NC State beat Ball State 34-23 Saturday at home despite an overall weak performance. The Pack needed a win to gain momentum before heading into conference play next weekend and the NC State did just that in a high-scoring game that had plenty of offense.

The Pack took a big lead early before Ball State looked to make a comeback, scoring plenty of points late. The Pack, however, came up with a big fourth-quarter turnover to seal the win. Let’s look at how each section of the defense played throughout the game Saturday.

Defensive Line (Grade: B-)

The defensive line had a great game overall. NC State’s defense held the Ball State offense to only 84 rushing yards. The Pack defense held running back Caleb Huntley to only 52 yards on 13 attempts. It also held Ball State’s other running back in the rotation, Walter Fletcher, to only 30 yards on 10 attempts. The defensive line was key in coming up with some big third-down stops that led to Ball State punting the football five times in the game.

Something concerning for the Pack was its defensive line in the red zone. Ball State was able to score both of its touchdowns on rushing plays. The first was an 11-yard rush from wide receiver Justin Hall and the second was a 2-yard rush from Huntley. 

Overall the Pack’s defensive line play was good but it has to be better in redzone situations, where the Pack struggled to penetrate the line. When facing higher-ranked schools in conference play starting next week the D-line, and the entire defense, will have to step up.

Linebackers (Grade: A)

The Wolfpack linebackers also had a great game as they helped the defensive in limiting the Ball State running back committee. The Wolfpack linebackers also came up with some key tackles on third down forcing NC State to punt five times and settle for field goals three times. 

The NC State linebacking corps had an almost perfect day, with one of the group’s only mistakes coming on the last score of the game for Ball State when many of the Pack defenders fell for the reverse play. Overall, there was really not much that they couldn’t do, as they were able to virtually shut down Ball State’s rushing attack.

Secondary (Grade: B)

The NC State secondary had an impressive day, not allow a single passing touchdown for the entire game. Junior Chris Ingram also came up with a huge interception in the fourth quarter with less than four minutes to go. It was third and 5 for Ball State and the ball was on NC State’s 15-yard line. If Ball State scored, it would have made it a one-possession game. That is when Ingram, who was awarded ACC Defensive Back of the Week, came up with the huge pick. Ingram led the excellent secondary with not only an interception but with nine tackles on the day, second only to sophomore Tanner Ingle’s 11 tackles.

The one thing that is concerning for the Pack was the amount of yardage it allowed from the passing game. Ball State’s quarterback Drew Plitt passed for 333 yards, completing 35 of his 57 pass attempts. With how efficient Plitt was, averaging almost 10 yards per completion, it could be telling of how the defense will struggle against ACC opponents, starting with Florida State next week.