NC State running out of chances to save the season
There was a flickering moment of hope for N.C. State on Saturday night.
After sleeping through the past month, the Wolfpack had a chance to wake up against Louisville just in time to save its season. N.C. State (4-6, 1-5 ACC) even put together its best half of the season on defense and led the Cardinals 10-7 at the half.
“That (first half) is what I like to see,” senior safety Jarius Morehead said. “And then it started falling off.”
And quickly. By the end of the third quarter, the Ambien kicked in and N.C. State was down for the count. Louisville scored three touchdowns in the third quarter to break the game open for a 34-20 win.
The blitzes that were coming home for N.C. State’s defense in the first half were now pressures instead of sacks. The “keep everything in front of you” safe mentality turned into a “uh, oh, he’s behind you” fire drill.
There was a fumble on offense (the third turnover of the game) and a couple of pass interference penalties. In short, if it could go wrong, it did for N.C. State in the third quarter.
Asked what changed after a strong first half and what went wrong in the second half, Morehead summed it up thusly: “Everything, to be honest.”
On Louisville’s first possession of the second half, quarterback Micale Cunningham probably couldn’t believe his eyes when on third-and-9 from his own 26-yard line, he saw receiver Tutu Atwell in the slot and matched up with N.C. State linebacker Brock Miller.
A blitz-pickup by Louisville’s line left Miller to his own devices to try to stay with Atwell, perhaps the fastest player in the ACC. Atwell caught the ball past midfield and then was off to the races. He wasn’t touched.
“That’s not good for us,” Doeren said.
No, it wasn’t. In blowout losses to Wake Forest (44-10) and Clemson (55-10), it was the first quarter that hurt N.C. State. It waited until the third quarter to implode this time.
There were moments in the first half, just like the Florida State loss back in September, where N.C. State could have taken control of the game. It did not.
With this team, 10-7 qualifies as control. There’s too many turnovers on offense without any in return on defense. In six ACC games, it doesn’t seem possible, but N.C. State hasn’t created a single turnover.
“We don’t make enough plays,” Doeren said. “We had four balls go through our hands that should have been interceptions.”
There’s nary a stray fumble without being touched, which is a habit quarterback Devin Leary has to kick. The other teams don’t have a receiver with the freshman jitters, which Keyon Lesane has a chronic case of on both offense and special teams.
To compound the problem, N.C. State’s defense has a tendency to give up too many big plays. Atwell’s 74-yard touchdown was one of three scores longer than 40 yards.
Cunningham only completed 13 passes (on 20 attempts) but four went for touchdowns. Leary, meanwhile, completed 24 of 44 passes for 243 yards with two touchdowns but a fumble and an interception on an ill-fated shovel pass.
“We can’t give up the big, explosive plays and we’ve got to make plays on the football that are there to be made,” Doeren said.
N.C. State has two chances left to do so and it has to make good on both chances to extend its five-year bowl streak. The Wolfpack has a short turnaround for a Thursday night game at Georgia Tech (2-8, 1-6) and then returns home for the regular-season finale against North Carolina (4-6, 3-4) two days after Thanksgiving.
“We’re going to keep fighting,” Morehead said.
Doeren promised the same.
“Hang in there with us,” the seventh-year coach said in an unprompted appeal to the fans. “These guys are going to battle for you.”
The team from the first half on Saturday has to figure out how to show up for the whole game. Otherwise, the battle is already lost.
This story was originally published November 17, 2019 at 1:03 AM.
