North Carolina State University Athletics
Late TD lifts Virginia over NC State, 14-7
10/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Tony Haynes
Pack coach Chuck Amato knows what Bill Murray must have felt like in the movie “Groundhog Day” since he’s seems to be living through the same bad dream every Saturday. The theme the last three weeks has been eerily similar with the Wolfpack competing for wins in the fourth quarter only to fall short.
“We are one play away,” Amato said in describing the last three games. “Somebody has got to step up and make that play.”
Sewell, a redshirt freshman, may have made the biggest play to open
“We had a chance on first down to make a play and put him down,” Amato said. “If we did, we might still be playing.”
But Sewell’s Houdini act set the stage for a steady, balanced march that ended with Snelling’s scoring run right through the heart of the NC State defense.
The last time NC State and Virginia met three years ago, the Wolfpack piled up 553 yards of total offense in a wild 51-37 victory. In Saturday’s rematch, the two team’s output combined came up seven yards short of that mark as defense ruled. Eighty of
The
Virginia on the other hand got 99 yards on 18 carries from the bruising Snelling, whose one-yard dive in the opening period gave his team a 7-0 lead that would standup until the fourth period.
The Cavaliers made up for their lack of productivity on offense by playing mistake-free football, finishing the day with zero turnovers and just three penalties for 15 yards. The Pack wasn’t nearly as prudent, being whistled nine times for penalties that covered 53 yards.
“We said if we went out there and did not turn the ball over, we’re going to win this football game,” said Amato. “We went 59 and 1/2 minutes and didn’t turn the ball over and we were right there. Penalties early hurt. It was a defensive game. How many of these field position games have we been involved in?”
A lot, meaning little things can become big things when they start piling up over the course of 60 minutes.
In the first half alone, potential NC State drives were nearly stopped in their tracks by four penalties on first down plays. It led to a lot of third and long situations that even the best offenses have a difficult time overcoming.
The Wolfpack’s average on 12 first down plays was a measly 2.6 yards.
“It’s real tough when you have a first and 15 or a second and nine,” Amato said. “It was that kind of game. They had their problems to.”
Both teams had problems moving the football consistently on a sunny but windy Saturday afternoon in
The third quarter turned into a field position battle before the Wolfpack finally got something going midway through the fourth when receiver John Dunlap made yet another spectacular leaping grab along the left sideline for 28 yards. Dunlap’s catch started NC State on the 11-play drive that would tie it. Evans kept the march alive on a fourth and five play, hitting Darrell Blackman down the right hashmark for 24 yards to the
After that, however, an NC State defense that had played superbly all day, looked helpless to stop the passing of Sewell and running of Snelling on the drive that put Uva ahead to stay.
“It’s happened a couple of times this year,” said Wolfpack middle linebacker Pat Lowery. “I thought we played ok besides that drive they scored on in the first half and obviously the last one. I don’t know if they did anything different, but that’s when it counts; that’s when we’ve got to step up.”
Now 3-5 overall and 2-3 in the ACC, the Pack heads into next Saturday night’s home game against Georgia Tech carrying the burden of a three-game losing skid. All but eliminated from the Atlantic Division race in the ACC, NC State must win three of its last four games to become bowl eligible.
For
“From our perspective, that game had everything we would like,” said Cavaliers coach Al Groh. “We had no turnovers, we ran the ball proficiently, we played good defense and obviously we were able to finish the game strong. We’re really proud of the players. I thought they were really tough-minded today. We feel good about being able to beat a team like that.”
