NC State football defied the odds all season and will now conclude the 2020 campaign with its second appearance in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in three years.

The prospect of college football in 2020 was very much in doubt this summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Wolfpack was one of a small handful of teams that were able to play an entire regular season.

Simply playing all 11 regular-season contests was an accomplishment worthy of celebration this fall, but the Pack was able to flip a disappointing 4-8 campaign in 2019 into an 8-3 record in 2020 which includes a program-record seven ACC wins.

NC State finished the regular season ranked No. 23 in the College Football Playoff rankings and will have the opportunity to post its third nine-win campaign in four years.

For redshirt junior quarterback Bailey Hockman, the team’s willingness to compete in a bowl game in a year in which most opted out reflects the entire body of work from the 2020 Wolfpack.

“It's just been a statement to how our team has handled this whole year 2020 and COVID,” Hockman said. “It's almost unbelievable because at the beginning of the season, we're sitting here thinking if we were even going to play. Then we end up playing 11, going 8-3 and overcoming big wins. It's just a statement to the program, and we just want to play and win and continue to grow. Continue this winning streak we've been on and bring it into next year.”

NC State is one of six ACC teams competing in a bowl game in the next two weeks despite the fact that several more could have been eligible for bids. Virginia Tech, Boston College and Virginia were notable regional programs among several others nationwide that decided to opt-out of bowl consideration, most likely due to the sheer exhaustion of playing a season unlike any other through a pandemic.

For the Wolfpack players, however, playing in a bowl game was the final step in what has already been a successful season. While players from other schools understandably were ready to pack it in to celebrate the holiday season without worrying about COVID protocols, the Pack players wanted one last opportunity to compete.

“I think it just goes back to our DNA,” sophomore left tackle Ikem “Ickey” Ekwonu said. “Every time you put the ball down, every time you start something, you want to finish it. I feel like if we opted out of the bowl game, that kind of would be just quitting on the season. With the season we've had so far, we definitely want to finish strong.”

For some of the veteran players on the roster, getting another opportunity to compete against an SEC school in Jacksonville adds some appeal.

NC State last played in the Gator Bowl in 2018 but was crushed 52-13 by Texas A&M. The memory of the Pack’s most recent bowl game appearance is still fresh in the minds of some that were around two seasons ago.

“We get to go back to Jacksonville, where we didn't perform well last time,” redshirt junior linebacker and team captain Isaiah Moore said. “We get to rewrite the story there, so we're thankful for the opportunity.”

Getting the chance to close the 2020 season on a five-game winning streak isn’t the only positive of the Wolfpack’s bowl appearance. It also gives the younger players more time to develop and get a head start for next season before the team goes its separate ways until spring practice begins in 2021.

“It's really really good for the younger guys that are going to need to step up next year because they get the 20 extra practices or however many it is,” Hockman said. “It's really good for those guys, they're getting a lot of reps. It'll be good for our young receivers and young offensive linemen for just development.”

In a college football season that lacked notable non-conference matchups due to scheduling logistics, including several traditional rivalries between the ACC and SEC, NC State will also have a chance to represent its conference against a team from the self-proclaimed best league in the sport.

“They're always talking, 'Oh, we're the number one conference,'” Hockman said. “But we'll see about that.”

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