It was an interesting Saturday afternoon at Carter-Finley Stadium. There was a glorious entry into the stadium, a dynamic offensive explosion, a depressing injury, crippling turnovers in the red zone, quarterbacks galore, freshman touchdowns and plenty of empty seats in the second half.

Graduate student Brandon Mitchell started at quarterback and handled his first two series with poise. He confidently guided the Pack down the field, aided ably by redshirt-senior wide receiver Rashard Smith, and after less than six minutes in the contest, State led 14-0.

 Mitchell broke his fifth metatarsal in the first half, a bone that Doeren, who once aspired to be a med student, said he did know about. Things seemed to be stuck in the mud following the injury.

But give credit to Mitchell’s replacement, redshirt junior Pete Thomas. The former Colorado State quarterback settled down after a rough start and even earned Doeren’s praise by recovering a fumble on the return of a goal-line interception.

A 26-point victory over a coach named Holtz would typically be cause for celebration, two turnovers deep in Wolfpack territory by the Bulldogs, along with State’s ability to only score four touchdowns in eight trips to the red zone, is a source of concern.

Doeren named junior kicker Niklas Sade the N.C. State Offensive Player of the Game for good reason. His accuracy in his field goal attempts and booming kickoffs will serve his team well.  

The Pack, like most teams, was still getting its feet wet on Saturday.

Sophomore running back Shadrach Thornton will return from a one-game suspension in State’s next game against Richmond. Doeren mentioned that Thornton’s presence may create more wildcat opportunities on offense.

It will be interesting to see how the first-year coach navigates around Thomas’ lack of mobility.

Freshman Bryant Shirreffs, still listed as a fullback, saw action at quarterback on Saturday. By the time he had some plays under his belt, everyone left in Carter-Finley Stadium knew he would only run the ball.

As for the crowd, the many empty seats in the second half was not something Wolfpack Nation should be proud of. Doeren–who has taken to calling his new home digs “The Carter,” while noting that the beginning of the game had a terrific atmosphere–was not pleased at the ambiance in the final 30 minutes.

“Our attendance was outstanding,” he said. “I want to thank the fans for that. I would like to issue a challenge to [the fans] to help us out in the third and fourth quarter. This program has a goal of being a national program. To have games at a place that is as awesome as [Carter-Finley], with the number of tickets we sell and the passion our fan base has, we need them around in the third and fourth quarter to be a great team. It is great to start fast with a big crowd, but it is better to finish with one.”

One game into the campaign, Doeren and the N.C. State fans both have a better idea of what to expect from each other—on the field and in the stands.