NC State’s Defense Stood Tall, Even in Loss to Notre Dame

RALEIGH — While allowing 36 points in a loss might not seem like a strong defensive performance, NC State's defense acquitted itself well despite being defeated by No. 16 Notre Dame on the road Saturday.

The Fighting Irish dominated the second half, but the Wolfpack defense did its best to keep the team in the fight until the fourth quarter. The crumbling offense forced an injury-plagued group of defenders onto the field far too much in the third and fourth quarters, ultimately killing any hope of upsetting the Fighting Irish on their home field.

A Proud Head Coach

While Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren didn't have much to be pleased about after the loss, he was proud of the way his defense fought.

"I thought they played really hard. They believed that they could stop them. They were physical. There's a lot of really physical tackles in that game," Doeren said. "I knew Notre Dame would make some plays. I was disappointed that they got behind us in coverage a couple of times."

Flustering Carr

NC State vs. Notre Dame — NC State defensive back III Ronnie Royal, right, chases down Notre Dame wide receiver Will Pauling in the first half of an NCAA football game at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in South Bend. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The tackling issues that helped lead to the loss to Virginia Tech reappeared for the Wolfpack as the unit was forced on the field in the second half. NC State missed 14 tackles after playing a very clean game against Campbell in the week before.

However, the team successfully applied pressure on freshman quarterback CJ Carr. In the first half, the Wolfpack forced a turnover on downs with a sack of the Irish quarterback.

Oct 11, 2025; South Bend, Indiana, USA; NC State Wolfpack defensive back Asaad Brown Jr. (26) intercepts a pass in the end zone against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the first half at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

On another fourth-down play for Notre Dame, defensive back Asaad Brown Jr. picked off Carr in the end zone to put NC State ahead in the turnover margin, something Doeren hoped his team would be able to do.

Defensive end Sabastian Harsh once again starred for NC State, particularly rushing the passer. While he wasn't a participant in either of the Wolfpack's two sacks, Harsh hurried Carr three times and hit him once. He was critical in holding the Notre Dame running back tandem of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price to just 59 combined yards in the first half.

Frustration for Fordham

Forced into the middle linebacker role for the second straight week, Caden Fordham missed several tackles, but did his best to lead the defense throughout the loss.

He expressed his frustration in the Wolfpack's inability to play complementary football after the game and added context to what went wrong for the defense after holding Notre Dame to just 10 first-half points.

"We had some miscommunication. We just didn't get it done. It's simple. I mean, we've got to play complementary football," Fordham said. "We haven't done that yet all year, in my opinion. I think we're a great team, but we've got to play complementary."

With coordinator DJ Eliot back in the fold for the remainder of the season, the defense will use the bye to get healthy and build some consistency before the final five games.

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