Here are some the thoughts from those who covered NC State Wolfpack football's 23-13 win over Georgia Tech on Saturday evening.
• Matt Carter, TheWolfpacker.com — Column: Dave Doeren's finest work
This Wolfpack team turned out to be pretty good after all, and somehow it managed to finish its entire season, on-time. It joined a 6-5 Boston College squad and a 1-10 Syracuse team as the only other conference members to be so fortunate.
NC State concluded the year at 8-3 overall and 7-3 in the ACC. No other team in the history of Wolfpack football can boast more conference wins. Yes, it played two more games than any of its counterparts, but you still will not find many more NC State teams of the past that won 70 percent or better of its league games.
The Wolfpack did it while suffering a season-ending injury to its starting quarterback on offense while trying to patch together a secondary on defense due to a combination of injuries and an unfortunate penchant for committing automatic ejection targeting penalties.
NC State overcame that to nearly inverse its 4-8 record from 2019, during which it went 1-7 in the ACC.
It also did it while keeping the team together with no known opt-outs at any point. All you need to be is a follower of a few national football beat writers in football on Twitter to know that is a rare occurrence across the country.
Unlike any Senior Day before it, the seven-percent capacity crowd celebrated a graduating class that will still have the option to return next season because of a free year of eligibility granted by the NCAA this fall due to the volatile circumstances the COVID-19 pandemic has presented.
The only Wolfpack player that was known to be playing his last game was McNeill, who had announced Saturday morning that he would be entering the 2021 NFL Draft following the season.
“It was a series of weeks of talking to my parents, Coach [Charley] Wiles and Coach Doeren to figure out what the best thing was for me,” McNeill said. “I thought that was to enter the 2021 NFL Draft. I was really not focused on that this season. I was just trying to let my play do the talking, and I have so far. It was a lot of talking and meetings with my parents and coaches to come up with that decision.”
The 6-2, 320-pounder tallied two tackles and helped the Pack hold Georgia Tech, a team that averaged 25.8 points per contest entering the matchup, to just one touchdown and two field goals throughout the night.
NC State will not know its bowl game destination for another two weeks, but McNeill’s plan, for now, is to play in it. The Raleigh-native from Sanderson High will join a long list of former Wolfpack players in recent years to turn pro, including notables such as Bradley Chubb, B.J. Hill, Kentavius Street, Larrell Murchison, James Smith-Williams and Justin Jones.
“I've grown a bunch,” McNeill said. “When I came in, I had never played D-line. To do some of the stuff I do now is kind of crazy. This is only my third year playing that position. I've just seen myself grow so much here as a person through college and living on my own.”
N.C. State sure does like to make things interesting.
The Wolfpack won its fourth-straight game but kept fans on the edge of their seats as they beat Georgia Tech, 23-13, to end the 2020 regular season.
With the win, N.C. State finishes a unique 2020 season with eight wins, seven of those against ACC opponents.
Georgia Tech (3-6, 3-5) hadn’t dropped a game in Raleigh since the 2000 season and almost rushed their way to a sixth straight win in Carter-Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack defense, though, came up with a stop on fourth down, the third of the game, to secure a win on Senior Day.
Junior kicker Christopher Dunn connected on three field goals, breaking the school record for made field goals (56). His fourth-quarter field goal from 39-yards away (the record breaker) were the first points of the second half for N.C. State.
When N.C. State returned to camp in August, COVID reared its ugly head once again. The Wolfpack had to stop all football activities and reschedule what was supposed to be its season opener at Virginia Tech. Just when it seemed things were getting somewhat on track for the team, starting quarterback Devin Leary went down with a season-ending injury in October and all hope seemed to be lost after the team dropped the next two games, including a blowout loss at rival North Carolina.
But this team was different. This team, resilient as ever, took one shot of adversity after another, dating to spring practice, but never batted an eye. This team won four in a row to close out the regular season, including Saturday’s 23-13 win over Georgia Tech, to finish 8-3 overall, seven of those wins coming against ACC opponents, a first for N.C. State.
This team had several reasons to pack it in, but one thing about this group, they were nothing like the group from 2019. They could take it on the chin and get back up and perform.
“We stood back up,” senior wide receiver Emeka Emezie said. “Every single game we stood back up through adversity. We learned from it last year, and we brought back guys and different people stepped up in leadership roles.”
The Wolfpack trailed 29-20 with just under six minutes remaining in the third quarter against the Orange, which entered the game as the last-place team in the ACC standings.
But State found a way to get it done at the Carrier Dome, ending its road slate with a 3-2 record. Doeren, who earned his first ACC win against the Orange in 2014, saw his squad make the necessary plays in the game’s pivotal moments.
"I’m just happy to win a game," Doeren said. "Winning ugly is OK. It’s a lot better than losing, I can tell you that. We’ll take it."
Nursing a seven-point lead with less than a minute left, the Wolfpack allowed the Orange to advance to the 10-yard line with 30 seconds remaining. Despite the shaky situation, linebacker Payton Wilson took down Syracuse quarterback Rex Culpepper on third-and-goal to ice the game.
By the end of the game, N.C. State had overcome two turnovers, a safety, a pair of failed two-point conversions, a special-teams touchdown and a fumble at the goal line.
The result: A third win in a row for the Wolfpack, which matched a program record with its sixth conference victory in a single season.
