QB MJ Morris leads NC State past Virginia Tech: ‘I feel like a kid in a candy store.’
N.C. State quarterback MJ Morris was sporting a new T-shirt late Thursday night.
On the front: “2022 season, BOWL BOUND.”
There’s no telling where those tees were late in the third quarter as N.C. State trailed Virginia Tech by 18 points at Carter-Finley Stadium — maybe headed to storage in an equipment room in the Murphy Football Center.
But that was before a wild comeback, and a finish that Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren called “surreal.” Trailing 21-3 in the third, the Wolfpack clawed its way back to earn a 22-21 victory over the Hokies, scoring 19 consecutive points.
It was a team effort in every sense, one that made the Pack bowl eligible. But it was a freshman from Carrollton, Georgia, who led the way — the one wearing No. 16, the one that defensive back Cyrus Fagan would playfully refer to as “Superman” as he was leaving a postgame interview.
“I don’t know if I feel much like a super hero,” Morris said, smiling. “I do feel really great right now. I feel like a kid in a candy store. I’ve never had this feeling before.”
When quarterback Devin Leary was lost for the season in the Florida State game, Jack Chambers initially took over. The transfer player from Charleston Southern helped the Wolfpack score three field goals and pull out a 19-17 win.
Chambers started the next game, a 24-9 loss at Syracuse, and again was the starter Thursday against the Hokies. But in a first half during which both teams struggled to complete passes or move the ball, when false-start penalties were more plentiful than big plays, Morris connected on four of five throws for 52 yards. He moved the Pack into field goal range in the final moments of the half, and N.C. State took a 3-0 lead on Christopher Dunn’s 35-yard kick.
Pack coaches then made the decision: Morris was moving the ball better and would be the No. 1 guy in the second half. It was his time to shine — and he was ready for it.
“There was a lot of things going on in my head, but the one thing I tried to focus on was just doing my job,” Morris said. “If we just do our job, everything is going to take care of (itself). We had a whole lot of energy coming out of the half. We had a whole lot of emotion, we had a whole lot of faith. We knew we were never going to lay down to anybody.”
The Pack promptly fell behind 21-3. Hokies quarterback Grant Wells seemed to be on his way to being the game’s big star, unleashing an 85-yard touchdown throw to Kaleb Smith, and scoring twice on runs
But the Pack defense shut down the Hokies in the fourth quarter while Morris had the offense humming. His 35-yard TD pass to Thayer Thomas late in the third quarter was followed by a shorter TD throw to tight end Trent Pennix, then the go-ahead score on an 18-yard catch-and-run by Thomas.
Morris’ final worksheet: 20-of-29 passing for 265 yards, three scores, no interceptions. He took some hard licks from a physical Hokies defense, but kept getting up and getting the the job done. A couple of two-point plays fizzled but that didn’t matter.
“I feel like I got hit by a freight train, my body hurts so bad, but I feel so great,” Morris said. “I’m so happy for this team and so happy for myself. We put a lot of work into getting here.”
Winning this game was about more than freshman heroics, about a teenage quarterback who ended up with a game ball.
At 21-3, the Pack could have accepted its fate — that it wasn’t N.C. State’s night, the calls were going against the Pack, Virginia Tech was making explosive plays it hadn’t made all season. All that.
But Thomas said center Grant Gibson loudly challenged the offense, and it responded. “I feel like that sparked us when he called us out,” Thomas said.
The defense rose up, swarming anyone with the ball in the fourth quarter, not allowing the Hokies any life.
Finally, there was Morris kneeling down with the football, the final seconds counting down, the game won.
“The adrenaline in my body was through the roof,” Morris said. “To see that score, knowing that we had come back, down 18, that we kept fighting every play, risking our bodies, just doing what we’ve got to do to win ... we were all just extremely happy, extremely joyful to look at that score and win that ball game.”
This story was originally published October 28, 2022 at 6:10 AM.
