Strong defense, led by turnovers, guides NC State past Northern Illinois 24-17
RALEIGH, N.C. - CJ Bailey scored on the ground and through the air as North Carolina State defeated visiting Northern Illinois 24-17 on Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium.
Bailey, a true freshman making his second start for the Wolfpack (3-2), completed 13 of 20 passes for 108 yards. He supported a strong defensive effort from N.C. State that forced NIU (2-2) into four crucial turnovers.
"It’s hard to win games when you don’t win the turnover battle," NIU head coach Thomas Hammock said according to NIU athletics. "Even with the turnover battle being what it was, we still had a chance at the end. I think it’s a credit to rou program that our guys expect to win those type of matchups and were disappointed that we not get the result we wanted."
Momentum seemed to swing in the Wolfpack's favor early in the second quarter, when N.C. State safety DK Kaufman reached NIU quarterback Ethan Hampton on a third-down blitz, knocked the ball out of his throwing hand and recovered the fumble for a 2-yard defensive touchdown.
N.C. State's defense provided another boost in the third quarter when Devin Vann forced Hampton into a fumble that Brandon Cleveland recovered and returned to the 1. Bailey took advantage of the superb field position, throwing a short touchdown pass to KC Concepcion that pushed N.C. State ahead by two scores.
Trailing by seven points with four seconds to play, NIU's attempt at a game-tying score was stifled when Hampton was intercepted in the end zone by Corey Coley.
"You lose the turnover battle four-to-nothing and it’s hard to win," NIU coach Thomas Hammock said. "They blitzed us early and often. We just didn’t make enough plays."
Antario Brown paced the Huskies with 114 yards rushing on 28 carries.
The takeaway
NC State: On offense, the Wolfpack played just well enough to complement their stout defense. The Wolfpack didn't turn the ball over and scored when they reached the red zone. After a demoralizing defeat at Clemson last week, this was a bounce-back victory for N.C. State in its final non-conference game of the season.
"I know people are upset we didn’t have enough yards, this, that and the other," Doeren said. "Don’t be mad about winning. That was a hell of a team win."
NIU: The Huskies haven't been able to recapture the magic of their Sept. 7 win at Notre Dame. This is NIU's second consecutive loss and one where the Huskies struggled to capitalize on offense. The Huskies held the Wolfpack to 1-of-11 on third down conversions and to just 175 yards of total offense, but turnovers and stalled drives doomed NIU's chances at another signature win.
Providing pressure
NIU had been on a six-game streak dating back to last season of not giving up any sacks. The Wolfpack shattered any hope the Huskies had of extending that mark, sacking Hampton four times. In all, N.C. State registered a season-high 12 tackles for loss.
N.C. State had just four sacks combined in its previous four games this season. It’s worth noting that the Wolfpack racked up this many sacks without Red Hibbler, who led N.C. State in the stat last season and is no longer on the team as of this week.
"We started communicating on a higher level. And that started with me. It was my job to do so... being more physical in practice," said Wolfpack linebacker Caden Fordham, who had a team-high 14 tackles. "And I believe it translated to the field today."
Key absences
Quarterback Grayson McCall and running back Hollywood Smothers were not dressed to play for N.C. State. McCall, the former three-time Sun Belt Player of the Year from Coastal Carolina, left the Wolfpack’s Week 3 win over Louisiana Tech with an undisclosed injury and hasn’t played since. Smothers, a transfer from Oklahoma, had 114 rushing yards and touchdown on 22 carries in the Wolfpack’s first four games.