NC State took care of business and also showed off some different wrinkles this season offensively in rolling past Connecticut 41-10 on Saturday.
NCSU improved to 4-0 overall and play at No. 5-ranked Clemson at 7:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC. The Wolfpack Central reviews the various components of the UConn victory.
Most important play
NC State senior wide receiver Thayer Thomas went up for the downfield pass, caught it at the UConn 38-yard line with two defensive backs in the vicinity, and out-sprinted safety Malik Dixon-Williams to the end zone on the first play of the game. NC State never trailed from there.
Three game balls
1. Quarterback Devin Leary
Leary dominated the game passing the ball. He went 32-of-44 passing for 320 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. He was in complete control, except for a couple of plays he’d like to have back. The offensive line also did a good job of protecting him with UConn getting two sacks and three quarterback hurries on the night. It proved to be the perfect tune-up before the Clemson game.
2. Wide receiver Thayer Thomas
The senior led the Wolfpack with five catches for a team-high 115 yards and the 75-yard touchdown. He helped set the tone and opened up the offense from the start and helped put Connecticut on its heels. Thomas also did some of the dirty work over the middle and he was targeted a team-best eight times.
3. Safety Sean Brown
Redshirt freshman safety Sean Brown served notice during the spring game last April that he was a player to watch. With NC State short-handed in the secondary due to injury, he was turned loose for much of the second half and actually led the Wolfpack with seven tackles. The former Cornelius (N.C.) Hough product is a heavy hitter and special teams presence, who is fierce in run support.
Key statistic advantage
The story of the game was that UConn completed 10 passes for 39 yards, which led to going 2 of 12 on third-down conversions, plus 0 of 2 on fourth-down attempts. Freshman quarterback Zion Turner was expected to be the backup this season, but injuries caused him to take over midway through the first quarter of the season opener. He’s not ready for this big of stage yet.
In turn, NC State passed for 323 yards and four touchdowns, and went 10 of 14 on third-down conversions.
What NC State did well
The big 75-yarder to Thomas will be on the highlight clips and get the easy attention, but the major take-away from the win was the short controlled passing game. NC State came out with a purpose in the passing game, throwing a variety of quick outs, flair passes or bubble passes. It led to five wide receivers to catch at least five passes apiece.
It led to Leary completing 73 percent of his passes, and it also opened up the offense to try passing the ball 44 times in the game. Considering it wasn’t a competitive game, he could have reached 60 passing attempts if the game was semi-competitive.
What needs improvement
Not much to nit-pick in this one, with the hope that no players got injured enough to miss the Clemson game. NC State only scored one touchdown in the second half, which was the reasoning behind playing Leary for part of the fourth quarter. The fake field-goal attempt with kicker Christopher Dunn didn’t work out, and might not have been needed.
Follow on Twitter:
@NCStateRivals or @JaceyZembal
Subscribe for free on YouTube:
For Jacey Zembal or The Wolfpack Central
Like on Facebook:
ATTENTION SUBSCRIBERS: Our NETWORK-WIDE, all-access pass allows you to read every premium message board in the Rivals.com network as part of a bundled add-on to your subscription!
Subscribers can add the All-Access Pass or a 3-Site Bundle in your account profile, under the Subscriptions tab: HERE
