NC State ran for 270 yards while holding off Wake Forest 45-42 in its season opener Saturday night.

The Wolfpack (1-0, 1-0 ACC) ran the ball 49 times compared to just 24 pass attempts and produced a total of 463 yards on offense against the Demon Deacons (0-2, 0-2 ACC).

“I thought we were physical, rushing the football the way we did,” NC State head coach Dave Doeren said. “It was a major point of emphasis with [offensive coordinator] Coach [Tim] Beck and [offensive line] Coach [John] Garrison and the whole offense, and the kids took pride in that. I think that helps us tremendously, just attitude-wise in what we want to do.”

Three NC State running backs received double-digit carries, led by junior Ricky Person Jr., who earned the start and led the team in carries (14), rushing yards (99), rushing touchdowns (2), and tied for the team lead in passing touchdowns (1). He also hauled in two receptions for 10 yards.

“Credit to my offensive line,” said Person “Those boys did a great job upfront tonight. I'm not going to sit here and say it was just like practice, but when you work for it in practice it becomes realistic in the game. It just made it easier for me. My reads were there tonight.”

Sophomore running backs Zonovan “Bam” Knight and Jordan Houston received several opportunities to add to the rushing attack as well.

Knight ran for 97 yards on 11 carries, including one score, which was good for a team-best 8.8 yards per carry after he led the team in the statistic in 2019. He added two receptions for 27 yards.

Houston was the most involved back in the passing game with three receptions for 20 yards. He also finished second on the team in carries (12) and gained 54 yards on the ground.

NC State’s top three running backs combined for 306 all-purpose yards and four of the Pack’s six touchdowns.

“I think it causes problems for defenses because they have different styles when they run the football,” Doeren said. “Those backs are hitting holes in different ways, they have different visions, they see things a little different. Keeping them fresh is going to keep them out there longer, too.”

It was an emotional night for Person, who was honored as the fifth captain Saturday after winning the starting job following problems with injuries in his first two seasons with the program.

“I'm speechless. I battled through a lot of injuries throughout my career. I just kept faith in God, my teammates encouraged me on a daily basis, [strength and conditioning coordinator] Coach Thunder [Dantonio Burnette], everyone. It was a long time coming for this moment, but it's just game one.”

The surprise of the night for the Wolfpack was not the effectiveness of the run game, but the situation at starting quarterback.

Just one hour before kickoff, the NC State football Twitter account announced that redshirt junior Bailey Hockman would be the starting quarterback for the opener despite redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary being the assumed starter throughout the entire offseason.

“Somewhere in the middle of [the 8-day break when students returned], Devin had to quarantine,” Doeren said. “He ended up being gone for almost 20 days and came back as our starter, but just was not there. He had some rust and was really just a victim of circumstance.”

Just like the Wolfpack offense, Hockman was nothing like his 2019 form Saturday night. He started hot, completing his first 13 pass attempts without a single incompletion until the midway point of the second quarter.

“My mindset coming into the game was just to focus and lock in,” Hockman said. “Just do my part, not trying to be Superman, not trying to do too much. My goal was just do my part, and I feel like I did that tonight. My teammates did a great job, and the O-Line blocked great. Over 250 yards rushing tonight — it's incredible.”

Hockman finished the night with 191 passing yards on 16-of-23 attempts for one touchdown and one interception. He also added 30 yards on the ground on eight carries, including one score..

He was listed as the second-string quarterback on NC State’s game-one depth chart that was released last Monday, but the redshirt junior says he found out that he would be the starter last week after competing with the mindset as the team’s starter throughout the offseason.

“Coach Beck sent me down and talked to me,” Hockman said. “Devin's done a great job also, so much credit to him. He's a great player. It is competition, at the end of the day. I'm just happy to be the guy for this team. I love these guys, and I'll do anything for them.

As for whether or not Hockman will be the starter moving forward following his performance Saturday, Doeren chose to keep that decision purposefully unpredictable.

“I'm going to enjoy the win tonight, and you guys can talk about that one,” Doeren replied.

Doeren was quick to admit that the defense will need to improve following Saturday’s high-scoring win, but there were still some positives to take away from the defensive effort.

One of which was graduate transfer defensive end Daniel Joseph, who made his first collegiate start Saturday night and sealed the game with a third down sack of Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman on the Deacs’ final possession of the game.

“It was definitely crucial, but at the end of the day I was just tackling, getting the job done,” Joseph said. “My job is to get the quarterback, so that's what I had to do.”

The Toronto native that transferred from Penn State this offseason led the Wolfpack in sacks (2) and tied for second on the team in tackles for loss (2). On top of his destruction in the Wake Forest backfield, he finished the night with five total tackles (two solo) and was one of two NC State defenders to register a quarterback hurry on Hartman.

“It wasn't just about me, it's about the team,” Joseph said. “I know these guys have had their history with Wake Forest. I just wanted to come in and impact the game as best as I possibly can in a positive way.”

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