NC State football report card: Virginia
NC State handed in its work for this report card at the last possible second Friday night. Brayden Narveson lined up for a kick with 1 tick remaining on the clock in a tied game, converting the 33-yard try and securing the win.
A few productive drives, a couple of impressive defensive stands and an explosive performance by freshman wide receiver Kevin Concepcion helped the Pack leave Charlottesville with a 24-21 win.
Similar problems persisted for the Pack. The running game was limited outside of quarterback Brennan Armstrong, and the defense allowed a few huge explosive plays, leading to average marks on this week’s report card.
NC State offense grade
Grade — C
Armstrong was inconsistent during his emotional return to UVA. The graduate student missed three explosive plays on his first drive of the game, but then he bounced back shortly after. His lone interception of the day was a really poor throw. With that said, he also showed off some pinpoint accuracy on a couple of explosive plays to Concepcion.
Most of all, the quarterback continued to make plays with his legs. Armstrong set up the winning field goal with a series of rushes and ended the matchup with a team-leading 64 yards. With Jordan Houston redshirting, the rest of the Wolfpack running back room showed flashes but did not put together anything consistent.
Michael Allen and Kendrick Raphael, who was injured during the matchup, each recorded a rush over 10 yards, and Delbert Mimms III continued to produce on the goal line. Otherwise, the ground game was pretty quiet and it will be tough for the Pack to win many games relying on Armstrong as its primary rusher. For now, the quarterback is on pace to lead the team in rushing yards.
The offensive line blocked well for the most part on passing plays, but UVA sent a ton of rushers that the Pack struggled to slow down.
Defense grade
Grade — B
UVA slot receiver Malik Washington created some serious problems for the Wolfpack secondary Friday night. He caught 2 touchdowns and generated several explosive gains. In total, the Cavalier offense finished the game with 6 passing plays and 4 rushes of 10 yards or more.
The Pack stopped the run well, kept UVA quarterback Anthony Colandrea contained until the final minutes of the fourth, forced a couple of critical turnovers and recorded 7 tackles for loss. Red Hibbler was a force as a pass rusher, recording 1.5 sacks, and Savion Jackson consistently stuffed the run with 5 total tackles.
Caden Fordham’s 12 total tackles were incredibly impactful, and Payton Wilson continued to pace the Pack with 13 stops.
With that said, a few of UVA’s explosive plays were the result of poor angles that led to missed tackles. NC State is usually pretty sound in that area but will have to shore it up during practice this week.
The Pack played without Devan Boykin and Cecil Powell at points Friday, which led to Bishop Fitzgerald playing a safety role he did not practice in during the week leading up to the matchup. Considering the injuries to the secondary, the Pack held up well and gave the offense multiple chances to close out the game in the fourth quarter with interceptions by Aydan White and Sean Brown.
Special teams grade
Grade — A+
NC State’s specialists changed the game against UVA. Narveson hit the winning kick for the Pack, shaking off his first attempt that was blocked but disallowed due to a penalty. Julian Gray set up that drive with a 35-yard return, continuing his electric start to the year. Caden Noonkester played a phenomenal game, flipping the field consistently at 50 yards per punt. He tied a career long with a 67-yard boot as well.
