NC State Wolfpack football scored an impressive road win Saturday afternoon, winning 38-21 at Virginia to improve to 3-1, both overall and in conference action.
It’s time for a final look at the contest with some Monday morning quarterbacking.
Key Moment Of The Game
After a rare miss from inside 40 yards from NC State junior field goal kicker Christopher Dunn, Virginia took over at its own 20 early in the fourth quarter trailing the Wolfpack 24-14. It was an opportunity to completely change the trajectory of a game that at that point the Pack led 24-14.
Instead, junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill made a play that would go viral over the weekend.
Three Things That Worked
1. Starting fast. There were two notable opportunities Virginia presented NC State based on the Cavaliers' first two games. One of them was a chance to begin strong. Virginia had been outscored by a combined 20-0 in the first quarters of its win at home over Duke and road loss to top-ranked Clemson.
NC State continued that trend by racing out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead that extended to 24-0 before Virginia got on the board with a late first-half TD.
2. Winning the turnover margin. The other opportunity that awaited NC State, and head coach Dave Doeren touched on this earlier in the week when previewing the matchup, was the potential to finally get some turnovers. Virginia had turned it over five times in the first two games, including four interceptions.
NC State had yet to, officially, have an interception this year, and the lone turnover it had was when McNeill forced a fumble against Wake Forest in the season opener. McNeill obviously came through again with the big pick six Saturday. That was one of three interceptions and a fumble that the Wolfpack defense created. Meanwhile, NC State turned it over just once.
3. Winning the ground game. The early returns on the running game Saturday for NC State were not positive, but credit to offensive coordinator Tim Beck for sticking with it. The Pack had just 21 yards rushing at the end of the first quarter, but by the end of the afternoon it finished with a respectable total of 179 yards, which was more than the 137 yards Clemson had a week before.
Meanwhile, the Cavs, who missed the dual-threat abilities of starting quarterback Brennan Armstrong after he was knocked out of the game in the first half, would finish with just 82 yards on the ground.
Three Things That Didn't Work
1. Second-half passing attack. Whether it was the wet conditions or redshirt sophomore Devin Leary was simply off, or perhaps both, the bottom line is that NC State had little success throwing the football after halftime.
Leary was 9-of-16 passing for 139 yards and two scores in the first half, but he was just 2 of 9 after the break for 45 yards with an interception.
2. Cashing in all the opportunities. When Wolfpack redshirt junior linebacker Vi Jones blocked a punt following Virginia's first possession of the second half, NC State was leading 24-7 and took over at the Virginia 15-yard line. Leary though would be intercepted in the end zone three plays later.
And as good as it was to have three picks on defense, there were quite a few that were also dropped along the way.
3. Not finishing Virginia off earlier. No. 1 and 2 combined to help create a game in which NC State was clearly a better football team yet still the outcome was somewhat in doubt in the fourth quarter. McNeill made a great play to seal the victory, but it probably should not have come to that point.
Position-By-Position Battles
NC State’s offensive line vs. Virginia's defensive front
Virginia's defense is built around creating havoc and disruption in the backfield, but NC State won this battle and prevented that from happening. The Cavs had five sacks vs. Duke and a pair at Clemson, but did not register a single one on Saturday against the Wolfpack.
Virginia's offensive line vs. NC State’s defensive front
The Cavs' older, experienced offensive line was supposed to be the strength of the Virginia offense, but NC State had six tackles for loss and three sacks. It is the most TFLs allowed in a game this year by the Cavs and tied Clemson for the most takedowns of the quarterback.
Plus there was a dramatic goal line stand by the Wolfpack in the first half. Thus this was a win for NC State.
NC State’s wide receivers vs. Virginia’s secondary
The Wolfpack wideouts made three very impressive catches against tight coverage, and all from different players — freshman Porter Rooks, redshirt junior Thayer Thomas and senior Emeka Emezie. That said, it was a modest but not great game receiving the ball for the Pack. This ended in a draw.
Virginia's wide receivers vs. NC State’s secondary
Yes, Virginia ended up with 324 passing yards, but it took 64 pass attempts. That equates to a pedestrian 5.1 yards per pass attempt. In addition to the three interceptions, NC State had seven pass breakups.
Thus this was either a draw or even a slight win for the Wolfpack.
Quarterbacks
You have to give Virginia backup senior quarterback Lindell Stone credit for walking into a tough situation after Armstrong's injury and throwing for 240 yards and three scores with an interception, but that one pick was a backbreaker.
Leary was inconsistent, but first-half Leary was the best quarterback in the game.
Running backs
Wolfpack sophomore running back Zonovan Knight was easily the best back on the field this afternoon, running 18 times for 101 yards and two scores and often times gaining tough yards after contact.
Tight ends/fullbacks
NC State fifth-year senior Cary Angeline continues to just catch touchdowns. He hauled in his fourth of the season when he caught a 32-yarder on a reverse flea flicker. That was one more yard that Virginia's Tony Poljan had on all of his seven catches combined, although Poljan also had a score.
Special teams
This was a tough one.
NC State blocked a punt and received a nice punt return of 17 yards from Thomas. Redshirt junior punter Trenton Gill also pinned the Cavs at the 3 and 9-yard lines. That said, Dunn had a rare afternoon where he missed two field goals.
Virginia had a well-executed fake punt that went for a 26-yard gain to sustain what turned out to be a touchdown drive, but it also had a kickoff land out of bounds and shanked a punt that went only 19 yards before being marked at the Virginia 40-yard line.
The best way to grade it was a draw.
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