Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. NC State Wolfpack Pick & Prediction SEPTEMBER 14th 2024

Preview and Prediction

The great expectations that North Carolina State held for this season have now been dampened.

The Wolfpack will strive to recover from a harsh defeat as they face off against Louisiana Tech on Saturday in Raleigh, N.C.

North Carolina State (1-1) was completely dominated 51-10 by then-No. 14 Tennessee last weekend, exposing the weaknesses of the Wolfpack. Tennessee outperformed NC State 460-143 and the points allowed were the most since a 55-10 loss to Clemson in 2019.

NC State coach Dave Doeren knew exactly where to place the blame for the disaster.

"It all starts with me. I am the one who leads the staff and our game planning," Doeren said. "But I have a great group of guys and I know they will bounce back and stick together. There will be many people telling them they are not good enough, but that's okay."

Wolfpack quarterback Grayson McCall had an impressive debut for the school, passing for 318 yards and three touchdowns in a 38-21 victory over Western Carolina on Aug. 29. However, his second appearance was a different story.

McCall only managed 104 passing yards and was intercepted once against Tennessee. The Wolfpack struggled on third-down conversions, only converting 3 out of 12 attempts, and failed to convert on two fourth-down attempts.

McCall, a former three-time Sun Belt Player of the Year at Coastal Carolina, was unable to pinpoint what went wrong.

"Honestly, I'm not sure. We found ourselves in difficult situations a lot," McCall said. "We made mistakes and penalties that we don't usually make. We couldn't sustain drives and when we did, we couldn't finish them off in the red zone."

Louisiana Tech (1-0) had a bye last weekend after starting the season with a 25-17 victory over FCS program Nicholls on Aug. 31.

Bulldogs quarterback Jack Turner left the game in the first half with a left knee injury. The bye week came at a good time and coach Sonny Cumbie is optimistic that Turner will be able to play.

"We'll see how he moves around in practice and where he's at," Cumbie said. "That will determine if he can play, but I'm hopeful that he will be able to."

Turner completed 4 of 8 passes for 70 yards, one touchdown, and one interception before leaving the game against Nicholls. Backup quarterback Blake Baker stepped in and went 12-of-24 for 207 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.

NC State has won both previous meetings between the two teams, including a 34-27 home victory in 2021.

PREDICTION

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

NC State Wolfpack

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs. NC State Wolfpack Recap SEP 14TH 2024

Freshman CJ Bailey passed for 156 yards and rushed for a score after replacing injured Grayson McCall, sparking North Carolina State to a 30-20 comeback victory over Louisiana Tech on Saturday afternoon in nonconference action at Raleigh, N.C.

DK Kaufman accelerated the rally from an 11-point deficit with an interception return for touchdown for the Wolfpack (2-1). Kendrick Raphael added a rushing score for North Carolina State.

Jack Turner completed 19 of 36 passes for 281 yards, one touchdown and one interception for Louisiana Tech (1-1). Tru Edwards caught four passes for 148 yards and one touchdown, and Donerio Davenport added a score on the ground.

North Carolina State took a 23-20 lead on Kanoah Vinesett's 52-yard field goal with 12:32 left in the contest. Bailey tacked on a 1-yard run to make it a 10-point margin with 7:21 to play as the Wolfpack staved off the upset bid.

Bailey completed 13 of 20 passes and was intercepted once in his second college appearance.

McCall was 9-of-13 passing for 54 yards and rushed four times for 22 yards before exiting with just over 5 1/2 minutes left in the second quarter with an undisclosed injury.

McCall was hit by Louisiana Tech's blitzing linebacker Zach Zimos and was slow to get up. He walked off the field after the third-down incompletion and soon headed to the locker room with team trainers.

Louisiana Tech held the momentum with an 11-point halftime lead, but NC State quickly seized it in the opening minute of the third quarter.

Turner dropped back to pass and Davin Vann put on a heavy rush and hit Turner as he started to throw. The ball fluttered toward Kaufman, who grabbed it and went 33 yards for a touchdown to pull the Wolfpack within 17-13.

Later in the quarter, Raphael capped a 13-play, 76-yard drive with a 3-yard run as NC State took a 20-17 lead with 4:23 left in the quarter. Louisiana Tech tied the score on Buck Buchanan's 20-yard field goal with 36 seconds left.

On the play after McCall was hurt, Vinesett kicked a 35-yard field goal to give NC State a 6-0 lead. Louisiana Tech scored 17 unanswered points over the final 2:41 of the quarter for a 17-6 halftime lead.

Davenport began the spree by scoring on a 5-yard run. Then Edwards caught a short pass from Turner and turned it into a 71-yard touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 14-6 lead with 1:19 left.

Buchanan tacked on a 57-yard field goal with 13 seconds left. The boot tied the school record of Matt Stover (1987), who went on to kick in the NFL for 19 seasons.