Ricky Person, NC State run by Virginia in ACC opener

Hearsay can be a coach’s best friend.

Ricky Person is convinced that someone from the Virginia coaching staff had disrespected N.C. State’s running game. Who exactly said it or where he read it, Person isn’t sure.

“It was somebody,” the N.C. State freshman running back said. “It doesn’t matter. It was on the internet.”

Motivated by the slight, perceived or real, Person sparked the Wolfpack running game and led N.C. State to a 35-21 win over the Cavaliers on Saturday. Person, who missed the past two games with a hamstring injury and played sparingly in the opener, ran for 108 yards.

N.C. State (4-0, 1-0 ACC), which entered the game ranked No. 118 in the country in rushing offense (107.7 yards per game), piled up a season-best 176 yards on the ground.

“Defensively, I was really surprised about their ability to run the football,” UVa coach Bronco Mendenhall said after the game.

Who knows really what came out from the Virginia side before the first meeting between the ACC foes since 2012 but Person took it personal.

“We’ve been taking a lot of criticism from the internet — from everybody else — trying to say that we can’t run the ball,” Person said.

Without Person, a prized local recruit from Heritage High, N.C. State’s running game has been slow to find its footing. Person had six carries for five yards in the opener and tweaked his right hamstring. He missed the Georgia State and Marshall games.

Senior running back Reggie Gallaspy, who had 47 yards on Saturday, has averaged less than 3.5 yards per carry on the season. The absence of blocking tight end Dylan Autenrieth, out for the first two games with an injury, was also an issue.

Person was expected to add a burst of speed. He has a bigger build (6-1, 212 pounds) than Nyheim Hines but his addition was supposed to help offset the loss of Hines to the NFL.

“He’s a change-of-pace back and makes people miss and we’ve been missing that,” N.C. State coach Dave Doeren said.

Person had four “explosive” runs (of 10 yards or longer) on 14 carries. N.C. State only had combined for six such plays in the first three games. Person had runs of 12, 16, 27 on the same drive before the end of the first half to help set up a 14-yard touchdown catch by tight end Cary Angeline.

Person popped off a 38-yarder in the fourth quarter, which led to a 16-yard touchdown catch by receiver Kelvin Harmon to put the game out of reach.

“We all have our own roles,” said Person, who was quick to praise his offensive line and Gallaspy.

And Person’s is to bring speed to the backfield. Quarterback Ryan Finley has been able to carve up opposing defenses with N.C. State’s deep and talented receiving corps.

Harmon, who had six catches for 94 yards and his first touchdown of the season, is almost unguardable. And sophomore receiver Emeka Emezie (five catches, 90 yards, 1 TD) continues to emerge despite the plethora of options around Finley.

But, at some point, you have to get the ground game going.

“If you can run the ball, then everything else is going to be easy,” Person said.

Person, who had wrist surgery in the offseason and was slowed by a balky hamstring, is still only 80 to 85 percent, by his own estimation.

“He’s still not 100 percent but that’s as good as he’s felt and he really wanted to be on the field,” Doeren said.

Doeren rewarded the freshman with the game ball.

Maybe a Virginia assistant did point out N.C. State’s struggles before Saturday. Maybe Person was just looking for an extra edge. Who knows? What is real is the improvement by N.C. State’s ground game with Person and the potential difference it makes as the challenges in the ACC will increase in the coming weeks.

This story was originally published September 29, 2018 at 6:05 PM.