Records were broken and milestones were set as NC State football coasted to a 52-31 victory over Arizona State in the 84th Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas Friday afternoon.
Senior all-purpose back Jaylen Samuels became NC State’s all-time leading receiver with his 201st reception, sophomore wide receiver Kelvin Harmon became just the fourth member of the Pack to pass 1,000 receiving yards in a season and junior running back Nyheim Hines had his first three-touchdown game in the Wolfpack’s (9-4, 6-2 ACC) drubbing of the Sun Devils (7-6).
This marked the second straight bowl victory for the Wolfpack after last year’s 41-17 victory over Vanderbilt in the Independence Bowl. It’s the first time NC State has won bowls in back-to-back seasons since 2010-11. It also marks the Pack’s first nine-win season since 2010, and the 52 points are the second-most for NC State in a bowl game.
The big storyline coming into the game was the decision of senior defensive end Bradley Chubb to sit out and not risk injury, as the Nagurski Award winner and all-time school leader in sacks is a potential top-five pick in next year’s NFL Draft. The Sun Devils were without star linebacker Christian Sam for the same reason.
Despite its best player being out, the NC State defense took no time making a big impression on the game. On just the second play, senior defensive tackle B.J. Hill forced a fumble that was recovered by redshirt sophomore safety Jarius Morehead at midfield.
After a perfectly-placed pass from redshirt junior quarterback Ryan Finley that found redshirt junior wide receiver Steph Louis for a 50-yard gain, NC State turned the ball over on downs after failing on a fake field goal from the 4-yard line. Junior kicker Kyle Bambard ran the ball, and came up just short of the goal line.
However, following the blunder, NC State’s offense was absolutely unstoppable, scoring touchdowns on the rest of its four first-half drives to take a 28-10 lead into the half. The first three scores for the Pack came on three 5-yard rushes from junior running back Nyheim Hines, his first-career three-touchdown game.
Another player that was key for the Wolfpack in the opening 30 minutes was Louis. The wideout ended the opening half with three monster catches of 50, 40 and 25 yards to lead the team with 115 yards.
Sophomore wide receiver Kelvin Harmon had three first-half catches for 20 yards, pushing him over 1,000 yards on the season. It marked just the sixth time in NC State history that a receiver has eclipsed 1,000 yards in a season. Harmon is the fourth different member of the Wolfpack to achieve the feat and the first since Jerricho Cotchery in 2003.
The Sun Devils’ offense struggled early in the game with the first-drive fumble followed by two punts. However, after a three-and-out on their fourth drive, the Sun Devils got bailed out by a roughing-the-punter call and made the Pack pay, driving down the field and kicking a field goal.
On the next drive, Arizona State would find the end zone for the first time, with quarterback Manny Wilkins connecting to receiver N’Keal Harry for a 6-yard score. Harry was busy on the drive, pulling in for catches for 65 yards and the touchdown. Harry ended the game with nine catches for 142 yards.
After the Sun Devils failed on a surprise onside kick, the Pack took advantage of the short field as Finley found redshirt sophomore receiver Jakobi Meyers for a 25-yard touchdown with just over a minute remaining in the half. A missed 43-yard field goal from Arizona State as time expired would keep it 28-10 entering halftime.
The Pack had to punt for the first time on its opening drive of the second half, but the defense made up for it quickly. Sophomore cornerback Nick McCloud picked off Wilkins and returned it 53 yards all the way to the Sun Devils 12-yard line. It was McCloud’s first-career interception, and set up a 26-yard kick from Bambard that made it 31-10.
NC State had another special teams blunder as an Arizona State punt hit redshirt senior Nicholas Lacy’s helmet as he was blocking and was recovered by the Sun Devils. However, on the next play Morehead intercepted Wilkins in the end zone to get the ball back for the Pack.
On the ensuing drive, Finley connected to Samuels for a 21-yard gain, good for his 201st career reception, moving him past Cotchery for the most ever in a Wolfpack uniform. The drive culminated with a 23-yard rushing touchdown for junior running back Reggie Gallaspy to make it 38-10.
Arizona State made it slightly more interesting down the stretch. Wilkins rushed for a touchdown before the Sun Devils recovered an onside kick. Arizona State marched down the field and scored again, with Wilkins connecting with Kyle Williams to make it 38-24.
The teams would exchange more touchdowns down the stretch, with Samuels scoring for the Pack, Wilkins connecting with Frank Darby for the Sun Devils and Gallaspy finishing things off with a 1-yard score to make it 52-31. NC State senior linebacker Airius Moore sealed things with an interception with just over a minute to play.
