NC State is in the midst of an identity shift on both sides of the football. With redshirt junior linebacker Isaiah Moore and graduate guard Chandler Zavala out for the year, the Wolfpack had big shoes to fill on defense and a huge hole in its offense. Down five starters and reeling from a loss at Miami, this team seemed in need of a spark with no clear indication of who could provide it.
No matter. The team rebounded at home with a decisive victory, led by its still-dangerous defense. Of course, everything started with the linebacking corps. Missing its ACC Defensive Player of the Year candidate, sophomore linebacker Drake Thomas had a career day, stepping up in a big way with 15 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, two sacks and a PBU.
Entering this season, redshirt sophomore linebacker Payton Wilson made the bold declaration that NC State would have one of the top defenses in the country. That meant having one of the top linebacking corps in the nation to make its 3-3-5 defense work. And now, down two of his running mates, Thomas has taken over as the de facto playmaker for this defense.
“He’s a warrior, and I love having a guy like that in the middle of our defense,” said head coach Dave Doeren. “Losing Isaiah is a huge loss. To be able to put a guy like Drake in the middle is a nice luxury to have. And to have a guy that hasn’t played that position all season — never actually since he’s been here — to step in and play like that says a ton about that young man.”
There’s another player whose performance can’t be overlooked, and he jumps out of the stat sheet as well. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Devin Leary continues to be the least flashy great quarterback in the ACC. While the rushing attack struggled mightily to the tune of a paltry, sack adjusted, 2.2 yards per carry, and while he was tasked with overcoming playing behind the chains with an average third down distance of 7.9 yards, he put up a 317-yard, four-touchdown performance on 69% completions. And he did so while throwing to 11 different receivers.
“Devin, I think as the game went on, started to ID what was happening and gave guys chances to make plays,” Doeren said. “And they did, and that’s the bottom line. In this league you’re going to have tight coverage, you have to make contact type catches and you’re going to have to, as a quarterback, read different things and react and Devin did that.”
It’s difficult to put into words how good Leary is playing, but think of it this way: while NC State’s offense isn’t always as explosive as it can be, it’s nearly always as efficient in the pass game as it can be. Leary doesn’t turn the ball over, he rarely is at fault if he’s sacked, and he never flinches in the clutch. He isn’t the perfect quarterback, but he’s damn near perfect for the brand of football head coach Dave Doeren wants to see from NC State.
A final star for the game is redshirt junior linebacker Vi Jones. Jones has been an unsung hero for this team before, playing as the reserve SAM linebacker since he joined the team. In 2020, Jones had an FBS-leading three blocked kicks, including one which saved the day against a ranked Liberty squad. This season, he was playing on average about a third of the snaps Drake did, and yet he came into this matchup leading the team in sacks, second in TFLs and third in quarterback hurries.
That ability to hunt the quarterback was on display Saturday, to the tune of a seven-tackle, three-quarterback hurry performance. It wasn’t the most flashy thing, but keeping a mobile guy like Malik Cunningham contained in the pocket was paramount for this defense, and it showed that there truly is a next man up mentality for this linebacking corps.
“Levi in general, he’s ready,” Thomas said. “He’s been ready. He’s been waiting. He hasn’t had a huge role early on in the season, but I know the whole defense knows he’s been ready. And you know, stepping up today, he definitely played a big part. I’m happy for him, too.”
This was a must-win game for NC State, and without those three players, things don’t turn out the same way. Now the Wolfpack is 6-2 ahead of the first College Football Playoff rankings, and it still controls its destiny in the ACC. It’ll go as far as Thomas, Leary, Jones and Co. can take it.
