10/18/2020 football Edit

NC State facing injury questions at several positions

Matt Carter • TheWolfpackCentral

Editor

Last season, head coach Dave Doeren and the NC State Wolfpack football program faced a situation that went well past just being “banged up.”

Now after five games and a 4-1 record, Doeren’s team is approaching injury issues once again, although not yet to the extremes of 2019.

The biggest blow came Saturday when redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary slid awkwardly while being hit late and his left fibula was fractured as a result. Leary underwent surgery Sunday morning to repair the break, and optimistically he might be able to return for the final few games of the season.

Leary was starting to fulfill the potential of his four-star status coming out of high school, completing 65 of 109 passes for 879 yards and eight touchdowns with just two picks this season before the injury.

NC State Wolfpack football quarterback Devin Leary — Leary gave a thumbs up after breaking his leg in the win over Duke. (Ethan Hyman/News & Observer)

His certain replacement has experience. Redshirt junior Bailey Hockman has completed 27 of 46 passes for 316 yards and two scores while playing in three games this year, and overall he is 2-2 as a starter, all ACC games, for the Wolfpack. The main issue for Hockman: interceptions. He has three this year, one of which was returned for a touchdown and another that was a near-pick six. He had two more that nearly occurred against Duke.

Behind Hockman will be a pair of freshmen who have never thrown passes in a college game. True freshman Ben Finley, younger brother of Wolfpack legend Ryan Finley, quickly impressed coaches and emerged from fall camp ahead of redshirt freshman Ty Evans. Evans was the more touted of the two coming out of high school. Evans was a Gatorade Player of the Year in Colorado and an Elite 11 participant.

With Leary out and Hockman in, the offense is likely to change at least some. Hockman is more likely to be asked to manage the game whereas Leary displayed more ability to make plays, especially downfield.

Quarterback, however, is not the only position facing issues. The situation at offensive tackle may be getting dire. NC State played Saturday without the services of fifth-year senior Justin Witt, redshirt sophomore Derrick Eason Jr. and redshirt freshman Timothy McKay. Then during the win over Duke, sixth-year senior Tyrone Riley had to leave with an apparently leg/foot injury.

That is the entire first and second string for NC State on the season-opening two-deep at offensive tackle. Doeren still has options, but they are not many. Sophomore Ikem Ekwonu, who might arguably be NC State’s best offensive tackle but started the first four games this year at left guard to get the best five linemen on the field, is a natural to slide back out.

Redshirt junior Bryson Speas, who started six games at right tackle in 2019 but was anticipating playing this year at his more natural guard position, will likely be the next option. A couple of freshmen who have not played — redshirt Zovon Lindsay and summer-time enrollee Patrick Matan, will presumably be next in line at offensive tackle if none of the other four can return for the UNC game in Chapel Hill on Saturday.

Another question facing NC State is the status of the captain of its secondary, junior safety Tanner Ingle. He effectively missed the first two games of the season, only playing a couple of snaps in the opener, and then had to leave before halftime of the victory over Duke with a leg injury. Ingle has 19 tackles and two pass breakups when healthy and on the field. He also missed the second half of the win at Virginia due to a targeting penalty ejection.

Ingle’s status is key because NC State previously lost two safeties for the season in sophomore Rakeim Ashford and redshirt freshman Khalid Martin. The Pack still has sophomore Jakeen Harris, who has started the first five games of the year, but if Ingle cannot go that means it would be missing three of its top four safeties.

True freshman Devan Boykin and redshirt sophomore former walk-on Isaac Duffy played the second half against Duke after Harris had earlier been ejected for targeting. Boykin in particular has gained valuable reps this season and has 11 tackles and two pass breakups.