Here are some the thoughts from those who covered NC State Wolfpack football's 48-21 loss at UNC Saturday afternoon.
• Matt Carter, TheWolfpacker.com — Column: Finding perspective after that loss
There’s no beating around the bush: it was ugly.
When junior running back Javonte Williams ran untouched for a 27-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, it was emblematic of the afternoon for the NC State Wolfpack football team.
Far too often, UNC’s 1-2 punch of Williams and senior Michael Carter, arguably the best running back combination in the country, were getting into the Wolfpack secondary. And an afternoon of trying to tackle those two, particularly Williams, can leave a toll to the point where defenders are suddenly a step slower getting to the point of impact.
The reality is that North Carolina is in a good position offensively right now. It has a NFL quarterback and two NFL running backs in its backfield. A few of their receivers, particularly junior Dyami Brown, will have a chance to play professionally.
It’s a ton of skill talent, and truthfully mostly of it was left behind by second-year head coach Mack Brown’s predecessor Larry Fedora.
Even the best defenses would have a hard time stopping the Heels when the offense is clicking. Howell completed 11 of his first 15 passes after three drives. That’s clicking.
Throw in missed tackles (a lot of them), and it became clear NC State was going to have a hard time stopping UNC.
UNC jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead and the Pack decided to put freshman Ben Finley into the game.
Finley, the younger brother of former NC State and current Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Ryan Finley, came in to begin the fourth drive with 11:59 remaining in the second quarter and immediately gave the offense a new wind.
According to NC State head coach Dave Doeren, it was the plan all along.
“Ben went in and kind of sparked us there in the first half and I was happy to see that,” Doeren said. “Our plan was to play him in one series in the first half. Obviously, we didn't do much in the first two series. He came in and sparked us and we stayed with him.”
He opened with an eight-play, 61-yard drive which should have ended with a 14-yard touchdown to pull the Pack within one score.
Instead, Finley’s pass on first-and-goal was bobbled in the end zone by fifth-year senior tight end Dylan Parham which allowed North Carolina defensive back Don Chapman to intercept it for a touchback.
• Justin H. Williams, TheWolfpacker.com — Mack Brown says the third quarter made the difference
His 12th time playing the Wolfpack as head coach of the Tar Heels, Brown understands how emotional the rivalry game can get. Despite the lopsided final score, the veteran head coach said he was pleased with the sportsmanship considering the outside noise that comes along when these two teams meet.
“I want to applaud State, Coach Doeren and their assistants because I thought it was a clean game,” Brown said. ”A lot of times this game can be chippy. A lot of pushing and shoving, late hits and fighting and there wasn't any of that that I could tell at all. Credit to both teams that they handled their emotions well and did the things that they were supposed to do.”
As hype videos go, N.C. State had a winner posted on social media channels prior to Saturday’s game at North Carolina. The game footage was standard in what would be seen from any school, but a voice over added the punctuation by asking, “What’s a ram to a wolf?” before the word “prey” flashed in red letters.
Best believe, the No. 14 Tar Heels saw it before the game too and the message wasn’t well received in their locker room. But they didn’t respond on Twitter, they took it to the field. North Carolina rolled up 578 yards in total offense, allowed just 34 rushing yards and forced four turnovers in its 48-21 win over the No. 23 Wolfpack. Afterwards, quarterback Sam Howell had something to say about the video, too.
“That’s more for them just to give them some false confidence before the game,” Howell said during his postgame video conference with reporters. “We don’t really care about them. I mean, we know what a ram is to a wolf, I think we saw it out there (Saturday.) It could have been a lot worse than it was. So I’m not going to say anything else about that.”
The last time N.C. State paid a visit to Kenan Stadium, it ended with a fight in the end zone.
In their latest trip to Chapel Hill there wasn’t a fight, but the Tar Heels were definitely throwing hay makers early and often. By the third quarter it was clear that No. 14 UNC was tougher this particular day, the more physical team from start to finish in their 48-21 win over the No. 23 Wolfpack.
