NC State football suffered its worst loss of the season to No. 17 Duke, losing 24-3 in a blowout loss in Durham.
The Pack punted six times and turned the ball over four times — including three turnovers on downs and an interception. The loss at Duke marks the red-and-white’s second conference loss and puts it eighth in the ACC standings.
Quarterback
For the second straight week, sophomore quarterback MJ Morris failed to post a QBR of over 30 and struggled to find a groove. While Morris attempted a career-high 40 passes in the game and completed 60% of them, most were short completions that averaged 4.8 yards per pass. Morris also finished the game as the Pack’s leading rusher with 14 carries for 38 yards.
The red-and-white continued to spread the ball around — eight different players caught passes to make upMorris’ 24 total completions. Overall, Morris did what he could given the pressure he was facing from a strong Duke defensive line, but couldn’t will the Wolfpack to a victory.
Grade: B
Running backs
The quarterback was the leading rusher — a very familiar outcome for the Pack. Despite the four different running backs for the Wolfpack, they totaled a disappointing 41 yards on 12 carries.
While the Duke defense is ranked first in the ACC in points allowed, the Pack couldn’t manage to get any of its running backs going. The game also marked the first time the red-and-white didn’t record a rushing touchdown in a game this season.
Grade: D
Pass catchers
Despite playing the best team in deflecting passes within the ACC, the Wolfpack showed some explosive potential with eight receptions going for over 10 yards. For the third time in the last four games, freshman wide receiver Kevin Concepcion led the red-and-white in receiving yards with 63 yards on six receptions.
The pass catchers continue to struggle with dropped passes, and outside of Concepcion, there are no answers to who will step up as a second strong option for the quarterback.
Grade: C-
Offensive line
The offensive line was a big reason for the struggles in the blowout loss to Duke. The line gave up four sacks — a season high — while allowing the most quarterback hits in the past three weeks. The line also couldn’t provide running lanes for the running backs, and it didn’t allow much time in the pocket for Morris to go through his progressions.
Not only did the line not play an efficient game, but it also killed offensive drives in penalties. The line committed four false starts and was called for holding twice, both coming on first down.
Grade: D-
Special Teams Spotlight
The only points came off the leg of graduate kicker Brayden Narveson who drilled a 57-yard field goal which set an NC State football record for the longest field goal made in program history. Narveson has now made a perfect 6-6 in his last five games for the Wolfpack.
