The NC State football team withheld a late surge from the University of Central Florida Friday night en route to a 34-27 victory at the Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl.
With the victory, the Wolfpack finish the season 8-5 (3-5 ACC), going 4-1 in its last five games after suffering four straight defeats.
The Knights (9-4) struck first on the opening possession as senior kicker Shawn Moffitt converted on a field goal from 40 yards out giving UCF the early 3-0 advantage with 10:06 remaining in the first quarter.
The NC State offense quickly responded on the following drive with the help of redshirt junior quarterback Jacoby Brissett and a wrinkle of trickery.
Brissett was up to his usual antics of mystifying incoming tacklers during the ensuing possession as the Florida native scrambled for 22 yards on two carries. On second and eight at the UCF 37-yard line, Brissett showed off his arm, finding redshirt sophomore David Grinnage for an 18-yard reception to put the Pack in the red zone.
Two plays later, offensive coordinator Matt Canada dialed up a halfback pass with Brissett pitching the ball to junior Shadrach Thornton. Thornton sold the run perfectly as the UCF defense rallied to the ball carrier.
Rolling to his right, Thornton slung the ball to the corner of the end zone to true freshman Jaylen Samuels, who made a spectacular catch over senior defensive back Brandon Alexander to give the Pack a 7-3 lead with 6:11 remaining in the first quarter.
UCF would answer on the first drive of the second quarter behind the dual threat ability of sophomore quarterback Justin Holman.
The Knights started their drive at their own 33-yard line, but after a 9-play, 61-yard march, the Knights found themselves facing third and Goal. Holman went to his favorite receiver of the night in redshirt senior Josh Reese on the deciding down of the drive to procure a 6-yard touchdown strike making the score 10-7.
The back and forth nature of this contest continued on the following State drive as the Pack offense threatened to score again with just over nine minutes remaining in the half.
On 1st and 10 from the UCF 37-yard line, sophomore receiver Johnathan Alston ran a post route and flashed wide open near the goal line for the peering Brissett. Brissett threw a bullet to the streaking Alston who hauled it in for the big touchdown, giving State the 13-10 advantage. After the chip-in by senior Niklas Sade was good making the score 14-10, the Pack would not relinquish its lead.
Sade, playing in his final game with NC State, connected again from 19 yards before halftime to give the Pack a 17-10 lead heading into the break.
After the respectable efforts of Shadrach Thornton in the first half, it was time for sophomore back Matt Dayes to step into the spotlight and receive the majority of the carries in the second half.
With just under 12 minutes remaining in the third quarter, Dayes found a huge gap in the UCF line and broke free into the open field. With Dayes having just one defensive back to beat, it was senior safety Brandon Alexander that found himself on the highlight reel for the second time of the night.
Dayes initiated a devastating cutback move on Alexander and left the experienced defender looking silly near the goal line. The breakout carry was good for a 24-yard score, extending the Pack’s lead to 24-10.
With 5:45 remaining in the quarter, the Knights were finally able to respond after given good field position off a Brissett fumble at the Pack 42-yard line. The State defense stood strong however allowing just one first down. Moffitt connected again from 36 yards out on the field goal to make the score 24-13 in favor of NC State.
On the Pack’s final drive of the third, Dayes found pay-dirt once again off a 15-yard dash, giving State its largest lead of the night at 31-13.
Sade added on three more points in the Pack’s first drive of the first quarter on a 45-yard field goal, extending the State lead to 34-13.
Head coach George O’Leary’s Knights squad made a spirited comeback late in the fourth quarter. Holman found Reese for a 14-yard score with 11:01 remaining and then again from 2 yards out with 1:44 remaining in the game. In the end however, the Knights’ effort was just too little too late.
For a brief moment after the Reese touchdown, which cut the State lead to 7, the UCF fan base, which needed to travel just two hours to Tropicana Field for the game, rose with thunderous support, chanting “U-C-F” in the confines of the low hanging dome. Moments later, the chants of the Knights were silenced after redshirt senior Tyler Purvis fittingly ended his NC State career with the onside kick recovery to secure the victory.
The Wolfpack faithful that made the long journey to St. Petersburg were rewarded with a third consecutive victory and a highly satisfying conclusion to the roller coaster 2014 season.
