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Social Media Reacts to NC State's First Loss of the Season

NC State drops it's first game of the season to Duke 45-33. The Wolfpack are now 3-1, and fans share their thoughts.
Daniel Rios|
Sep 20, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack quarter back CJ Bailey (11) runs the ball against the Duke Blue Devils during the first quarter at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images
Sep 20, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack quarter back CJ Bailey (11) runs the ball against the Duke Blue Devils during the first quarter at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

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North Carolina State Wolfpack

NC State (3-1, 1-1 ACC) drops its first game of the season to Duke (1-2, 1-0 ACC) 45-33 in Durham. It's the second straight road game for the Wolfpack, and at one point, NC State led 20-7 in the first half.

Dave Doeren's career record against the Blue Devils now drops to 1-4. Quarterback CJ Bailey entered the matchup with one interception on the season, but threw three against the Blue Devils' defense.

Running back Hollywood Smothers continued his dominance, having another efficient day carrying the ball. He ended the game with 17 carries for 123 yards and a score. Wide Receiver Terrell Anderson couldn't be covered all day. He finished the game with six catches for 166 yards and two touchdowns.

It was another rough outing for the NC State defense giving up 45 points, and 418 total yards. The defense wasn't able to rally as they did in the first three-games of the season, and as a result dropped their first game on the season.

Social Media Reacts

Offsides???

On Bailey's second interception of the game it came on a fourth-and-2 on the Duke 24. It appaeread as one of the Duke defensive linemen jumped offsides and NC State center Jalen Grant snapped the ball. NC State didn't have a play called leading to Bailey to just get rid of the ball, but he threw it directly to Tre Freeman.

Terrell Anderson Big Day

It seems like every week, on Wolfpack receiver steps up and becomes "the guy" throughout the game. Against Duke, it was certainly Anderson who, as previously mentioned, finished with 166 yards for two scores. The most by an NC State receiver since Kelvin Harmon in 2018.

Hollywood Smothers' another efficient day

It feels like a lock for Smothers to make an absurd play every single week. He did again as he took a run for 51 yards for a score. Smothers entered the day ranking sixth in the country in total rushing yards, and followed it up with another 100+ yard day. It's his third straight game doing so.

Defense struggles again

The NC State defense has had its fair share of struggles throughout the 2025 season. It's usually only been for a single half in the first three games of the season, but against Duke, it was for the entire game. The unit couldn't stop Anderson Castle in short-yardage situations and Darian Mensah had its way with the Wolfpack secondary.

NC State will be back in Raleigh next weekend, as the Wolfpack are set to host Virginia Tech next Saturday.

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Daniel Rios
DANIEL RIOS

Daniel Rios graduated from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. His deep passion for sports has taken him to positions at ESPN and Cronkite News. Currently, he serves as the Assistant Beat Writer for the North Carolina State Wolfpack On SI.

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