On a Saturday night where NC State played three quarterbacks, a mix of errors and a failure to execute led to a 31-13 loss to Florida State in Tallahassee, Florida.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Matthew Mckay started the game under center for the Wolfpack, but after three drives that amounted to 32 total yards, Mckay was replaced by fellow redshirt sophomore Bailey Hockman.
Hockman’s presence on the field was able to give the Wolfpack offense somewhat of a spark, as Hockman’s first drive resulted in a field goal — NC State’s first points of the game.
It was a sort of homecoming for Hockman, as he originally began his career at Florida State under then-head coach Jimbo Fisher. After Fisher left for Texas A&M, Hockman transferred to NC State to continue his collegiate career. Unfortunately for Hockman and NC State, his return to FSU was not pleasant.
After another decent drive led by Hockman that resulted in another Wolfpack field goal, NC State found itself up 6-3 with six minutes to go in the quarter. However, Florida State found the endzone on the next drive and the Pack would not see a lead for the remainder of the game.
Florida State would not look back after retaking the lead, scoring 21 unanswered points and not allowing any points until there were 13 minutes to go in the game. Even worse for the Pack, Sophomore running back Ricky Person and Hockman exited due to injury during the game, with the full extent of those injuries unknown at this time.
Another touchdown for the Seminoles that answered the lone touchdown pass thrown by Hockman was enough to put the Wolfpack away for good. On a night where sophomore kicker Christopher Dunn went 2 for 3 on field goals, the offense simply could not produce any touchdowns to hang with FSU.
Despite many things not going the Wolfpack’s way during the game, there were some positive things the Wolfpack did on the field as the defense played valiantly in the effort, finishing with eight total sacks. Graduate defensive tackle Larrell Murchison led the team with 3.5 sacks in an excellent game for him individually.
Redshirt freshman Devin Leary also had a strong game, getting in limited playing time after replacing an injured Hockman. In one final drive, Leary went 4 for 5 for 54 yards and almost had a touchdown pass that was fumbled away at the goal line. While it was a terrible offensive performance, Leary was one of the few bright spots for the Wolfpack offensively.
With a developing quarterback controversy, the offense struggling and the secondary giving up big plays, NC State will use this upcoming bye week to prepare for a Thursday night home game against Syracuse in less than two weeks.
