Notebook: Ryan Finley plays his final game for the Wolfpack
NC State quarterback Ryan Finley is a good bet to hear his name called at some point in the NFL Draft in a few months. He will then join a league full of Pack former signal callers — Philip Rivers, Russell Wilson, Mike Glennon and Jacoby Brissett.
Finley etched his name in the record books among those former Pack greats, finishing his career second all-time behind Rivers in passing yards.
“It’s an honor,” Finley said to be mentioned in their names. “It’s definitely something I didn’t take lightly as I was playing here.”
Next season’s success will depend largely upon who replaces Finley, but head coach Dave Doeren noted that the two in the program this year who watched him prepare — redshirt freshman Matt McKay and freshman Devin Leary — had “an incredible role model.”
“I'm blessed to have been in his life as a coach. He thanked me after the game for the opportunity, and I thanked him for letting me coach him the way he did,” Doeren said.
Finley is part of a senior class that has left its mark at NC State with back-to-back nine win seasons.
“It's a great group of guys,” Doeren added. “Losing the game is hard, but losing these players is harder.”
Odds are that Finley will be hanging around the program at some point down the road, and perhaps getting a chance to see his younger brother Ben Finley, a class of 2020 Wolfpack commit from Paradise Valley High in Phoenix, play in the red and white uniform.
“I’m excited to one day call Raleigh my home,” Finley said. "I’m going to be a very proud alumni. I'm excited for my brother to get here in a couple of years. … Some of my best moments in my entire life happened in Carter-Finley.”
Texas A&M overwhelms the Wolfpack
Big plays doomed NC State on both sides of the ball against Texas A&M.
NCSU was trailing 21-13 at halftime and drove to the Aggies 25-yard line to start the second half. If the Pack scored a touchdown there, Doeren has to make a decision about potentially going for two before sending a motivated defense out on the field eager to get a stop.
But on third and three, Finley’s pass to redshirt freshman receiver Thayer Thomas was intercepted by Texas A&M junior linebacker Tyrel Dodson and returned 78 yards for a touchdown.
“We got into a rhythm early which was nice, and we were moving the ball,” Finley said. “We ran the ball really well at times. We just had that costly pick six that really shook the momentum. Can’t really have that. Hats off to them, they did some really good things … We couldn’t get into a rhythm after that pick six.”
On the other side of the ball, Texas A&M junior running back Trayveon Williams ran wild in the second half. He accounted for all 82 yards and the touchdown on five straight runs in A&M’s first possession after the break, and then he set a Gator Bowl record with a 93-yard score the next time the Aggies got the ball.
Those were all part of 45 straight points scored by Texas A&M after NC State led 13-7 in the second quarter.
“He's very shifty, and he’s very fast,” senior defensive end Darian Roseboro noted. “Also I think it was mental errors on our part. You can’t make mental mistakes against a very good team.”
Texas A&M’s first score was a 62-yard touchdown run from sophomore quarterback Kellen Mond.
Stellar season for kicker Christopher Dunn
One highlight for NC State was freshman kicker Christopher Dunn. He made field goals of 43 and 49 yards, the latter a new career-long, to finish his record-breaking rookie season connecting on 23 of 26 field goal attempts. That is a new school record for most field goals made in a year.
Dunn, as he has done throughout the season, was quick to credit the leadership of senior specialists A.J. Cole, the punter, and Tyler Griffiths, the long snapper.
“Being able to have seniors in that role really helped me as a freshman coming into the program,” Dunn said.
This offseason, Dunn wants to work on adding height to his kicks. But getting that 49-yarder will add to his already strong self-confidence. He'll also likely be the kickoff specialist next year.
“It really felt great coming off my foot,” Dunn noted. “Especially being in an NFL stadium — that was awesome.”
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