NC State upset by Boston College, 21-20, on Senior Day as home win streak comes to end
Sometimes, Senior Day doesn’t go the way it’s planned.
Sometimes, the talented freshman quarterback can’t spur a scintillating victory for the home team, the ranked team.
Sometimes, an underdog team suffering through a rough season pulls the big upset, ends an impressive winning streak and thoroughly spoils the day.
So it went Saturday for No. 17 N.C. State, which built an early 14-point lead but saw Boston College fight from behind for a 21-20 victory that ended the Pack’s 16-game win streak at Carter-Finley Stadium.
The Eagles, 19.5-point underdogs, took the lead with 14 seconds left on Emmett Morehead’s 2-yard scoring pass to Joe Griffin in the left corner of the end zone. That came after Wolfpack linebacker Drake Thomas was called for pass interference on a fourth-down pass that was incomplete.
“Really a disappointing call by that official,” NCSU coach Dave Doeren said.
Boston College (3-7, 2-5 ACC) had moved down the field in the final minutes, Morehead completing a 29-yard throw to Dino Tomlin to the NCSU 29, then a 17-yard throw to tight end George Takacs to the NCSU 14.
The Wolfpack (7-3, 3-3) could not keep the Eagles out of the end zone in final home game of the 2022 season. N.C. State closes with road games at Louisville and North Carolina.
“It’s pretty disappointing,” senior linebacker Payton Wilson said. “It’s pretty tough. I think a lot of us were pretty excited to leave Carter-Finley with a win. It’s just tough we couldn’t it done.
“It’s tough. We’ve all worked really hard to get to where we’re at, and to not be able to walk out of Carter-Finley with a win is disheartening.”
Senior Day began the way the Wolfpack wanted. There were 30 players honored in a pregame ceremony — some playing their last game at Carter-Finley and some who could decide to return next season — as more than 100 parents and family members gathered and waited.
The players carried roses to their mothers. Family photos were taken and a few tears surely shed.
Once the game kicked off, all began well for the Pack, which scored on its first two possessions for a 14-0 lead.
Quarterback MJ Morris, making his second college start, zipped a 27-yard scoring pass to tight end Trent Pennix to complete an 88-yard drive, then ran 10 yards for a score, dancing into the end zone. Wolfpack fans settled back into their seats for what appeared to be a stress-free day, eager to see the true freshman work.
But the game would turn into a grind. BC’s defense adjusted, tightened up, closing down the Pack’s running game and once stopping the Wolfpack at the BC 1-yard line. The Eagles offense began to make plays while the Pack’s offense stalled.
Morehead hit wideout Zay Flowers, an elusive senior who should be in the NFL next season, for a 17-yard score. When the two teamed up for a 35-yard score in the third quarter, the Eagles were within 20-14.
The Woflpack defensive strategy was to blitz and harass Morehead, a redshirt freshman making his second start, and force him into mistakes.
The strategy worked at times — Morehead had two passes picked off throwing under pressure and was sacked five times. But the 6-5, 228-pound quarterback from California also burned the Pack’s secondary with some well-thrown passes to Flowers and Jaelen Gill and others.
Morris, so efficient in the 30-21 win over Wake Forest last week, was having his own problems, losing three fumbles in the second half and having a deep pass intercepted. He wasn’t sharp throwing the ball Saturday after his early success and had a mostly miserable second half that appeared to leave him flustered at times.
Morris took a hard shot with 7:43 left in the fourth on a third-and-23 run. BC safety Cole Baston was called for a late hit on the play, giving the Pack a first down, but Morris was soon picked off.
The Pack squandered some good field position during the game as Christopher Dunn came in for field goals of 30 and 45 yards — the 88th and 89th of his career.
It hurt the Pack that center Grant Gibson was lost in the first half with an injury. Gibson went down on the fourth-and-goal play at the BC 1 — Morris losing a yard on a keeper — and had to be helped off the field.
“It hurts,” Doeren said. “Grant’s played more football than anybody on our roster. It hurt not having him in the middle. It’s obviously a key loss in the game.”
Dylan McMahon shifted from right guard to center, but the Eagles’ defensive front shut down the Pack’s running attack.
This story was originally published November 12, 2022 at 7:20 PM with the headline "NC State upset by Boston College, 21-20, on Senior Day as home win streak comes to end."
