Postgame Observations: State 38, UVa 21
The NC State football team won for the third time in four games -- and second straight time on the road -- by striking early and finishing strong for a 38-21 victory against Virginia at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville on Saturday.
It was an impressive victory for a number of reasons, most of all because of the growth the Wolfpack continues to show in what it rapidly becoming a bounce back season after last year's 4-8 disappointment.
While State's opening week win against Wake Forest was a triumph of a potent running attack and last week's win was earned on the strength of Devin Leary's arm and a gritty comeback, this was a game in which the defense took center stage.
Despite a depleted secondary that got even thinner because of a second quarter targeting ejection to co-captain Tanner Ingle, State's defense forced four turnovers, produced another goal line stand and even scored a touchdown while handing coach Dave Doeren the 50th win of his tenure in Raleigh -- moving him past Chuck Amato into third on the Wolfpack's all-time list.
Here are some postgame observations from the effort that brought State (3-1, 3-1 ACC) to within one victory of its total from all of last season:
- The Wolfpack came into the game looking to take advantage of UVa's penchant for slow starts -- it had been outscored 21-0 in the first quarter -- and committing turnovers -- four interceptions in the first two weeks -- and it succeeded in a big way. Even after having an early touchdown catch by Porter Rooks overturned upon review, State still manged to jump on the Cavaliers early thanks to interceptions by freshman defensive backs Shyheim Battle and Joshua Pierre-Louis. Leary converted both of the takeaways into points while throwing touchdown passes to running back Trent Pennix and tight end Cary Angeline, the latter of which came on a flea flicker. Zonovan Knight also scored on a 35-yard run to stake the Wolfpack to a 24-0 headstart before UVa finally got on the board.
- State forced only eight turnovers all last season and had only one through the first three games this year. But Saturday, the Wolfpack took the ball away four times. with the most memorable coming on an early fourth quarter interception by nose tackle Alim McNeill. The 320-pound junior batted a pass out of the year and caught it on the way down before rumbling untouched into the end zone. the "Big Guy touchdown" couldn't have come at a better time. It helped shift the momentum back in State's favor after the Cavaliers had pulled to within 10 and the offense had begun to sputter. Isaiah Moore got the other turnover by recovering a fumble forced by teammate Terrell Dawkins. So what was the difference? UVa had something to do with it, but you could say that defensive coordinator Tony Gibson also threw his unit a bone in an effort to encourage more turnovers. Saturday’s game was the first time the Wolfpack used an oversized bone — the kind made for dogs to chew on — as a trophy to be signed by players to earn a takeaway.
- Although Leary wasn’t as sharp as he was against Pitt last week, he was still effective enough to keep the UVa defense honest and give the Wolfpack’s strong running attack a chance to succeed. The redshirt sophomore completed 11 of 25 passes for 184 yards, most of it coming in the first half, with two touchdowns and an interception. He was compemented by a ground game that accounted for 179 yards -- 101 of which were generated by Knight -- to give State its most balanced offensive output of the season.
- Young players continue to make major contributions, especially in the secondary. Battle, a redshirt freshman and sophomore Malik Dunlap did a nice job limiting the damage done by UVa's 6-foot-7 receiving tandem of Lavel Davis Jr. and Tony Poljan. Battle had an especially good game with seven tackles, his first career interception and a sack. True freshman nickel Joshua Pierre-Louis also had his first career pick to go along with five tackles. His interception was especially satisfying because of the targeting penalty he committed that nullfied a pick six by teammate Jakeen Harris last week. Speaking of Harris, a sophomore safety, he could easily have had two interceptions on Saturday. He dropped both, admitting afterward that he was concentrating more on the runbacks than catching the ball. He still made a significant contribution while leading the team with eight tackles. On the offensive side of the ball, true freshman Porter Rooks showed why Doeren has been so high on him since he arrived last spring by making three catches -- all of them difficult receptions in traffic -- for 51 yards. His best grab was one that didn't count -- a diving effort that was originally ruled a touchdown but was reversed upon review. Redshirt freshman guard Dylan McMahon also helped fill the void left by the absence of linemen Justin Witt and Timothy McKay by filling in well in his first action from scrimmage.
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