NC State moves forward with UNC looming on the horizon, still in search of bowl eligibility
NC State entered the 2024 campaign with high expectations around the program. Another eight-win campaign looked to be falling short of what the goals were, including an ACC Championship and a trip to the College Football Playoff.
This was the year, that most outside the program believed, the Wolfpack could earn its elusive 10th win for just the second time in the team’s history with how NC State’s schedule shook out at the beginning of the season and the playmakers the squad brought in.
But instead of wondering what the Wolfpack’s season finale at North Carolina would do in the ACC standings for a berth to play in Charlotte next month, NC State is looking for its sixth win to clinch bowl eligibility.
The Pack lost 30-29 at Georgia Tech on Thursday night, a defeat that carries an extra sting as NC State seemed to be in control with its first lead and 90 seconds to play.
That, however, was short-lived. Georgia Tech marched down the field in just over a minute to score the would-be game-winning touchdown with 22 seconds left. The Pack had chances throughout the game, but three interceptions that led to 14 points were the difference between NC State leaving Bobby Dodd Stadium with a win or a loss.
Now, the team has to move past the heart-breaking defeat to play its arch rival Tar Heels next Saturday in Chapel Hill. And moving past the defeat at Georgia Tech? Yeah, that might take a couple days for the Pack to do.
“It’s going to be hard,” senior safety Bishop Fitzgerald said. “We’re going to try to get our minds off it and then come back ready to beat UNC.”
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For freshman quarterback CJ Bailey, who admitted he had never logged a three-interception game in his life until now, this is an opportunity for the Wolfpack to bounce back. He seemed optimistic about NC State’s chances against UNC, even though the season that was primed to be the program’s breakthrough opportunity has been marred by miscues and unlucky breaks.
“We’re hurting ourselves,” Bailey said as he searched for answers postgame. “We have these self-inflicted wounds every time we take these losses. Our mindset every time is to bounce back and try to get a win.”
“North Carolina, we comin,” the first-year signal-caller continued. “We’re going to get a win at North Carolina. We’re going to get our win at North Carolina because it means a lot to us. Things went wrong all year, but this game right here is our game.”
Bailey’s unwavering confidence seemed to be a response to what coach Dave Doeren told his squad after its third one-score loss of the season — all in ACC play. The 12th-year coach didn’t want his squad to “feel sorry” for themselves following the defeat, rather he wanted them to channel that anger towards the Tar Heels next weekend.
“We’re going to put that one in and we’re going to use it,” Doeren said after the 1-point loss to the Yellow Jackets. “It’s one thing that’s great about football, you get to take out your frustrations on that field as a player. We have a lot of frustration. We get to play against a team next week and it’s going to be a great football game.”
“We’re going to use every inch of this to get these guys back, and I know they’ll respond well.”
