Few things go right in NC State loss at No. 17 Duke: ‘Just wasn’t good enough’
At least Brayden Narveson’s 57-yard field goal set a career high and new program record on the first drive, because that’s about the only thing worth noting in N.C. State’s loss to Duke on Saturday.
Wolfpack cornerback Shyheim Battle picked off Blue Devils quarterback Henry Belin IV on the third play of the game, which Narveson ultimately turned into his record-setting kick. Other than that, it’s hard to find much else to celebrate in N.C. State’s, 24-3, loss.
“I just want to apologize to Wolfpack Nation. That’s not what they deserve. That’s not how we should play,” said linebacker Payton Wilson. “Everybody on this team has gotta get with the program. We’ve gotta come out here and we gotta play as hard as you can possibly play every single snap.”
Wilson said the team doesn’t have to get better. It needs to get tougher.
“Sometimes it feels like there’s only three people on the field at once,” Wilson said. “We don’t have people running to the ball all the time. We don’t have everybody playing as hard as they possibly could. Duke does.”
The Blue Devils recorded 257 yards on explosive plays and an additional 21 tackles. Running back Jordan Waters rushed for 123 yards, including an 83-yard touchdown run. Duke added a 69-yard passing touchdown to Jalon Calhoun, too.
Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren said he thought the defensive players started doing each other’s jobs, leading to some of those big plays.
Duke picked up three sacks, one interception and five pass breakups, as well.
Yes, the Blue Devils committed six penalties for 33 yards, but that pales in comparison to N.C. State’s 11 penalties for 87 yards.
“Gotta give Duke credit. They outplayed us. They out-coached,” Doeren said. “This always starts with me, and our guys gotta play better. We gotta be tougher. There’s really nothing you can say – just wasn’t good enough.”
The Wolfpack finished with statistical advantages in multiple categories, including total yardage, first downs and time of possession, but couldn’t capitalize on its opportunities.
Meanwhile, all three Duke touchdown drives lasted 40 seconds or fewer, with one taking a whopping three. Plus, Belin completed just four passes…but those totaled 107 yards and two scores.
N.C. State, however, had all the momentum after the first drive and squandered it. The Wolfpack finished without a sack or forced fumble, punted six times and ended its final three drives with a turnover on downs. Oh, and it finished with a measly 112 rushing yards. The list could go on.
Plus, the rotations on offense were a mess. The Wolfpack had running backs playing at receiver, receivers who haven’t seen the field all year expected to make plays on fourth down, and Kevin “KC” Concepcion occasionally received the handoff in the backfield. Nothing made sense and few things seemed to work.
N.C. State finally gets a bye in Week 8. Doeren said it’s the latest for one of his teams, and it desperately needs the week off. The team needs a mental and physical break and time to evaluate the future.
Quarterback MJ Morris felt the same, saying the Wolfpack needs to get in extra practice and regroup.
“We’re gonna do a lot of soul searching and see how we want to finish this season,” Morris said. “We want to finish off the right way, we’re definitely going to come together.”
This story was originally published October 15, 2023 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Few things go right in NC State loss at No. 17 Duke: ‘Just wasn’t good enough’."
