CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — It was a dark and stormy night for NC State football, all up until its game-winning field goal was driven through the posts to defeat the Virginia Cavaliers 24-21.
Graduate quarterback Brennan Armstrong made a storied return to his old stomping grounds of Charlottesville, and even though sloppy plays and lackluster defense nearly got in their way, Armstrong and the Wolfpack secured their first ACC win of 2023.
“A road win in the ACC is always great, but you know, it’s not the way we wanted to do it,” said graduate linebacker Payton Wilson.
The Wolfpack (3-1, 1-0 ACC) came into the game riding high after defeating VMI 45-7 at Carter-Finley on Sept. 16, and the team hoped to start ACC play with a bang. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers (0-4, 0-1 ACC) continued their losing streak in their second home game of the season.
Things got stressful for the red-and-white in the fourth quarter. Up by eight, it took four drives for Virginia to catch up to the Pack with a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie the game up at 21-21. With 36 seconds on the clock, it seemed like all hope was lost for NC State, especially after wasting two interceptions courtesy of redshirt sophomore safety Sean Brown and junior cornerback Aydan White.
But the Wolfpack got one final shot to steal the game. With a favorable start to the Pack’s last drive at Virginia’s 48-yard line with 36 seconds left, Armstrong showed his experience by making quick work to move the offense down to the 32-yard line for a field goal attempt.
Graduate kicker Brayden Narveson took to the field — only to be blocked by the Cavalier defense. But Virginia committed a costly penalty, bringing the field goal kick to the 15-yard line. With a second chance, Narveson sealed the deal and gave the Pack its first ACC win of the season.
“I’m very proud of our kicker, first of all, for making that kick,” said head coach Dave Doeren. “You know, the psyche you have as a kicker when you have one block, even though it was a penalty, to be able to step back in there and knock that through in the rain. I thought that was a great moment for Brayden. I’m proud of him.”
Hours before Narveson’s game-sealing kick, though, the skies in Virginia got darker as kickoff approached. NC State had three unsuccessful drives throughout the first quarter, unable to get the offense moving at a consistent rate. Armstrong threw for 180 yards by the end of 60 minutes of play, but throughout the first quarter, he was playing shaky.
Things got better for the Pack at the end of the first — Armstrong worked his way closer to the endzone, with help from freshman wide receiver Kevin Concepcion, junior wide receiver Porter Rooks and sophomore wide receiver Terrell Timmons Jr.
The first touchdown of the game came in the second quarter from a connection between Armstrong and Concepcion, as the veteran quarterback hit his mark to bring the game to 7-0. But less than five minutes later, the Cavaliers evened the score with a touchdown pass of their own.
NC State landed the next blow, however. As the rain started pouring down, the red-and-white moved the chains enough for redshirt junior running back Delbert Mimms III to rush up the middle and make the score 14-7.
The second half got started with no change in the weather — to the disappointment of all fans still in the stands — and the Cavaliers got their shot with the ball. The NC State defense was able to get things moving quickly for the Pack, as Wilson recorded a sack on Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea.
“[Wilson] plays to exhaustion,” Doeren said. “He’s the heartbeat of our football team. I can’t say enough about him.”
As the offense kept struggling to make connections with its wide receivers, the run game wasn’t looking better either. This ended up hurting the Pack, as the offensive line missed blocks and broke down as the game progressed. Two field goals from the Cavaliers brought the game to 14-13, but an electric 48-yard touchdown throw by Armstrong to Concepcion gave the Pack an advantage going into the final quarter.
Concepcion was the best player for NC State’s offense, connecting for two touchdowns and leading the team with 116 yards — an impressive stat for a true freshman’s first ACC game.
“[Concepcion] doesn’t hesitate,” Armstrong said. “He doesn’t care about the lights. As a young guy, he just goes out there and plays.
NC State’s defense played its part in the fourth quarter with two interceptions but couldn’t hold back the Cavaliers for long enough. But the Pack’s stalling offense rallied when it needed to with just seconds left on the clock. Narveson dealt the killing blow with zeros left on the clock.
Despite the win, NC State still has its work cut out for it as the team travels back to Raleigh to take on Louisville under more Friday night lights.
The Pack will battle the Cardinals on Friday, Sept. 29 with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
