Will Wilson keeps making the same point for NC State, even if the usage says the coaching staff still hasn’t fully made up its mind.
After another touchdown in the win over Louisville, Wilson is up to six rushing scores, tied for the most in the ACC. He’s doing it on limited work, too: just 50 snaps, or about 10% of NC State’s FBS offensive snaps. And despite operating as the guy everyone in the stadium knows is coming in short-yardage situations, he’s still averaging right around five yards per carry.
That’s the part that keeps jumping off the page. Defenses know the look.
They know the alignment. They know the call is usually going straight through the middle.
And still, Wilson keeps punching through and finding the end zone. He has five rushing TDs in one note, six after the Louisville game, and the larger point remains the same: NC State has one of the ACC’s most dangerous weapons, and he hasn’t been used nearly enough.
The obvious reaction is to ask what happens if the Pack stops being so predictable with him.
That doesn’t mean turning Wilson into a full-time quarterback or pushing him anywhere close to 50% of the snaps. It doesn’t even mean a jump to 25%.
It means finding ways to use him when defenses aren’t locked in on a short-yardage power run. A second-and-two.
A look where the staff can sell the usual downhill play and sneak a tight end out instead. A wrinkle that makes opponents think twice when Wilson enters.
The comparison that comes to mind is Tim Tebow, whose college introduction also came as a short-yardage force before Florida added a rarely used wrinkle that made him even tougher to defend. Wilson is not Tebow, and nobody is saying he is. But the idea is similar: if a player has already proven he can win in one role, why not expand the menu a little and make life even harder on the defense?
There’s also the practical side of it. NC State can only afford one more loss if it wants to finish with 10 wins, bowl included, which is the goal everyone had in mind.
That makes the idea of “saving” Wilson’s versatility for some future emergency a little less compelling. If the Wolfpack are going to need every edge, why not start using one of their best ones now?
The bottom line is simple. Wilson has already shown he can deliver when the defense knows what’s coming.
The bigger question is what his ceiling looks like if the Pack makes opponents prepare for something else, too. Nobody knows yet.
In Other News...
Dave Doeren Loved How NC State Answered In Winning Time
Dave Doeren came away impressed with the way NC State handled the most important stretch of its 31-28 win over Louisville, pointing first to the teams focus and effort when the game tightened. After meeting with the media, the Wolfpack coach singled out CJ Bailey, Harvey Dyson III and the offensive line as central to the outcome, while also making sure to credit the home crowd for the energy it brought throughout the game.
Even with the victory in hand, Doeren did not sound ready to let the Wolfpack settle in too comfortably. He acknowledged there are still areas on defense that need to improve, a reminder that winning close games can expose as much as it rewards. For NC State, the challenge now is carrying over the poise it showed in winning time while cleaning up the details that nearly turned a good night into a tense one. [Read more 🡒]
Harvey Dyson May Have Just Saved NC States Season
NC States season has had a familiar feel at times lately, with strong starts giving way to uneasy finishes, and Saturdays game against Louisville looked headed in that same direction after the Wolfpack faded after a sharp first half. But the defense found a defining moment when Harvey Dyson forced a fumble that NC State recovered, setting up the go-ahead field goal in a 31-28 win.
Dave Doeren made sure to single out Dyson after the game, praising the play in his postgame press conference, and it was easy to see why. In a stretch where NC State needed something to steady it, Dyson delivered the kind of snap that can change more than one result, giving the Wolfpack a win that could loom large as the season goes on. [Read more 🡒]
NC State Just Got The Statement Win Wolfpack Fans Needed
NC State finally got the kind of result it had been chasing, edging Louisville 31-28 to stay perfect at home and pick up its first ACC win of the season. The Wolfpack leaned on a defense that kept giving the offense extra chances, with Popo Aguirre recovering three fumbles, while quarterback CJ Bailey delivered the best passing day of his young career with 373 yards. Kanoah Vinesett added crucial field goals, and several receivers turned in career-best performances to help keep the home crowd engaged throughout a tense afternoon.
For a program trying to find traction in conference play, the win mattered beyond the final score. NC State showed it could survive a back-and-forth game against a league opponent and still make enough plays in the moments that matter, a useful sign for a team that needed proof its ceiling could still be higher than the recent results suggested. The larger question now is whether this can become a turning point or simply the kind of one-game statement that still leaves plenty to sort out. [Read more 🡒]