Behind an opportunistic defense and elite special teams, NC State football escaped Carter-Finley Stadium with a 24-17 win over Northern Illinois on Saturday.
Head coach Dave Doeren’s previous coaching job was with the Huskies, making for an emotional matchup with his alma mater.
“That was a very personal win for me,” Doeren said. “It’s the program that gave me my first opportunity to be a head coach, had really fond memories of coaching there. … Losing to the place you used to coach at is something you don’t want to carry around. All wins are precious, but that one meant a lot to me as an individual. I thank the players and the staff for that.”
Leading the charge for NC State (3-2) was redshirt junior punter Caden Noonkester. On eight punts, Noonkester pinned Northern Illinois (2-2) within its own 20 seven times while racking up 398 total yards. Doubling the Wolfpack’s offense’s total yards, Noonkester saved the day for a struggling Wolfpack squad.
“It was very important that [Noonkester] got those punts down, pinned down,” said freshman quarterback CJ Bailey. “We had a lot of drive killers with the flags and everything. … I appreciate him as our punter.”
Following a touchdown on its opening drive, NC State’s offense posted a miserable showing. With an inability to run the ball and a concerningly conservative passing game, the Wolfpack only totaled 171 yards, with 64 of those on the initial drive. Additionally, the Wolfpack only converted one of eleven third downs — a glaring red flag for NC State.
“You’ve got to get into manageable third downs first,” Doeren said. “Being efficient means you’re getting four yards on first down and half of what you need on second and putting yourself in third and short.”
Bailey made his home debut, posting 108 yards and a touchdown on 13-20 passing. The Wolfpack didn’t ask Bailey to stretch the field much, instead opting for short, conservative throws to take care of the football. While Bailey’s numbers won’t jump off the page, his continued experience is critical as he navigates his first season in the ACC and improves his craft.
“Of course I’ve got a lot of stuff to work on, to improve on,” Bailey said. “I wish that we could have finished way more drives and kept it going.”
Sophomore receiver KC Concepcion was completely neutralized by Northern Illinois, totaling just four yards on four receptions. NC State has limited its passes to its star receiver to just screens, pop passes and the occasional slant, asking Concepcion to create plays out of nothing, rather than sending him downfield.
Defensively, NC State showed significant improvement, setting a season-high in tackles for loss and matching its season total for sacks. Unlike the past four weeks, NC State caused chaos up front, disrupting the Huskies’ offense. In pass defense especially, NC State gave Northern Illinois quarterback Ethan Hampton more than he could handle. In addition to sacking Hampton four times, the Pack picked the Huskies’ quarterback off twice, including a game-sealing interception by redshirt freshman Tamarcus Cooley.
“I thought we played four quarters of really good defense today,” Doeren said. “It’s just being consistent, not putting your foot on the break, staying on edge and knowing that every play is a really important play.”
Setting the tone early, graduate defensive end Davin Vann wreaked havoc on the Huskies’ offense. Practically living in the backfield, Vann tallied a career-high 10 tackles, including 3.5 for loss. Additionally, Vann forced a pair of fumbles, including one that set NC State up on Northern Illinois’ goal line in the third quarter. On a day when it would have been easy to quit on the season, Vann chose to give his best performance for the red-and-white.
Not to be outdone, senior safety DK Kaufman scored his second touchdown of the season and made life miserable for the Huskies. Amid a tied game, Kaufman raced into the backfield and ripped the ball from Hampton before scooping it up for a touchdown. The Auburn transfer gave NC State the lead for good, bouncing back well from a difficult last week.
“Last week was embarrassing, no other way to put it,” Kaufman said. “We knew we had to start fast. We’ve been talking about this all year. Today we finally did that, and we’re going to have to keep building off of that. We’re trying to go on a run, so that’s one down and seven more to go.”
Doeren adjusted his defensive starters looking for a spark, shuffling in three new starters. Cooley returned to the starting nickel spot in his first start since the season opener, while graduate safety KJ Martin and redshirt freshman defensive end Isaiah Shirley made their starting debuts for the red-and-white. In addition to Cooley’s pick, Martin added a key pass breakup, while Shirley recorded three tackles and a quarterback hurry.
The Wolfpack’s biggest defensive challenge was containing Northern Illinois’ star running back Antario Brown. The Huskies’ running back carried the rock a whopping 28 times, powering his way to 114 yards. With 11 first downs on the ground, NC State continued to struggle with missed tackles and poor run fits. However, the defense showed some flash and recorded a season-high 12 tackles for loss — a much-needed improvement after last week’s gashing at Clemson.
Next up, NC State will enter the heart of its ACC schedule, facing Wake Forest for the 114th consecutive season — college football’s second-longest continuous rivalry. Kickoff is scheduled for noon at Carter-Finley Stadium and the game will be televised on the CW.
