Grades for NC State's Offense in the Notre Dame Loss
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RALEIGH — While a loss to No. 16 Notre Dame might not seem like a surprise for NC State with the way the 2025 season began, things fell apart slowly for a Wolfpack team that looked like a potential upset contender early in Saturday's 36-7 defeat.
NC State's defense kept it in the game, forcing a turnover on downs and intercepting Fighting Irish freshman quarterback CJ Carr in the end zone in the first half. Even with the extra possessions, the Wolfpack offense sputtered throughout the game and failed to put enough points on the board.
Pro Football Focus grades each member of the team's performance during the game. The model takes into account every play in the game and adds it all up to create the player's total grade. Any grade from the 70s to 80s is considered a good performance. The 60s are average. Below 60 would be poor, and above 80 would be elite.
How PFF viewed NC State's performance against the Fighting Irish
The Wide Receivers
- Freshman Teddy Hoffmann - 81.6
- Sophomore Terrell Anderson - 72.4
- Sophomore Keenan Jackson - 56.9
- Sophomore Noah Rogers - 51.2
- Senior Wesley Grimes - 47.5
Given sophomore quarterback CJ Bailey's turnover woes and the inability to run the football, it wasn't the strongest day for the Wolfpack's pass-catching quintet. Anderson scored the lone touchdown after he made a brilliant catch on a Bailey deep ball down the sideline. However, his afternoon was cut short with an injury and he played just 24 snaps. Hoffmann broke out of his slump, making some impressive contested catches. Jackson struggled, as he was blanketed by standout Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore throughout the game.
The Tight Ends
- Senior Justin Joly - 56.9
- Senior Dante Daniels - 50.9
- Senior Cody Hardy - 49.8
It was a rare poor PFF performance across the board for the tight end room. After scoring highly throughout the first six games both as pass catchers and blockers, the group struggled against the increasingly elite Irish defense. Notre Dame made a serious effort to neutralize Joly, knowing he was one of the top pass catchers on the field. Hardy's struggles were particularly surprising as well. The elite blocker finished with a 61.6 run-blocking score, one of his lowest grades of the season.
The Offensive Line
- Sophomore right tackle Teague Andersen - 65.9
- Freshman right guard Spike Sowells Jr. - 77.3
- Graduate senior center Jalen Grant - 64.5
- Graduate senior left guard Anthony Carter Jr. - 60.2
- Sophomore left guard Kamen Smith - 63.3
- Junior left tackle Jacarrius Peak - 62.8
The offensive line took some lumps in the loss, but wasn't a complete failure. The unit lost Carter early in the game to injury, forcing Smith to come on in relief and do his best against a pass rush group that seems to build confidence in each game. Sowells finished with the second-highest overall grade on the offense and earned All-PFF honors for the week, despite being a true freshman.
The Running Backs
- Sophomore Hollywood Smothers - 64.2
- Redshirt freshman Duke Scott - 64.2
Notre Dame stifled the Wolfpack rushing attack, holding Smothers and Scott to a combined 61 yards on the ground. The Fighting Irish wanted to force Bailey to be a passer, ruining Smothers' hopes of shining on a national stage against a ranked opponent. Over half of the star back's yards came after contact.
The Quarterback
- Sophomore CJ Bailey - 45.1
Saturday's loss marked Bailey's worst grade of the season, about a point lower than the Duke loss a few weeks ago. While the sophomore still moved the ball against the Blue Devils despite throwing three interceptions, he struggled mightily against Notre Dame. It was his lowest adjusted completion percentage of the season so far, finishing at 62.1%. Bailey will need to clean things up for the Wolfpack's next matchup against Pitt.
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Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
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