NC State ushers in the MJ Morris era with dramatic comeback

MJ Morris showed the composure of a quarterback with way more than just a few months of college football experience Thursday night. After coming into the game in the first quarter, the true freshman signal-caller mounted an 18-point comeback to help NC State leave Carter-Finley Stadium with a 22-21 victory.

The win improved the Wolfpack’s record to 6-2, officially making the squad bowl eligible once again. After the game, Morris, sporting a shirt celebrating bowl eligibility, head coach Dave Doeren, wide receiver Thayer Thomas and safety Cyrus Fagan all spoke with the media about the exciting ACC victory.

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MJ Morris steps into the spotlight of Carter-Finley Stadium

Morris played in garbage time against Charleston Southern and sparingly against Syracuse. Then, the true freshman played almost every snap of the second half against Virginia Tech, finishing the game 20 of 29 for 265 yards and 3 touchdowns.

“I feel like a kid in a candy store,” Morris said after the game “I’ve never had this feeling before, first college time. I feel like I got hit by a freight train out there, my body hurts so bad, but I do feel great. I feel happy for this team, I feel happy for myself. We put a lot of work in to get here.”

After arriving at NC State this summer as a highly touted quarterback prospect from Georgia, Morris hit the ground running and immediately competed for the Pack’s backup quarterback job. Now, it will likely be difficult for the coaching staff to keep him off the field for the rest of his true freshman season. Doeren was super complimentary about his performance after the game.

“The way that MJ sparked us and brought us back and made plays, and guys started making plays for him,” Doeren said. “Pretty impressive for a true freshman to do that.”

Doeren said the decision to run with Morris under center during the second half was based entirely on the first-half performance by both the freshman and Jack Chambers.

“They had a true freshman corner out there, and we had to be able to throw to win, and [Morris] was more accurate,” Doeren said. “So that’s kind of what led to that. Both of them practiced well, so it was really more just the feel in the game.”

Fagan, who finished the game with 5 tackles (4 solo) as one of the leaders of NC State’s defense, left his press conference as Morris’ began, calling him superman as he walked out of the room. The safety also had plenty of nice things to say about the freshman signal-caller that reach back to when the two were practicing against each other in August.

“He’s a dog,” Fagan said. “I liked him. We know he [is] an athlete. I remember, in fall camp, he was just going at it. He made his mistakes early on and then got better from it.”

After falling behind 21-3, Morris and Thomas connected for 2 second-half touchdowns, including a beautifully thrown deep ball for the Pack’s first touchdown of the day. Prior to last week, the receiver said he had not taken many reps with Morris, who started the year as the third-string signal-caller. That changed during the bye week, and they quickly established chemistry that led to a 10 catch, 118-yard day for the senior star.

Thomas noticed the quarterback’s toughness during the first half.

“I felt like there was a point in the first half where he got put in, and we started moving the ball,” Thomas said. “And he was taking some shots, I’m not going to lie, him running the ball, and he kept getting up. When I saw that, I had a good feeling that he’s built for this. He’s meant to be here.”

NC State did not give up, and Doeren said the Wolfpack never will

NC State’s 18-point rally is the second-largest comeback at the FBS level this season, per ESPN, and the Wolfpack and Houston are the only programs to mount multiple 14-plus point comebacks this fall. Doeren recognized how much it meant to leave Carter-Finley Stadium with a win Thursday night.

“I think it says a lot about the heart of this team,” Doeren said. “The chemistry of this team, the love of this team. Florida State, it was Jack that brought us back, and this one it was MJ. And the kids just don’t quit here. We’ve built a culture of persistence and perseverance and love, and it shows.

“We don’t give up, period. That’s not ever going to happen. As long as I’m the head coach at NC State, we are never going to quit, man.”

Fagan said the team had a consistent message during the preparation for Saturday’s game, focused on staying together when things get tough on the field. The Pack embraced that when the team was down three scores, and the mentality paid off with a win.

“At the beginning of the week, we had a whole team meeting about, if times get hard, to wrap your arms and, if times get harder, squeeze them closer so you can pull your brother closer. I just feel like that came to life tonight. We wrapped our arms around each other, and we kept going.”

Thomas has been around the Wolfpack for a long time, and rallying from a significant deficit is not a new experience for him or many of his teammates. The team’s bonds within the locker room are stronger than any scoreboard.

“We come together as a group,” Thomas said. “When we’re as close as we are, I think that really helps you win games when it comes to one-possession games. When it comes to the fourth quarter, I think we just know that we’re going to win just based on how close we all are and the chemistry we have as a team. Not just like offensive chemistry, defensive chemistry, we genuinely love each other, both sides of the ball, and we don’t take that for granted.”