The Tar Heels (4-1, 4-1) rushed for 326 yards and amassed 578 yards for the game. The Wolfpack (4-2, 4-2) established a solid ground game during its three-game streak, but only managed to gain 34 on Saturday.
It didn’t help that N.C. State didn’t have quarterback Devin Leary and at one point relied on freshman Ben Finley. It also didn’t help much that running back Ricky Person went down with a concussion in the first quarter. It’s really not clear if it would have mattered.
North Carolina, especially on offense, was more physical; finishing runs, finishing blocks, taking the fight to the Wolfpack and not letting up.
Too much balance and firepower for North Carolina.
Too many mistakes for North Carolina State to have a chance of keeping up.
Javonte Williams and Michael Carter delivered another big double-barreled rushing effort and the 14th-ranked Tar Heels forced four turnovers on defense on the way to a 48-21 pounding of the 23rd-ranked Wolfpack in Atlantic Coast Conference football Saturday afternoon at Kenan Stadium.
For the first time in 27 years, these primary adversaries squared off with both holding national rankings. And for the second time in as many seasons, North Carolina reduced the rivalry to a rout. The Tar Heels led 38-7 late in the third quarter and 45-14 early in the fourth quarter.
Williams rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns — the hard-running junior has piled up 11 touchdowns in five games this season — while Carter added 106 rushing yards and a score. North Carolina’s offense amassed 578 total yards, with 326 yards churned out on the ground.
• Joe Giglio, WRALSportsFan — Patient Tar Heels power past NC State
North Carolina finally got a win over NC State with a Finley at quarterback.
The 14th-ranked Tar Heels got 160 yards and three touchdowns from running back Javonte Williams to beat No. 23 NC State 48-21 at home on Saturday afternoon.
In the first game between the two rivals as ranked opponents since 1993, UNC (4-1, 4-1 ACC) used a patient running game, with 100-yard efforts from both Williams and Michael Carter (106 yards, one touchdown), and four turnovers to beat the Wolfpack (4-2, 4-2) for the second straight year.
"We did the things that you need to do to win ball games," UNC coach Mack Brown said, noting the success on the ground and the turnovers.
NC State, playing without injured quarterback Devin Leary, went to the bench in the second quarter for freshman quarterback Ben Finley, whose older brother Ryan went 3-0 against UNC and once called Kenan Stadium "Carter-Finley North."
• Jaylan Harrington, Technician —Ben Finley finds the field, further complicates QB carousel
NC State head coach Dave Doeren mentioned in his weekly press conference that he prefers not to play true freshmen, citing a lack of experience and a lack of physical development in a college weight room. Most coaches feel that way. But with injuries piling up, becoming an obstacle rather than just a nuisance, multiple young players have been forced into action.
At different parts of the year, it’s been different players stepping up: freshman safety Devan Boykin against Virginia Tech, freshman nickel Josh Pierre-Louis against Pittsburgh, redshirt sophomore corner Isaac Duffy against Duke. Most of the casualties came on the defensive side, but now, the offense is hurting.
NC State’s missing the most important piece a football team can have: its quarterback. Redshirt sophomore Devin Leary is done for the season, and the offense looks rough without him. After scoring at least 30 points in each start Leary made, the Wolfpack mustered just 21 points with a late garbage-time touchdown against UNC Saturday.
Redshirt junior quarterback Bailey Hockman started the game and was ineffective, 1-4 in the first quarter with just 7 yards passing. Still, it was surprising to see true freshman quarterback Ben Finley take the field in the second quarter. Hockman wasn’t the reason for NC State’s deficit. Down 14-0, though, Doeren wanted a spark and Finley delivered on that desire.
——
• Talk about it inside The Wolves' Den
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolfpacker
• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolfpacker
• Like us on Facebook
