NC State football narrowly defeated James Madison 24-13 on Saturday in the season opener. The sloppy game showed obvious struggles from both sides of the ball for the Pack.
The Wolfpack (1-0) was led by redshirt junior wide receiver Jakobi Meyers, who had 14 catches (one shy of the school record) for 161 yards, both career highs. Graduate Ryan Finley was also productive, throwing 29 completions on 43 attempts for 309 yards and two touchdowns. The defense couldn’t find answers for the Dukes (0-1) quarterback Ben DiNucci, who threw for 197 yards and rushed for 79 more.
“I thought [Meyers] carried the offense in a lot of ways today,” head coach Dave Doeren said. “Not having [Stephen Louis] available, the guys around him had to make some key plays in key moments.”
After a solid defensive effort forced a James Madison punt, NC State took over at its own 8-yard line to start. The first Pack drive started well, going almost the length of the field including Finley’s six for eight passing, until his completion to freshman running back Tyler Baker-Williams, a converted safety, was fumbled and recovered by the Dukes.
James Madison took advantage of the turnover with a three-minute drive to put the first touchdown on the board, aided by a 15-yard personal foul for a late hit out of bounds to boost the Dukes into the red zone.
The Pack got the ball back with the first quarter ticking down. Three completions of more than 15 yards to sophomore wide receiver Emeka Emezie and twice to Meyers put the Pack in the red zone for the second drive in a row.
This time the Wolfpack was able to score, but did not get into the end zone, forcing freshman kicker Christopher Dunn to attempt his first career field goal, which went through easily to make it 7-3 Dukes. Dunn was 1-for-2 on the day.
The defense showed up during the next JMU drive, forcing a punt after only 12 yards gained, and gave the ball back to the offense. Good field position aided the NC State drive and Finley’s efficiency continued. He completed three of four passes on the drive, including a 16-yard touchdown pass to redshirt freshman wide receiver Thayer Thomas, the first of Thomas’ career to put the Pack up 10-7.
“As soon as I scored, it didn’t really feel real,” Thomas said. “But then everything sort of sunk in and I got to play a little bit more and then I felt comfortable out there. It felt like a dream and I’m just blessed to have that opportunity.”
Nearing the end of the half with James Madison driving, redshirt freshman defensive end Ibrahim Kante knocked the ball out of the hands of the Dukes quarterback Ben DiNucci. The fumble was originally recovered by senior defensive tackle Eurndraus Bryant, who fumbled it yet again, but redshirt freshman Isaiah Moore dove on the ball to retain possession for the Pack.
Bryant stayed on the ground after the play and had to be attended to by the training staff. After a long delay, Bryant was carted off the field on a stretcher with an apparent head injury. He would later return to the sideline after getting X-rays, which were negative.
The Pack was gifted the ball with three minutes left, plenty of time for Finley, who completed five passes on the first five plays of the drive. He finally connected with redshirt sophomore wide receiver C.J. Riley, who jumped up over the defensive back to catch the ball, for a 14-yard touchdown with 18 seconds left. Finley finished the first half 21-for-27 and 214 yards with two touchdowns to make it 17-7 Pack.
“That was a great play,” Doeren said. “Last year, I know he was a little more nervous and timid in those kind of situations, where now I think he’s playing with his size.”
NC State’s opening drive of the second half did not extend the lead as the Pack were forced to punt because of an offensive three-and-out. With great field position, the Dukes were able to get down to the goal line, but settled for a field goal to bring the score to 17-10 NC State.
James Madison used a seven-minute drive to put three more on the board and close the gap even more to 17-13. The Dukes gained most of their yards on the ground, showing the Pack’s struggles against the rush.
NC State received the ball with seven minutes remaining for the most crucial drive of the game. On a much needed third down and nine from the NC State 32 yard line, Finley connected with Meyers for a 39 yard gain to give the Pack a scoring opportunity.
On the next play, Meyers was on the receiving end of another catch, this time for 10 yards, but Meyers was helped off the field after the play due to injury. Meyers finished with 14 catches for 161 yards, both career highs.
“They hit me pretty good,” Meyers said. “I kinda landed on it a little bit and there was a little shock that went through but I was able to walk off with the help of the trainer so I felt alright putting pressure on it.”
With one minute remaining, Gallaspy was able to punch in his first touchdown of the year to solidify the NC State win, 24-13.
“I think we gotta be better in a lot of different areas,” Finley said. “It was good to get out with a win, exciting to start off 1-0, that was our goal, but there is a lot we need to clean up.”
NC State football will remain at Carter-Finley Stadium for next week’s matchup against Georgia State, starting at noon on Saturday.
