yard loss by sophomore running back Ricky Person Jr., NC State eventually settled for a field goal to cap what was an 18-play, 93-yard drive that took 8:23 off the clock.

It really needed to end that possession with a touchdown.

Still, NC State was going to receive to start the second half, and after forcing a three-and-out by Georgia Tech, NCSU looked like it could get the ball back with a minute left to try to get a few more points before the break, building off the momentum of the previous long offensive possession.

Instead, redshirt sophomore wide receiver Thayer Thomas muffed the punt and the Jackets recovered at the NC State 31-yard line. A questionable roughing the passer penalty extended the drive, and Georgia Tech ended up scoring on an 11-yard TD pass from redshirt freshman James Graham to freshman Ahmarean Brown with 32 seconds left on the clock.

The score should have been anything but 21-3 at halftime, but that is what it was.

Three Things That Worked

1. Running the football

The Pack rushed 49 times for 230 yards and two touchdowns in the game, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. That was the most rushing yards in a game against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent (FBS) this season for NC State.

2. Passing the football in the second half

Redshirt freshman quarterback Devin Leary may have had his best half of the year in the second against the Jackets. He completed 10 of 16 passes for 163 yards with a touchdown after intermission. His throwing coupled with the running game meant that NC State scored on all four of its second-half possessions (three touchdowns and a field goal).

3. Not throwing in the towel

Down 21-3 on the road to a team some consider the worst in the ACC could have caused this team to give up, but instead it battled back and had a chance to win the game late. The lack of quit is good news ahead of a rivalry showdown against UNC with little but pride to play for.

Three Things That Did Not Work

1. Defending Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech’s offense, considered one of the most woeful in the ACC, had 395 total yards and 266 rushing yards, both season highs for the Yellow Jackets. In six of its prior 10 games, Tech had 305 or less total yards. Twice it had less than 200 yards.

2. Red-zone offense

Despite the defensive issues, NC State probably wins this game if its gets just one more touchdown in the red zone. Settling twice for short field goals and turning it over on downs once left way too many points on the board, continuing a season-wide issue.

3. First half

The bottom line is you cannot be trailing 21-3 on the road to Georgia Tech, a rebuilding team in transition to an entirely new system of offense. It was a difficult challenge having to play on the road on short rest after a late-night Saturday game, but regardless NC State needs to start better. NCSU has now been outscored 90-29 in the first quarter of games this year.

Position-By-Position Battles

NC State’s offensive line vs. Georgia Tech’s front

No sacks and only three quarterback hurries allowed, plus a successful rushing attack, for NC State spelled victory for the Pack’s offensive line.

Georgia Tech’s offensive line vs. NC State’s front

No sacks, only one quarterback hurry and an even more successful rushing attack spelled a bigger victory for the Jackets’ offensive line.

NC State’s wide receivers vs. Georgia Tech’s secondary

Fifth-year senior Tabari Hines had his best game of the season with four receptions for 88 yards, and redshirt freshman Devin Carter was solid with four catches for 46 yards. That said, outside of those two the rest of the receiving corps notched just five receptions for only 33 yards.

Georgia Tech’s wide receivers vs. NC State’s secondary

On the first play of the game sophomore Malachi Carter burned NC State redshirt freshman Malik Dunlap for a 74-yard gain. NCSU also had trouble covering Brown, who caught two touchdown passes. Georgia Tech didn’t test the secondary much because its quarterback is not a dangerous passer, but it got big results when it did.

Quarterbacks

Leary probably had a good enough performance, but Graham’s three touchdown passes and 122 rushing yards with an additional score on the ground outshone Leary.

Running backs

Freshmen Zonovan Knight (18 carries for 100 yards and a touchdown) and Jordan Houston (16 rushes for 89 yards) actually did better than Georgia Tech’s Jordan Mason, despite Mason running 22 times for 141 yards. Houston (three catches for 39 yards) and Knight (11-yard catch) both also did damage in the passing game.

Tight ends/fullbacks

It was not a big game for either teams’ tight ends, but redshirt junior Cary Angeline did haul in a touchdown reception for NC State.

Special teams

The muffed punt was one of the big differences in the game, and why Georgia Tech won the special teams battle.

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