NC State football turned the ball over four times in a 28-23 game against Boston College Saturday… and won. The reason? The Pack’s new-look defense, which had been sneaky good through four games, was flat-out dominant for three quarters.
Most of the Pack’s defensive fortitude came in the first half. The Wolfpack gave the Eagles three golden opportunities with a muffed punt and an uncharacteristic two interceptions from graduate quarterback Finley in the opening frame.
The defense did not allow those self-inflicted wounds to damage the Pack, as Boston College scored a total of three points off the turnovers. The Pack’s D had six tackles for loss, three sacks and a forced fumble in the game and held the Eagles to 105 total yards in the first half. Graduate linebacker Germaine Pratt led the way with with 13 tackles, a sack a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
“Tough as nails,” head coach Dave Doeren said. “[Defensive coordinator Dave Huxtable] and his staff has those guys right where they want them. The kids are playing hard, they believe in what they’re doing and they’re playing together. They don’t care who makes the play or who gets the credit; they just play hard and they bought in this game plan. A lot of time went into it — didn’t sleep a lot last week preparing for what BC does. They’re a really good offense and we played pretty damn good.”
The first turnover came on a muffed punt by redshirt freshman receiver Thayer Thomas in the first quarter that gave the Eagles prime field position at the NC State 20. The defense held strong, however, forcing Boston College to kick a 33-yard field goal, the only time it got points off a Wolfpack turnover.
“It’s really good,” senior tackle Eurndraus Bryant said. “We play off each other, so whenever [the offense] isn’t doing as good as they’re supposed to, we’re there to back them up. Just like when we’re not doing good, they’re there to back us up. So just carrying our momentum from them into the next play.”
Following that field goal, the Pack forced three and outs after both of Finley’s interceptions. The defense’s stout first half allowed the offense to get in gear and score two touchdowns before the break.
“I think they are playing like they have something to prove right now,” Finley said. “They are playing as a unit. I think that’s one thing you can say about our defense is that they play together, they are smart and they play really hard. … They played really well [today], and I think they are the reason we won.”
The defense continued to be the team’s MVP coming out of the break. After freshman kicker Chris Dunn’s 19-yard field goal attempt was blocked on NC State’s first drive of the second half, the defense once again forced a three and out and punt.
Even when the Eagles did score a touchdown after a fumble from freshman Ricky Person in the fourth quarter, NC State stopped the two-point conversion attempt to keep its lead at 12 points. The Pack sealed the game with 6:09 to play in the fourth quarter, as Pratt forced and recovered a fumble at NC State’s 2-yard line with BC looking to make it a one-score game.
“I just ripped the ball out of his hands,” Pratt said. “… Any turnover is huge at any given moment. As you can see they blocked the punt, it was huge for them. I think it was huge for us to stop them from putting points on the board.”
Coming into the season, the defense was a question mark for an NC State team that knew it might have had the best offense in the ACC. However, despite losing a whopping eight starters from last year’s team, the Wolfpack’s defense has arguably improved this year with a mix of veterans and young talent.
NC State’s secondary is playing the best it has in years, and the defensive line has been strong, if less flashy, minus 2017 Bronko Nagurski Award winner Bradley Chubb and three other NFL draft picks.
“I really don’t feel a drop off,” Bryant said. “A lot of people think it’s a drop off between all those good players last year and now, but the way we’re playing right now, I’m loving it. It feels the same, honestly, if not better.”
When the Wolfpack’s offense, its overwhelming strength, took time to get going Saturday, the defense was there to bail it out. If an NC State team that is 5-0 going into its bye week can continue to get this kind of production from both units, this group is just getting started in terms of what it can accomplish this year.