• Joe Giglio, WRALSportsFan — NC State tops GeorgiaTech to cap 7-3 ACC season
Nothing went right for NC State last year.
That was last year.
The Wolfpack came full circle on Saturday with a 23-13 home win over Georgia Tech.
Ricky Person and Bam Knight each ran for a touchdown as NC State capped off its ACC schedule with a 7-3 record.
The Wolfpack (8-3 overall) was 1-7 in the league last season with a low point coming in a road loss the Yellow Jackets (3-6), the last-place team in the Coastal Division a year ago.
Even with starting quarterback Devin Leary sidelined with a broken leg the past six games, NC State has won four straight.
The Wolfpack will now wait for the ACC bowl selection process to see where it will play in the postseason. The Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla. and the Duke's Mayo Bowl in Charlotte are the most likely landing spots for Dave Doeren's eighth team.
With a 23-13 victory over Georgia Tech, NC State improved to 8-3 overall and 7-3 in the ACC. That’s not bad, especially for a team picked in the preseason to finish in the bottom third of the ACC.
A little over a year ago, NC State ended a nightmare season with a drubbing at home against UNC, a 41-10 blowout that dropped the Wolfpack to 4-8 overall and 1-7 in conference play. Afterward, the mood was dour. From the players to the coaches, everyone seemed done with the year and ready to put it behind them — everyone except Tabari Hines, a grad transfer receiver from Oregon, who was strikingly optimistic.
“I’ve been on a 3-9 team before,” Hines said after the UNC game. “I know how the offseason is [afterward], how seriously the coaches take it, and next year is a better year. I just keep telling the guys, ‘Regardless of how this season ends, next year is going to be way better. You’re going to feel how you felt last year and play with that passion every game.’”
Hines was right. Though a bunch of players entered the transfer portal and a bunch of coaches were fired, head coach Dave Doeren led this program to the second-biggest single-season improvement in conference win percentage the ACC has seen in the past three years.
“[I’m] just proud to be a part of this football team and these young men and this coaching staff,” Doeren said. “Looking at where we came from, a year ago, we had one ACC win, and now we have seven. That’s quite a year when you talk about improvement.”
• Kelly Quinlan, JacketsOnline.com —Shorthanded Jackets come up short in upset bid of NC State
For Tech head coach Geoff Collins, Saturday was a step in the right direction even in the scoreboard didn't come out in the Jackets' favor.
"Now that's a good team," Collins said of NC State. "We went toe to toe with him the entire game. And I think if anybody watched our game against him last year, both of the football teams that played tonight are just much better than we were this time. Last year, some unforced errors, some things happen outside of our control. But you know, proud of the way the guys competed, a bunch of young guys had to step up. Really proud of some of those guys that were on short notice had to jump in, and contribute and contribute at a high level. And, you know, and even on special teams, too. There are some guys out there that were out there in unchartered waters for themselves that were battling. But hats off to NC State."
The Jackets actually outgained the Wolfpack 412 to 397 in yardage, but Tech's 12 penalties for 111 yards compared to 7 for 78 for State was a huge difference in the game. The penalties along with the Wolfpack converting on four of five red-zone trips while Tech was 2-for-3 and failed to score one other time just outside of the red zone.
Everyone knew defense would be ahead of offense during Georgia Tech’s rebuild. Coach Geoff Collins is a defensive guy. Moving on from the triple-option was, as Collins frequently reminds us, a major endeavor. Give the Yellow Jackets time.
After 21 games with Collins, that gap remains wide. Tech’s defense gave a spirited effort at N.C. State on Saturday despite missing several key players. It’s still too much to ask for Tech’s offense to be effective in back-to-back weeks.
The Jackets lost 23-13 while scoring only two field goals after halftime. This came a week after piling up 523 yards and 49 points in a victory against Duke. N.C. State’s defense isn’t much better than Duke’s. Tech’s offense was just back to form with its usual foibles and frustrations.
“I thought the guys came out there and competed,” Collins said. “That’s a good team. We went toe-to-toe with them the entire game.”
Credit Tech’s depleted defense. The list of 10 unavailable Jackets players included two starters in the defensive backfield and one on the defensive line. The Jackets still held N.C. State to a field goal after halftime. They kept getting stops and waiting for Tech touchdowns that never came.
• Ken Sugiura, Atlanta Journal-Constitution — Shorthanded Georgia Tech loses on the road to NC State
Georgia Tech brought effort and resolve into a game where a slew of unavailable players drastically reduced its chances to win, starting with the absence of running back Jahmyr Gibbs. But, with opportunities to steal out of Raleigh, N.C., with an upset win over N.C. State, the Yellow Jackets fell short.
While outgaining the Wolfpack and controlling play in the second half, Tech took a 23-13 defeat Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium.
“Some unforced errors, some things happen outside of our control,” coach Geoff Collins said. “But, proud of the way the guys competed. A bunch of young guys had to step up. Really proud of some of those guys that on short notice had to jump in and contribute, and contribute at a high level.”
With the defense short five key defensive players, Tech came up with a number of impressive stops to stay in the game well into the fourth quarter. However, the Jackets’ inability to score touchdowns in the red zone were costly as Tech (3-6, 3-5 ACC) was unable to follow its win over Duke the previous Saturday. N.C. State (8-3, 7-3) broke Tech’s five-game winning streak in Carter-Finley Stadium.
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