Comedian Jeff Foxworthy said on College Gameday Saturday morning, “I think the Wolfpack defense is as nasty as the squeegee water at the gas station.” Led by redshirt junior linebacker Isaiah Moore, this defense was indeed nasty on Saturday night in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts against then-4-1 Boston College.
The Wolfpack entered Saturday with its fair share of doubters both locally and nationally. It is safe to say the Woflpack silenced those doubters with a dominant 33-7 win on the road over Boston College.
“I can’t control the lack of respect that we seem to get publicly, we know about it, our team recognizes that people don’t think we’re good, and we’re just going to take care of what we can,” Doeren said.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary has been a man on a mission. In his last four outings, Leary has 12 touchdowns and zero interceptions, including three touchdowns against the Eagles. After the game, Doeren had high praise for his quarterback.
“I’m proud of Devin, you know, he’s done a lot of things for us that help us win games,” Doeren said.
Leary got off to a hot start, going 3 for 3 for 59 yards on NC State’s first drive, punctuated by a 40-yard hookup with redshirt sophomore receiver Devin Carter for a touchdown which you’re guaranteed to see tomorrow on SportsCenter’s top-10 plays.
The Eagles immediately returned fire, though, with Boston College quarterback Dennis Grosel driving the team 75 yards on 10 plays to tie things up with a 8-yard touchdown pass. Despite the opening fury from the offenses, the game quickly turned into a defensive battle.
NC State managed just three more points in the remainder of the half, and while the Eagles themselves drove into the red zone, their 32-yard attempt went wide left.
The game turned early in the second half with NC State leading 10-7 when the Wolpack added to its lead on a scoop and score after Boston College punter Grant Carlson lost control on the snap. On the very next drive, Moore picked off Grosel. NC State turned that interception into a touchdown shortly after, which put it in the driver’s seat for the rest of the game.
“That to me is what championship football teams do, is they don’t let people back in when you have them on the ropes like that,” Doeren said.
That was certainly the case. NC State kept the pressure on up 24-7 in the third quarter, as Leary lofted a pass to redshirt junior receiver Thayer Thomas, who ran it 79 yards into the end zone for NC State’s longest scrimmage play this season, and the nail in Boston College’s coffin. The fourth quarter was scoreless, save a safety made by freshman linebacker Devon Betty to make it 33-7.
The cherry on top of the day’s performance was senior wide receiver Emeka Emezie breaking the record for most career catches by an NC State wide receiver with 203 career receptions.
“That’s a big deal, as you mentioned there are so many good receivers that have played here, and I’m so proud of him,” Doeren said.
With the victory, NC State firmly established itself as a contender for the ACC Atlantic. The Wolfpack will look to continue building on its momentum next week as it goes from one end of the east coast to the other, heading down south for a showdown with Miami. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN2.
