Wolfpack rewind: State 16, Syracuse 10
THE GOOD
NC State's defense recorded eight more sacks against Syracuse quarterback Tommy DeVito on Thursday, giving it 16 in its last two games. That's the most sacks in consecutive games in school history, surpassing the 14 the Wolfpack had in games against Virginia and North Carolina in 1982. The most impressive part of that stat is that eightD different players contributed to it (Larrell Murchison 5, Louis Acceus 4, Xavier Lyas 2, Alim McNeill 1.5, Brock Miller 1, C.J. Hart 1, Deonte Holden .5, Isaiah Moore ..5). The combined 52 yards in losses helped State limit Syracuse to 41 rushing yards. It's the third straight game and the fifth time in six games that the Wolfpack rushing defense -- which came into the game ranked sixth nationally -- has allowed less than 100 yards on the ground.
THE BAD
The Wolfpack debuted a new quarterback against the Orange, but even though Bailey Hockman did manage to introduce something resembling a vertical passing game for the first time this season by completing four passes of 20 or more yards, he wasn't able to cure the offense of two other recurring problems. The first is an inability to finish drives with touchdowns instead of field goals. State had to settle for three Christopher Dunn kicks in the game, one that was preceded by a pass interference call gave the offense three (unsuccessful) tries from the 2-yard line. That final field goal was the only points the Wolfpack scored in the second half, which gets us to the other problem coach Dave Doeren and his staff have yet to solve. In its three games against Power 5 opponents this season, the Wolfpack has been outscored 47-16 after halftime.
THE OFFBEAT
Hockman became the first left-handed quarterback to start a game for State since Cam Young against Virginia on Nov. 8, 1986. The redshirt sophomore went 16 of 27 for 205 yards and an interception. It should also be noted that the "N" in his name was printed backwards on his "Stealth Wolf" white uniform.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
There were several standouts on the Wolfpack defense Thursday, but the one that shined brightest under the Thursday night lights was Louis Acceus. The junior linebacker from Spring Valley, N.Y., terrorized the team from his home state by making a team-leading 14 tackles. Among that total were three sacks, including two on consecutive plays to stall a Syracuse drive in the first half.
STAT OF THE WEEK
True freshmen Shyheim Battle, C.J. Clark, Terrell Dawkins and Joshua Harris all saw their first action as members of the Wolfpack in the game, playing on special teams.
UNSUNG HERO
Trent Pennix touched the ball only once in the game. But that one touch turned out to be the biggest play of the night when he snuck out of the backfield, got wide open and caught a 32-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver in the final minute of the first half for State's only touchdown. Thomas, by the way, became the first Wolfpack wide receiver with more than one touchdown pass in a season since Bryan Peterson threw two in 2000.
INJURY REPORT
The Wolfpack played the game without starting left tackle Justin Witt, running back Ricky Person and cornerback Nick McCloud, among others.
The injury situation got even worse during the game when the other starting corner Chris Ingram went down with what appeared to be a leg injury on Syracuse's final drive of the first half. Doeren didn't give an indication of how serious the injury to his team's second-leading tackler might be, but it didn't sound good.
Defensive end James Smith-Williams, who has been battling a foot injury since the opening week of the season, also went down and had to be helped off the field during the game. It won't be known until the depth chart is relased on Monday whether he will miss any more time.
THEY SAID IT
"I thought it was a great win for our guys. I’m really proud of them. I thought they showed a lot of grit, a lot of determination. Syracuse kept hanging in there. They are a good football team, and like I told them all week, ACC football is four-quarter football. You have to be ready to play every second of the clock and that’s what it took today." Dave Doeren
"I told him to go out there and play. I saw a young man who was out there battling, trying to win." Syracuse coach Dino Babers on quarterback Tommy DeVito, who threw for 300 yards despite playing with a painful rib injury.
"My first start ... I think we played well. It’s the small things. We have to keep getting better, keep executing. The guys work really hard and did well in the trenches. I love those guys, and I’m proud of them. ... It comes down to execution at the end of the day. Everybody’s got to do their job. When we start doing that, we’re going to get this thing rolling." Bailey Hockman
UP NEXT
The Wolfpack heads to Chestnut Hill for another ACC Atlantic matchup, this time against Boston College in a noon start on the ACC's regional sports networks.
