Here are quick hits and notes from NC State football's 36-29 road win over Syracuse in front of an empty Carrier Dome in Syracuse Saturday afternoon:

Going into this game, one positive development for Syracuse was the emergence of promising true freshman running back Sean Tucker.

In his previous six games since seeing his role elevated, here is Tucker’s stat lines:

• Sept. 19 vs. Georgia Tech: 24 carries for 112 yards and two touchdowns

• Oct. 10 vs. Duke: 12 carries for 53 yards

• Oct. 17 vs. Liberty: 21 carries for 111 yards

• Oct. 24 at Clemson: 10 carries for 63 yards and a touchdown

• Nov. 7 vs. Boston College: 11 carries for 52 yards

• Nov. 20 at Louisville: 16 carries for 93 yards

Totaled up, that was 94 runs for 484 yards (5.1 yards per rush) and three scores since he was given a feature role on offense.

Against the Wolfpack, Tucker ran 16 times for 18 yards. Overall, Syracuse had a season-low three yards rushing as a team once sacks are factored into the totals. The Orange has been a poor rushing team, averaging just 86.7 yards per game, which was 121st out of 127 Football Bowl Subdivision teams coming into Saturday.

Their previous worst effort of the year had been 28 yards against Duke, and that was due to six sacks that cost 34 yards. NC State had a pair of sacks for a loss of 14 yards.

If there are stats that head coach Dave Doeren emphasizes above all others its turnovers.

Since 2013 and prior to Saturday, in games when the Pack turned it over multiple times, its record was 10-27..

When the Wolfpack lost the turnover margin while simultaneously committing at least two turnovers, NC State is 2-22 under Doeren. The two victories were over FCS member Richmond in 2013 on a last-minute field goal and a 28-23 home victory over Boston College in 2018.

Hence why Doeren preaches turnovers.

Saturday would prove to be that rare exception to the rule.

NC State turned it over twice, but it could have been worse. It fumbled four times in the contest but was able to recover three of them, including one in the end zone by sophomore running back Zonovan "Bam" Knight for a score. Syracuse did not turn it over once.

That marked just the third time in 25 games under Doeren in which NC State had multiple turnovers and lost the turnover margin yet still won.

Senior receiver Emeka Emezie’s four catches for 33 yards and a touchdown gives him 1,958 career receiving yards, moving him past Jakobi Meyers of the New England Patriots and former NFL standout Mike Quick into seventh place all-time in career receiving yards list at NC State.

Emezie needs 42 yards to become just the seventh Wolfpack to have 2,000 career yards, although he may be hard-pressed to catch Nasrallah Worthen in sixth place on the list (2,247 yards).

Redshirt sophomore Devin Carter caught three passes for 76 yards, just three yards off his season-high.

The big story was redshirt junior Thayer Thomas, who had a yo-yo month of football. It started with just one catch for nine yards against Miami on Nov. 6. Eight days later, he had a career-best 11 receptions for 135 yards and two scores in the win over Florida State.

Last week vs. Liberty, Thomas was shut out. Then on Saturday, he finished with nine receptions for 102 yards and a career-high three touchdowns.

The following scholarship players were not on the active list for Saturday’s game at Syracuse:

Sophomore safety Rakeim Ashford

Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Derrick Eason

Redshirt junior safety Max Fisher

Redshirt freshman nickel Jalen Frazier

Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Joshua Harris

Senior corner Chris Ingram

Redshirt junior defensive lineman Dante Johnson

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary

Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Zovon Lindsay

Redshirt freshman safety Khalid Martin

Redshirt freshman offensive lineman Timothy McKay

Redshirt sophomore receiver Jasiah Provillon

Sixth-year senior offensive lineman Tyrone Riley

Junior corner Teshaun Smith

Ashford, McKay and Smith have been officially ruled out for the season, while Leary and Martin are likely gone for the remainder of the year, too. Frazier and Ingram have not played this season after suffering injuries last spring and fall, respectively.

This is the sixth consecutive game Eason has missed, and for Riley it’s five in a row. Provillon has now not play in the last seven games.

NC State is 7-3 overall and 6-3 in the ACC, while Syracuse falls to 1-9 for the season and 1-8 in the league. The six conference victories match NC State's program-best for most ACC wins in a year, assures NC State of a winning conference record and left the Pack 3-0 in games against Atlantic Division teams.

NC State also closed the month of November with a 3-1 record. That's not unusual. It's the fifth time under Doeren that the Pack had such a mark in the month.

The Wolfpack now leads the all-time series against Syracuse 12-2, including 6-2 since the Orange joined the ACC, all of which came with Doeren as head coach. The Pack is 6-1 in games played at Syracuse.

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