NC State moved to 2-0 in the ACC for the first time since 2006, but before looking ahead to its ranked matchup with No. 17 Louisville on Thursday, let’s take a look back at each position group from the 33-25 win over Syracuse.
Quarterback: C+
It wasn’t redshirt junior Ryan Finley’s best day with his arm, going 20 for 33 with 186 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, but he did run five times for 37 yards, and even made a beautiful one-handed catch on a reverse pass from redshirt senior receiver Gavin Locklear.
Finley nearly threw two interceptions, but was bailed out one time by a penalty, and one time on a phenomenal play from redshirt sophomore Jakobi Meyers, so his interception-free streak lives on to 257 consecutive passes, the longest active streak in the NCAA.
Running Backs: A+
Junior Nyheim Hines had his best game since moving to running back, with 19 carries for 115 yards and a touchdown. Junior Reggie Gallaspy chipped in 33 yards on 10 attempts, including a 10-yard touchdown run. On a much more somber note, graduate student running back Dakwa Nichols had his career come to an end when he tore his patellar tendon in both knees.
Wide Receivers: B
Junior Stephen Louis scored his first touchdown of the season, and had four catches for 67 yards. Meyers was targeted early and often by Finley, and had seven catches for 57 yards, including one catch that looked like it was going to be intercepted, until Meyers reached over the defender to make the play.
Tight Ends: A-
Senior all-purpose back Jaylen Samuels was used more in the running game than he ever has been before. He had a career high nine carries for 74 yards and an easy touchdown where he walked in backwards. Samuels also had five catches for 37 yards.
Offensive Line: A
The offensive line has taken their play to another level since junior right tackle Will Richardson returned from suspension. Finley hasn’t been sacked in the last two weeks and has had plenty of time to find receivers. The Pack ran for 264 yards, largely in part due to the offensive line.
Defensive Line: A
At this point, it seems to be when, not if, senior defensive end Bradley Chubb breaks the school records of Mario Williams for sacks and tackles for loss. He is 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks away from breaking each of those after having 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks Saturday.
Chubb is so incredible that it’s easy to forget how good the rest of the defensive line is. Senior defensive tackle Justin Jones had 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack, and senior defensive end Kentavius Street had a huge stop on a fourth down.
Linebackers: C
Senior linebacker Jerod Fernandez led the team with 14 tackles, and played a huge part in limiting the Orange’s yards after catch. Junior linebacker Germaine Pratt also had three tackles, including half a tackle for loss. This group is a huge reason Syracuse only had 59 yards rushing on the day.
Secondary: C
The Orange threw for 385 yards, but it threw the ball 48 times. Senior cornerback Johnathan Alston recorded his second interception of the season. Senior cornerback Mike Stevens also made his long awaited return which allowed the Pack to rotate its three cornerbacks, along with sophomore Nick McCloud. Sophomore safety Jarius Morehead continued his strong play with eight tackles.
Special Teams: B-
The roller coaster kicking game continues as graduate student Carson Wise went 2 for 3 on field goals, and nailed a 48-yarder, but missed an extra point and a 31-yard field goal on the last play of the first half. Junior kicker Kyle Bambard had three of his seven kicks go for touchbacks. Junior punter AJ Cole had his best game of the season with four punts, three of which were inside the 20, including one downed at the 4-yard line.
