NC State football: What are they saying about the Maryland loss?

NC State wrapped up the 2022 season with its fifth loss of the fall. Maryland met the Wolfpack in Charlotte and left with a 16-12 win over the Terrapins’ former ACC rival Friday afternoon. The press box was packed with media during the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Here’s what they said about the loss.

Matt Carter, The Wolfpacker— Column: Long, hard offseason look at offense begins for NC State football

There were certainly high expectations for NC State football entering this season. The reality is that the Wolfpack had the defense and specialists to be memorable. The offense was forgettable, though, and that proved to be the downfall.

Excluding wins over massively rebuilding Connecticut and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) member Charleston Southern, NC State did not accumulate more than 356 yards of total offense in a game.

At halftime against Maryland, NC State looked like an elusive 400-yard output was within reach. The Pack had 203 total yards, but an ability to score touchdowns, which may have been a byproduct of failing to run the football, held the Wolfpack to just three field foals and a 10-9 deficit.

Then came the stark reality that the second half delivered: this is a NC State team that needs an offensive overhaul. The Pack had just 93 yards and a meager field goal set up by an interception from junior safety Rakeim Ashford at the Maryland 35.

NC State finished with a paltry 27 yards rushing on the afternoon, and third-year redshirt freshman Ben Finley completed less than half of his pass attempts (22 of 48) while throwing 2 picks, including a game-sealing interception as NC State trotted out for a last drive with 2:34 left and taking over at the 25.

Ethan McDowell, The Wolfpacker— Dave Doeren, NC State athletes discuss Mayo Bowl loss to Maryland

As the Wolfpack went through bowl prep, both freshman QB MJ Morris and Finley practiced, and Doeren planned on both signal-callers playing in the bowl game. That changed in the days leading up to the matchup.

“MJ practiced throughout the bowl’s [practices] and, as we got closer and closer to the game, he got sore and just didn’t feel like it was the right move for him,” Doeren said. “We would’ve loved to play him, but I wasn’t going to put him out there where he wasn’t completely confident. He was frustrated, we were frustrated, we just felt like it was the best thing for his future not to put him out there in that situation.”

That led to Finley playing all of the snaps under center, and he finished the bowl game 22 for 48 for 269 yards and 2 interceptions, including the game-sealing pick in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. 

Doeren assessed the quarterback’s performance after the matchup. 

“I think he rushed some things at times,” Doeren said. “There were some drops that hurt his numbers, [he] made some good throws. . .”

“He battled, he made some plays for us. If you talk to him, he’ll tell you he’s really disappointed. Ben really did practice well going into this game, so I think he had high expectations for how he’d play, and I think he would tell you didn’t meet those.”

Luke DeCock, News & Observer— In Duke’s Mayo Bowl, N.C. State offense can’t make chicken salad out of you-know-what

Believers in nominative determinism would say that Dave Doeren’s decision to punt from midfield with four minutes to play Friday may have been influenced by the bowl game’s title sponsor. That punt had all the spice of the game’s namesake emulsion of soybean oil and egg yolks.

But you can’t make chicken salad out of you-know-what without mayonnaise, and that’s all N.C. State was trying to do on offense in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.

With MJ Morris too sore to play, Ben Finley struggling to throw downfield, balls bouncing off his receivers’ hands right to the opposition, and a nonexistent running game, the odds of converting on fourth-and-9 were worse than the odds of the Wolfpack’s dominant defense scoring off a turnover.

“If we’re ripping the ball and catching it, we would have gone for it,” Doeren said.

Down four, a fifth Christopher Dunn field goal wasn’t going to do anything for N.C. State, and that was the only way the Wolfpack could dent the scoreboard Friday. So the Wolfpack punted and hoped its defense would bail it out, which made this third straight bowl loss, 16-12 to Maryland, very much the story of this season writ large.

Chip Alexander, News & Observer— ‘I’m going to miss them.’ Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren losing special group of players

N.C. State coach Dave Doeren walked off the field Friday with defensive lineman Cory Durden close by his side.

“I love you, Coach,” Durden said to Doeren.

“I love you, too,” Doeren replied.

It was not the ending to the season, or in Durden’s case his college football career, that either wanted. Losing to Maryland 16-12 in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl left both a bit somber.

“It’s a great group of young men that I got to coach,” Doeren later said. “I’m going to miss them. A lot.

“I’m disappointed in the results, but not disappointed in the opportunity this team created, over and over. They just keep fighting until the end of the game.”

David Thompson, Fayetteville Observer— NC State football report card vs. Maryland: Who got a D as Wolfpack struggled in Mayo Bowl?

Coaching: D

Give credit to Dave Doeren for keeping MJ Morris out of the game and protecting the future at quarterback instead of risking his health. Besides that, it’s hard to find a lot of compliments, particularly on the offensive end of the field. NC State could’ve found some creativity, especially on their rare opportunities near the end zone, that may have sparked the offense and lifted Finley’s confidence. It became obvious in the second half that the offense didn’t have enough to win, and the coaches didn’t do enough to change that outcome.

Joe Giglio, WRALSportsFan—Turtled under, NC State drops Duke’s Mayo Bowl to Maryland

Heading into the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Dave Doeren was reluctant to agree to a celebratory mayonnaise bath.

Turns out the NC State coach had nothing to worry about.

Maryland out-slogged its old ACC rival for a 16-12 win and it was coach Mike Locksley who got doused in mayo instead.

Chris Dunn kicked four field goals but it was the only offense the Wolfpack (8-5) could muster.

Steve Reed, Associated Press— Maryland holds off No. 25 NC State in Duke’s Mayo Bowl

North Carolina State (8-5) certainly had its chances, penetrating the Maryland 25-yard line four times only to come away with four field goals.

The biggest opportunity to seize momentum came in the fourth quarter when Rakeim Ashford intercepted Tagovailoa at the N.C. State 35. But the Terrapins defense answered with a third-down stop and forced a field goal.

N.C. State had one last chance to win it when they got the ball back with 2:34 left in the game at their own 25, but Bennett’s leaping interception on a first down throw clinched the victory.

Ben Ellis and Ethan Bakogiannis, Technician— Pack football runs out of magic, falls to Maryland in Duke’s Mayo Bowl

Just as it has done all season, the defense did all it could to try and carry the team to victory, picking off Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa twice, each of which resulted in field goals. Both were highlight-worthy plays, the first of which was made by graduate safety Cyrus Fagan on a toe-dragging, diving pick in the back of the endzone to deny the Terps.

“We fought until the very end; we didn’t give up, we didn’t quit and I think that showed,” said junior linebacker Drake Thomas. “I’m talking to the young guys, they’ve got to come back and get going in order to take this to the next level.”

The second interception, however, gave a glimpse of hope to the Wolfpack offense when it needed it most in the fourth quarter. Junior safety Rakeim Ashford made a strong catch as Tagovailoa lofted the ball into the secondary, coming down with a crucial takeaway that led to Dunn’s final field goal of the day, cutting the score to 13-12.

Maryland, however, returned the favor in the turnover department, intercepting Finley twice on the day, the latter of which ended the Pack’s hopes of pulling off one last miracle. Down 16-12 with 2:34 left to go, NC State’s offensive struggles came to a head. On the first play of the drive, Finley was picked off, shutting the door on the Pack’s hopes for its first bowl win since 2017.