By Tony Haynes
Hattiesburg, Miss. – The winner of Saturday’s college football game between NC State and Southern Mississippi dominated the line of scrimmage and ran roughshod over the opposing defense, using a punishing running attack. Sound familiar? It’s the same recipe the Wolfpack used last year in its come from behind 21-17 win over the Golden Eagles.
Not only did Southern Mississippi avenge that defeat on Saturday, it took a page right out of the Pack’s playbook, rushing for 261 yards in a convincing 37-17 victory at M.M. Roberts Stadium.
All that really needs to be said is that the Golden Eagles played the entire game without ever having to use their punter.
“I’ve not seen us get knocked around in the running game like that in a long, long time,” said Wolfpack head coach Chuck Amato. “It’s hard to imagine, it really is. We took a fanny whipping. They spanked us. That’s about as hard as we’ve been spanked since the Clemson game a year ago, or the Florida State game our first year.”
The 442 total yard recorded by Southern Miss. were indeed the most the NC State defense has given up since Clemson piled up 489 last season.
Running behind a massive and motivated offensive front, shifty tailback Damion Fletcher was rarely stopped all night, rushing for 182 yards and three touchdowns on 28 carries. Meanwhile, Southern Mississippi quarterback Jeremy Young, looking more like former Texas signal caller Vince Young, did a little bit of everything. Not only did Young hit 13-of-19 passes for 181 yards, he added 58 yards rushing on 11 carries.
And while the NC State defense never really could get a handle on the Golden Eagles running attack, its offense continued a trend of inconsistent, unproductive performances. For the third time in as many games to start the season, the Pack was held to less than 300 yards of total offense, tallying only 274 for the game.
Quarterback Marcus Stone, who finished 10-of-24 for 100 yards, had two critical interceptions in the third quarter that helped Southern Mississippi put the game out of reach. The first came with just under four minutes remaining in the period. Running a deep post in the middle of the field, freshman wideout Donald Bowens tripped just as Stone’s pass arrived, allowing Golden Eagles free safety Jasper Faulk to take the ball away and return it 40 yards to the Wolfpack 10. Six plays later, Darren McCaleb booted a 32-yard field goal to give Southern Miss. a 23-10 lead.
Later in the quarter, the Pack still had a chance to make a game of it. After recovering a Southern Mississippi fumble at its own 49, NC State needed just four plays to drive to the Golden Eagles’ six-yard line. A touchdown and extra point would have made it a 23-17 ballgame, but on first and goal, Stone, flushed out of the pocket to his left, fired a pass that was intercepted in the end zone by cornerback Caleb Hendrix.
“We get the biggest hit we’ve had here maybe in seven years and it causes a fumble, but we go down the field and turn it over on first and goal at the six,” Amato said. “If we go in there, it’s a six-point game.”
That particular interception, however, pretty much took the wind out of NC State’s sails. The turnover also convinced Amato and offensive coordinator Marc Trestman to give backup quarterback Daniel Evans a shot late in the game. Evans certainly gave them something to think about, hitting 8-of-11 passes for 97 yards. His 21-yard scoring pass to John Dunlap with 6:30 left concluded an impressive 68-yard march in only seven plays.
“He looked awfully good and awfully poised,” Amato said when asked if he’d consider making a quarterback change for next Saturday night’s ACC opener against Boston College. “I just felt we needed to give him an opportunity to see what he can do and how he could run the show. It looked awfully good.”
NC State running back Andre Brown, who was the story in last year’s game with his 248 yards rushing, wasn’t much of a factor on Saturday night, getting only 49 yards on 13 carries. The Pack finished with only 77 yards on the ground.
Despite being handled up front on both sides of the ball in the first half, NC State found a way to stay in the game. Trailing 10-0, Stone stepped up against a blitz and drilled a pass to Bowens for a 46-yard score on a skinny post over the middle. The Wolfpack then pulled to within just three points at the half when John Deraney nailed a 54-yard field goal, a kick that was hit so well that it probably would have been good from 65 yards.
But any momentum NC State gained at the half dissipated very quickly in the third quarter when Fletcher capped a four-play, 77-yard drive by bulling his way in the end zone from the one.
“We had such a great halftime,” Amato said. “When Deraney hit that field goal, it put us in a good position. But then they come out and go 77 yards in four plays.”
For the third time in as many weeks, NC State also lost the turnover battle, finishing with three compared to only one for the Golden Eagles. With 10 turnovers in three games, the Wolfpack’s turnover margin is minus-7.
Perhaps it was a bad omen for the Pack when on the opening kickoff receiver Darrell Blackman, one of the team’s most productive and most versatile players, injured his right knee. Blackman, who did not return, will undergo an MRI exam on Sunday.
“I really think we played well,” said Southern Mississippi coach Jeff Bower. “I really think we played a complete game. I’ve coached a long time, but I don’t think I’ve ever coached a game where we never punted. Our offense really did a tremendous job of going out and moving the football.”
They did move the football. Almost exactly the same way NC State did it last year.
Courtesy: Peyton Williams/NC State
