NC State escaped with a win Saturday night, but the Wolfpack made it far harder than it had to be.
After racing out to a 21-0 lead and later pushing it to 28-7 against Appalachian State, NC State watched the Mountaineers claw all the way back and tie the game at 31 in the fourth quarter at Carter-Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack finally steadied itself from there, scoring the last 10 points to pull out a 41-31 victory and move to 2-2.
That kind of finish felt uncomfortably familiar.
A week after NC State saw a 24-7 lead at Vanderbilt slip away, this one followed a similar script for too long. For a stretch, it looked like the Wolfpack had put the previous collapse behind it. Then App State started rolling.
The early burst was all NC State. The Wolfpack controlled the opening quarter on both sides of the ball, piling up 155 yards while Appalachian State managed just 30.
Once the game settled in, though, the momentum shifted sharply. Over the final three quarters, App State outgained NC State in each one, and the Mountaineers kept chipping away until Malachi Singleton hit Gavin Barber for a 9-yard touchdown with 9:41 left to make it 31-31.
NC State answered when it had to. Duke Scott punched in a 16-yard run to restore the lead, and Kanoah Vinesett added a 35-yard field goal to stretch it to the final margin.
After the game, Dave Doeren made sure nobody forgot the result.
“By the way, we won that football game.”
He’s right, of course. NC State got the victory and is 2-2 instead of 1-3. But the way this one unfolded left plenty of frustration behind, especially after the Wolfpack twice built a three-score cushion and let it vanish.
The box score, at least, looks strong on paper. NC State finished with 459 yards of offense, 41 points, 206 rushing yards, eight more first downs than App State, an 11-of-17 mark on third down and nearly 13 more minutes of possession.
The final numbers say win. The tape tells a messier story.
Scott was the clear bright spot. The redshirt freshman carried 25 times for a career-high 148 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. His second score, the 16-yard run that put NC State back ahead after App State had tied it, was the biggest play of the night.
CJ Bailey also put together a productive outing, finishing 24 of 33 for 253 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. His Passing Efficiency Rating was 151.1.
Preston Douglas led the Wolfpack with five catches, while Keenan Jackson paced the team with 64 receiving yards and hauled in one of Bailey’s touchdown passes. The other scoring strike went to Ashton Locklear, who caught the first touchdown pass of his career on a 10-yard play in the second quarter.
On defense, Popo Aguirre led NC State with 10 tackles, marking the second time this season he has reached double digits. The Wolfpack held App State to 62 rushing yards, but Singleton still threw for 317 yards and two touchdowns. NC State managed only one sack and three tackles for loss.
So the Wolfpack has a win, and that matters. But the bigger concern is obvious: this is now two straight weeks with major leads that got away before NC State barely survived. The next test is even tougher, with Louisville coming to Raleigh next Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
In Other News...
NC State Faces A Pride Game Fans Cant Ignore Against App State
A long-running in-state series gets another chapter Saturday night when N.C. State hosts Appalachian State at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. The matchup is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will air nationally on ESPNU, giving the Wolfpack a chance to play in front of a wider audience in a game that carries plenty of local interest.
N.C. State has controlled the series since it began in 1932, winning all six previous meetings, which adds a little extra weight to a meeting that already has pride-game feel. With App State coming to Raleigh and a national broadcast attached, it is the kind of late-September test that can sharpen attention inside the program and across the fan base alike. [Read more 🡒]
NC States Backcourt Could Change Fast If Darius Adams Breaks Through
Darius Adams arrived at NC State with the kind of rsum that makes people pay attention, but the more interesting part has been how quickly he has started to look comfortable in his new setting. The former five-star guard and McDonalds All-American transferred in from Maryland after Justin Gainey had spent time recruiting him, and the early buzz around him has centered on offseason growth in his ball-handling, shooting and physicality. Around the program, teammates have described a player with a clear edge, the sort of motivation that can travel well in a new backcourt.
For the Wolfpack, the timing matters because the guard rotation already has pieces in place, and Adams is expected to be part of that mix rather than a passenger. If his progress carries over when the games count, NC State could see its backcourt sort itself out faster than expected, with Adams pushing for a bigger role and giving the staff another option to lean on. The appeal is obvious: a talented newcomer with proven pedigree, a fresh start and something to prove. [Read more 🡒]
NC State Has An Obvious Davion Dozier Opportunity Tonight
Davion Dozier came to NC State from Appalachian State with a reputation as a receiver who could threaten defenses down the field, and that profile still makes him an easy name to circle when the Wolfpack need a spark. Through three games, though, his role has been far quieter than expected, with less production, fewer targets and a shorter average depth of target than he posted in his previous season.
Even so, the underlying grades have suggested he has done enough with the opportunities hes gotten, which is why tonight stands out as a chance for the Wolfpack to lean into what he does best. He has also played fewer snaps than several other receivers on the roster, leaving the door open for a bigger workload if NC State wants to stretch the field and make use of the speed it brought him in for. [Read more 🡒]