NC State football has nothing but itself to blame for its disaster of a 2024 campaign.
Not only was this season a massive failure compared to preseason expectations, but the Wolfpack is in very real danger of missing a bowl game for the third time in head coach Dave Doeren’s 12-year tenure.
NC State went all-in during the offseason, spending untold sums of money to acquire notable offensive talents like graduate quarterback Grayson McCall and redshirt freshman wide receiver Noah Rogers while retaining key defensive pieces like graduate defensive end Davin Vann and graduate cornerback Aydan White. But even with such a sharp influx of talent, the Wolfpack still found a way to underachieve.
Some aspects of the season have been uncontrollable. McCall’s career-ending injury and ensuing retirement were a total shock to the nation. In a linebacker room that already had question marks entering the season, a season-ending injury to redshirt junior linebacker Caden Fordham severely hurt an already staggering defense.
To say NC State fans have been put through the wringer this season would be an understatement. Week after week, the Wolfpack finds new ways to disappoint its fanbase, whether it’s coaching, poor decision-making or just straight-up bad play.
NC State’s flat performance to open the season against Western Carolina — an FCS school — was an ominous start to the season. Many thought it was the team simply working to find its chemistry on opening night. Little did they know it foreshadowed the inevitable disappointment that would soon follow.
The Wolfpack followed up its lackadaisical season-opening victory with a 51-10 blowout loss to Tennessee on neutral ground. But hey, Tennessee is an SEC school, so that was supposed to happen, right? Surely NC State would go on to recover and perform well in conference play.
Wrong. Two weeks later, in a matchup against ranked Clemson, the Wolfpack had a chance to prove that some of the preseason hype was still legit. But it was over before the first quarter when NC State allowed 28 points — the second-most points allowed in the first 15 minutes in program history — en route to an embarrassing 59-35 loss.
The Wolfpack continued to shoot itself in the foot week after week. The Pack entered its matchup against Wake Forest with the ninth-longest home winning streak in the nation. It held a 10-point lead against its longtime rival in the fourth quarter and yet somehow managed to squander an opportunity for an important conference win.
NC State then gave hope that it could still salvage its season in a 59-28 victory over Stanford. However, looks can be deceiving. Stanford holds claim to the worst defense in the ACC, allowing over 34 points per game. Nonetheless, NC State’s 59-point outing marked the most points scored against a conference opponent and finally gave Wolfpack fans a bit of faith for the rest of the season.
But in the following matchup against Duke, NC State’s offense looked more like a high school JV team than a Power Four school. In 14 offensive possessions, the Wolfpack came away with four field goals and a touchdown while allowing a safety, turning the ball over twice and missing a field goal.
Now, the Wolfpack holds a 5-5 overall record and a 2-4 ACC record, sitting at 14th in the conference with two games remaining, neither of which are in Carter-Finley Stadium. The Wolfpack will take on Georgia Tech, a team that just gave then-No. 4 Miami its first loss of the season.
Assuming it loses that matchup in typical NC State fashion, its final opportunity to secure that all-important sixth win is a Thanksgiving weekend matchup against rival UNC-Chapel Hill — a matchup that the Wolfpack has owned in recent history, winning the last three games. However, if the 2024 season has proven anything, it’s that nothing is guaranteed in the world of college football.
Even if NC State manages to win one more game and earn a postseason matchup, all it does is sugarcoat a season that’s been nothing short of a dumpster fire — a season that has left the fanbase questioning just about every aspect of the team and program itself. No matter the outcome of the final two matchups, the 2024 season has been a disaster of epic proportions and one that will leave the Wolfpack reeling in the offseason.
