NC State wants a ‘different ending,’ Pop-Tarts Bowl provides that chance 

ORLANDO, Fla. — At the beginning of the season, NC State coach Dave Doeren talked with his team about being “different.” The Pack went over what that meant: different obligations, different sacrifices, and a different ending from a year ago.

NC State spent almost the entire season inside the Associated Press Top 25 last fall, but it lost three of its last four games to finish with eight wins. The Pack was in search of the elusive 10-win mark, but it fell short in 2022. 

This time around, however, that historic feat is right in front of the red and white while it prepares to play Kansas State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Thursday evening at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.

“We’ve been on the nine-win thing several times,” Doeren said Wednesday morning. “For the kids that were on our team for the Holiday Bowl that didn’t play because of what happened, there’s that extra motivation. … To be back to compete for that 10th win is meaningful.”

NC State closed the regular season on a five-game winning streak to open up the opportunity to become just the second team in program history to hit double-digit wins (the 2002 squad won 11 games with Philip Rivers at quarterback). 

But how did NC State get to this point? A pair of quarterback changes were a pivotal piece. 

Graduate quarterback Brennan Armstrong started the first five games, but the Wolfpack opted to make a change after its 13-10 loss to Louisville at home. Sophomore signal-caller MJ Morris elevated to the starting spot for tour games before he elected to redshirt the rest of the season — he has since transferred to Maryland. 

Morris’ decision allowed Armstrong to go back to the starting spot for the final three regular season games, and he flourished. The former Virginia transfer looked like a new player under center as he eliminated turnovers — which were a key factor in his benching — and he made winning plays. 

Armstrong threw for 650 yards with six touchdowns over the final trio of games, while he ran for another 207 yards and three scores on 45 carries in that stretch. 

“I couldn’t be happier for anyone than Brennan,” Doeren said. “What he went through, how he responded, the type of human being that he was to his teammates during that time. And then the way that they rallied around him when he took the ball back to run the football, to run the team. “The way that he’s played through some pain, the guy is just a warrior.”

Armstrong assisted Morris and the offense with offensive coordinator Robert Anae’s scheme when he was made the backup. That was just a glimpse into the type of teammate Armstrong was during that rocky stretch, but the team appeared to rally around him. 

That paid off when Armstrong reentered the starting lineup, and he dazzled. Now, Armstrong has a chance to help NC State make history in his first bowl appearance since the 2019 Orange Bowl when he was a reserve at Virginia. The Cavaliers did not play in a bowl during the COVID season and their campaign was cut short a year ago due to the on-campus tragedy in Charlottesville. 

But now he has the opportunity for one more go around with the Wolfpack in his final collegiate game against the Wildcats — which also marks his first postseason contest as a starting quarterback. 

“I can’t say thank you enough to him for what he’s meant to his football team, and the way that he’s held, not just himself together, but these guys on our offense and the way the team has rallied around him,” Doeren said. “It’s been a joy to watch.”

While Armstrong served as the glue for the Wolfpack down the stretch, Thursday’s game will not just feature the graduate student in his final game. It will also serve as a window into the future for the red and white as several true freshmen broke into the two-deep after the transfer portal entries limited the team’s backup depth. 

Enter a handful of exciting freshmen, including a pair on the defensive side of the ball. Linebacker Kelvon McBride and safety Zack Myers were mentioned by Doeren, and he is excited to see both on the field against the Wildcats. 

While Myers played in four games this season, McBride did not play in a single game within the Pack’s deep linebacker room. But graduate linebacker Payton Wilson’s decision to opt out opened the door for McBride to emerge as a primary backup against Kansas State. 

“He got soaked in this bowl prep with Payton not playing, elevating him and getting him a ton of work,” Doeren said. “Excited. It’s a guy that’s put on almost 25 pounds since he got here. He looks really good, and he’s running around making plays at practice.”

NC State’s Pop-Tarts Bowl appearance will be full of firsts and lasts for pieces of the Wolfpack’s roster, but its goal remains the same: to win its 10th game.

Doeren preached being different at the beginning of the season, and continued to do the same as the campaign went on. Now, is the chance for the red and white to finish what it started and to make history as it sets itself apart from almost every other NC State team in the history of the more than 100-year old program.

“At NC State, there’s been one team in the history of the program that’s won 10 games or more, so this is an opportunity to be different from 136 other teams that played in this uniform. It’s meaningful, these guys understand what kind of things have to go into preparing for doing something that’s different.”