NC State went into a sold-out Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina to face then-No.14 Tennessee as eight-point underdogs. The Wolfpack left on the losing end of a 41-point blowout, putting its College Football Playoff aspirations in jeopardy.
The Wolfpack offense appeared stacked on paper, but on the field, it looked like a team that had never practiced together. Inaccurate throws, a weak offensive line and the inability to capitalize on one-on-one matchups haunted the Wolfpack on Saturday night. If it can’t clean up things before its matchup against No. 22 Clemson in week four, the Pack will be praying for a lackluster bowl game again.
The offensive struggles begin with graduate quarterback Grayson McCall. Before the season began, critics said McCall wouldn’t be able to hang with Power Four football. It’s still early, but if McCall continues his trend of poor performances, he might just prove the haters right.
McCall’s expectations for the game were much higher, but all he had to show for it was an 85-yard pick-6 to extend the Tennessee lead to 17-3 late in the first half. McCall went 15-22 with 104 yards and failed to find open receivers, resulting in just 67 passing yards through the final three quarters.
The opening drive for the Wolfpack looked like it was going NC State’s way. The offense held the ball for seven minutes on the opening drive, converting on three third downs before punting the ball away.
The ensuing drives came nowhere close to the efficiency of the first. The Pack punted on six out of the 12 drives over the course of the game and turned the ball over on five others.
The offensive line failed to show up all night long, allowing the Tennessee pass rushers to get to McCall in what seemed like milliseconds. The line also didn’t hold up for the run, resulting in just 39 rushing yards on 28 carries. All five NC State rushers got out-classed by Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson, who ran for 132 yards on 20 carries.
It’s still very early in the season, and a highly ranked team such as Tennessee was one of the games the Pack could afford to lose. There are lots of chances for the Pack to bounce back and still achieve a 10-win season. However, there is no room for error against matchups like Louisiana Tech and No. 25 Northern Illinois.
The Wolfpack has been in this situation before, losing last season’s week two matchup against then-No.10 Notre Dame 45-24 at home. NC State finished the season with a 9-4 record and an appearance in the Pop Tart Bowl.
The Pack looks to redeem itself in week three, matching up against Louisiana Tech on Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh.
