The NC State football team kicked off its 2021 season with a resounding 45-0 win over the South Florida Bulls on Thursday, Sept. 2 at Carter-Finley Stadium.
The Wolfpack defense did its part in the victory, keeping the Bulls off the board and holding them to 271 yards of total offense. The Pack was also able to get off the field effectively, holding the Bulls to 3-16 on third down, which gave the offense more opportunities, while also forcing three turnovers. It was an impressive performance on the whole, and here is a group-by-group breakdown of how the defense performed.
Secondary
The NC State secondary benefitted from the incompetent passing attack of the Bulls, who had to use two quarterbacks. The starter was UNC transfer Cade Fortin, who barely made it past the first quarter before getting benched for Timmy McClain. Fortin eventually made it back into the game in the fourth quarter, but he finished 7 for 20 for just 41 yards and one interception, while McClain went 7 for 13 for 126 yards and two interceptions. The two QBs combined to go 14 for 33 for 167 yards.
The Pack secondary was responsible for two of the three interceptions thrown by the Bulls quarterbacks, with graduate safety Cyrus Fagan and junior safety Tanner Ingle each earning the celebratory takeaway bone. Fagan also tallied seven total tackles, which was good for second-most on the team.
Overall, the Pack secondary did what it needed to do to get the win and help secure the shutout, but the unit did not receive that much of a formidable challenge from the Bulls. We will learn much more about the unit next week when the team travels to take on Mississippi State and head coach Mike Leach’s air-raid offense. For this week, the secondary passes with flying colors.
Grade: A
Linebackers
The Wolfpack run defense held the Bulls’ rushing attack in check, allowing 104 yards on an average of 3.3 yards per carry. Other than giving up a 16-yard run on the first play of the game, the unit played pretty solid.
Sophomore linebacker Drake Thomas was the star of the game defensively, leading the team with eight total tackles, and was the first player to earn the takeaway bone after a nice diving interception at the end of the first half. The interception was Thomas’ first of his career.
Like the secondary, the linebackers did not get much of a challenge from a clearly inferior USF team, and also like the secondary, the unit will learn much more about itself when it goes up against an SEC team next week.
Grade: A
Defensive Line
It was a relatively uneventful game for the NC State defensive line as the group could not burst through for a sack, but that didn’t really matter with the incompetent quarterback play of the Bulls. The group did its part along with the linebackers in stymying the Bulls’ rushing attack, but, along with every other position group, will receive a much more stiff challenge next week.
Grade: A
