While it wasn’t expected to be this much of a struggle for the No. 24 NC State Wolfpack, in the end, the Pack managed to survive… the Western Carolina Catamounts.
Yep, the FCS Catamounts pushed NC State almost to the brink, having held a lead all the way into the fourth quarter, before eventually running out of steam down the stretch as the Pack came alive to secure a 38-21 win Thursday night at Carter Finley Stadium.
The fourth quarter ended up being the difference for the Wolfpack who picked up 21 points and 211 yards of total offense to pull ahead.
“We stressed the fourth quarter,” said NC State coach Dave Doeren. “That’s something we do everyday in practice. We talk about being finishers and that was something I was very proud of tonight.”
While many will lament the supposed struggles against an FCS opponent, the truth of the matter is that Western Carolina is no slouch.
The Catamounts were ranked 19th in the FCS preseason coaches poll and last year set a school record for total offense with 5,545 yards.
Junior quarterback Cole Gonzales was a force for WCU too, finishing with 276 yards of total offense and two touchdowns against the Pack.
But again, the Wolfpack was expected to steamroll them tonight with the betting lines setting NC State as a 32.5-point favorite
Off the rip, it was not the start that NC State had imagined as the defense dropped two interceptions – redshirt junior linebacker Caden Fordham dropped a guaranteed pick-six on the very first play and then got ejected two later for targeting after a late tackle on a sliding Gonzales.
Then after NC State stalled out on its first drive, Grayson McCall threw a pick on the second which the Catamounts almost took to the house before punching it in anyway.
The Pack fumbled three times (luckily recovered each time), had a touchdown called back and like I said, were even trailing heading into the fourth quarter.
But it ain’t always going to be pretty and the Wolfpack found ways to get it done.
“Obviously it was a game we would have loved to have played better in the first half in, but I’m not going to apologize for winning either,” Doeren said.
For one, sophomore receiver KC Concepcion looked like he hadn’t missed a beat from last year’s Rookie of the Year season, with three touchdowns – the first three-touchdown game of his career – and 121 yards.
“I just wanted to make sure that this year, there would be no dropoff,” Concepcion said. “I’m only trying to do better than what I did last year.”
Concepcion wasn’t the only one on offense who was rolling though.
Redshirt freshman Noah Rogers showed why he was such a highly touted recruit with a handful of difficult and timely catches for the Pack and junior tight end Justin Joly was another player who really stood out in his first showing with the Wolfpack.
While it was a tough start for graduate running back Jordan Waters who fumbled once and had just 33 yards on 14 carries through three quarters, he feasted once Western started to fatigue.
In the fourth quarter, Waters picked up 90 yards and two touchdowns, including a seven yard bulldoze through at least four tackles and a 50-yarder to the house.
“I’m proud of how Jordan Waters responded because I don’t think he played well in the first half,” Doeren said. “He responded and that’s what you love to see and that’s what you look for.”
However, a big area in which the Wolfpack is going to need immediate turnaround is with the offensive line. NC State was unable to convert on multiple short-yardage – twice stopped on fourth-and-1 – situations due to the line getting beat too often.
You just can’t let that happen against an FCS opponent and it certainly doesn’t bode well with a team like Tennessee on the horizon.
The defense is also going to have to have a bit of a stronger showing too as there were just too many missed tackles and open guys through the middle.
“Defensively, we didn’t tackle well in the first half and gave up some third downs that we usually don’t. But I think our guys woke up a little bit and just started playing better. That’s why you play games. You have to go out there and learn where you’re at.”
While a stepdown is to be expected after losing Payton Wilson, who on top of being a freak athlete was also the on-field leader of the defense, things were just a bit too discombobulated in the first half, although the team did turn it around in the second.
“I think it was really just the first-game nerves and the fact that we started off slow,” said graduate defensive end Davin Vann. “Moving forward, I think that we have to attack every quarter with that fourth-quarter mentality that we did today.”
It’s clear though that the Pack has more offensive weapons than perhaps ever before.
The offense was able to cycle through a lot of playmakers and it’s clear that the staff is able to scheme up a ton of different looks.
But it will need McCall to be tighter.
Despite the 300+ yard and three touchdown final statline, the fifth-year transfer was just a bit out of sync for most of the night with a good amount of his passes winding up a bit behind his receivers.
“I don’t think I showed my best tonight,” McCall said. “A lot to improve on, a lot to work on, but happy that we were able to come away with the win.”
But if he can dial that in and hit those weapons in stride, the Pack should be okay.
“There were some balls that if he would have put a little bit to the right or a little bit to the left they would have been completions and some of them potentially big gains, but he played a good football game,” Doeren said. “Kept drives alive, used his feet and protected the football. After his pick, I thought he settled in and played a good football game.”
Next on the schedule is the highly anticipated showdown with the Volunteers for the Duke’s Mayo Classic in Charlotte on Sept. 7.
