NC State’s defense ‘woke up’ in fourth quarter to help defeat Western Carolina
N.C. State entered the season opener knowing Western Carolina could pull off an upset. Linebacker Devon Betty said as much last week.
“Just because they’re (from) a lower conference, they could still come in here and whoop us if they come in here with the right mindset,” Betty said.
And the Catamounts (0-1) almost did.
They took a three-point lead into the fourth quarter, before the Wolfpack (1-0) rallied for a 21-point shutout. N.C. State beat its in-state FCS opponent, 38-21, to escape the season opener unscathed.
“I think we just started off slow,” defensive end Davin Vann said. “There are a few things that we came out prepared for them to run, and they didn’t really do quite what we were prepared for, but I think it was just the first game nerves and we started off slow. Moving forward, I think that we got to attack every quarter with the fourth quarter mentality the way we did today.”
The Pack struggled on both side of the ball, but the defensive consistency — or lack of it — played a major role in WCU leading for most of the night.
Western Carolina racked up 361 yards of total offense, including 194 yards on explosive plays. Catamount cornerback Ken Moore returned an N.C. State interception for 51 yards, then quarterback Cole Gonzales notched a 50-yard gain on the following drive.
The Catamounts recorded 129 yards, a game-high, in the fourth quarter, but the Pack stopped it from capitalizing. They went 1 of 4 on third down in the final 15 minutes.
In the seven-game series, N.C. State had never given up three touchdowns to the Catamounts and previously had given up a series-high 20 points in 2003.
“We want to get better. Listen, I tell people all the time, we play great people. It gets you better,” Catamounts coach Kerwin Bell said on Tuesday, when asked about playing N.C. State. “There’s nothing like live reps. … We may get beat 70 to nothing, but by God, we’re gonna give it our best shot, and we’re going to go see what we can do as a football team. I think that’ll only make us better.”
Doeren said WCU might’ve been worn down late in the game — there’s often a dropoff in depth between FBS and FCS teams — but his squad also “woke up.”
“We just started playing better. That’s why you play games, man. You gotta go out there and learn where you’re at,” Doeren said. “There’s some nerves; a lot of new players in the program and a lot to learn from. But we stressed the fourth quarter. I mean, that’s something that every day in practice, we talk about being finishers, and I thought that was something I was very proud of tonight.”
Western Carolina took an early lead, playing fearlessly against a somewhat soft Wolfpack defense. N.C. State actually put together a couple of positive plays to start the game. Linebacker Caden Fordham recorded a pass breakup on Western Carolina’s first play of the game but was called for targeting and ejected four plays later.
Doeren said Fordham is one of the team’s better players and playing without him hurt the team.
“He’s a guy that plays really, really hard. He’s tough,” Doeren said. “He’s got good leadership skills, so not having him in the middle hurts.”
Despite the inconsistency, linebacker Jayland Parker was a bright spot in the victory. Parker, a redshirt junior, has been with the program four years but has played limited minutes. He stepped into the lineup in Fordham’s absence.
Parker finished with seven tackles, two solo. He assisted Betty with a drive-ending tackle in the second quarter and forced a turnover on downs.
“Losing Caden hurt us a little bit,” Vann said. “Of course, having our number one might go down hurts, but I think JP did a really good job of stepping in and knowing what he needed to do and playing very fast the way he did. I think he did a good job.”
Parker admitted he was victim to the first game butterflies, especially playing in such a significant role. Betty, Sean Brown and some coaches pulled him aside early, reminding him to relax.
That turned into a career-best performance.
“I’m just glad to have the opportunity to be out there with the guys, guys like Aydan (White), Betty, Sean, Davin (Vann),” Parker said. “Just to share a moment like this with them, it means a lot to me. I appreciate them for trusting me to be out there with them tonight.”
This story was originally published August 30, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "NC State’s defense ‘woke up’ in fourth quarter to help defeat Western Carolina."
