North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Overcomes Irish and Hurricane to Get Important Win
10/9/2016 9:49:00 AM | Football
Notre Dame Recap | Social Media Look
RALEIGH, N.C. - Like kids in an all-dirt backyard on a rain-soaked day, NC State's football team couldn't wait to get a little muddy Saturday afternoon.
In a steady downpour caused by Hurricane Matthew, the Wolfpack slipped, slid and slurped its way to a 10-3 victory over Notre Dame on the 50th anniversary of the opening of Carter-Finley Stadium.
And it couldn't have been more fun.
"Honestly, that was probably the most fun game I've ever played in," said senior running back Matthew Dayes, who splashed for 134 yards on 23 carries and outgained the entire Notre Dame offense by 21 yards.
No one enjoyed the game more than head coach Dave Doeren, whose team is now 4-1 on the season, even if he did stand with water up to his ankles pretty much the entire game.
"It was tough conditions to play a game in, but boy was it fun," Doeren said. "When you're little kids and it rained, we couldn't wait to go play in the mud. That's what little boys do. We had the chance to play in the mud today and we were thankful for the opportunity."
The biggest opportunity of the game came early in the fourth quarter with the game tied 3-3, after both teams endured several inches of rain and a 30-minute lightning delay to start the second half. Notre Dame lined up inside its own 20 for a punt and the Wolfpack prepared for a return by Bra'Lon Cherry.
But big-play junior tight end Pharoah McKever, a special teams newbie since the Wake Forest game, broke through the line and blocked Tyler Newsome's punt into a puddle in the southwest corner of the field. Teammate safety Dexter Wright, in just his second game of the season after returning from a shoulder injury, managed to control the ball and run it in for a 16-yard touchdown.
"My job on that play was just to cover the punter and make sure he kicked it," Wright said. "I didn't even see him block it. I just heard it.
"We had been talking a lot during the game about whether you should scoop up a fumble and run or just fall on it, but I didn't feel like there was anybody behind me on that play who could get to the ball before I did, so I just grabbed it and ran."
It was an opportunistic play in messy conditions, something that hurt the Wolfpack earlier in the game when punter A.J. Cole III slipped while catching the snap and let his knee touch the ground at the Wolfpack 25-yard line, setting up a 23-yard field goal that turned out to be Notre Dame's only score of the day.
"It was kind of a crapshoot every time the special teams went on the field for both teams," Doeren said. "It's hard to snap the ball 14 yards in hurricane conditions and catch it. It's challenging. It was a huge factor for both sides.
"The blocked punt ended up being the game."
It's not the first time the Wolfpack has won a game on a field soaked by a hurricane or tropical storm, but it was certainly the most important.
In the 1998 season opener against Ohio, Wolfpack reserve receiver Roderick Brown broke through the line to block a punt with two minutes remaining in the game. The ball squirted through true freshman linebacker Brian Jamison's hands and into the arms of receiver Chris Coleman, who raced in for a 13-yard touchdown.
The next week, the Wolfpack stunned Florida State with a dominating 24-3 victory in what is arguably the biggest upset in Carter-Finley Stadium history.
In the 1999 season-opener, former Wolfpack coach Lou Holtz returned to Carter-Finley in his first game as head coach at South Carolina. A driving rain storm caused by Tropical Storm Dennis caused the Gamecock offense to fumble the ball eight times, four of which were recovered by the Wolfpack. The game's only touchdown came when Brian Williams blocked a Gamecock fourth-quarter field-goal attempt. Receiver Koren Robinson picked the ball up and ran in for a 5-yard touchdown to solidify the 10-0 victory.
In 2002, safety Terrence Holt helped the Wolfpack beat Wake Forest 32-13 on a Hurricane Hanna-soaked field by blocking a field goal in the fourth quarter. It was his ACC-record 12th career block kick.
But this victory, coming on the 50th anniversary of Carter-Finley Stadium against the biggest name in college football history, will be remembered for much longer than it took those who sat in the all-day rain to dry out.
"Making history is why you do this," Doeren said. "To be part of something special."
RALEIGH, N.C. - Like kids in an all-dirt backyard on a rain-soaked day, NC State's football team couldn't wait to get a little muddy Saturday afternoon.
In a steady downpour caused by Hurricane Matthew, the Wolfpack slipped, slid and slurped its way to a 10-3 victory over Notre Dame on the 50th anniversary of the opening of Carter-Finley Stadium.
And it couldn't have been more fun.
"Honestly, that was probably the most fun game I've ever played in," said senior running back Matthew Dayes, who splashed for 134 yards on 23 carries and outgained the entire Notre Dame offense by 21 yards.
No one enjoyed the game more than head coach Dave Doeren, whose team is now 4-1 on the season, even if he did stand with water up to his ankles pretty much the entire game.
"It was tough conditions to play a game in, but boy was it fun," Doeren said. "When you're little kids and it rained, we couldn't wait to go play in the mud. That's what little boys do. We had the chance to play in the mud today and we were thankful for the opportunity."
The biggest opportunity of the game came early in the fourth quarter with the game tied 3-3, after both teams endured several inches of rain and a 30-minute lightning delay to start the second half. Notre Dame lined up inside its own 20 for a punt and the Wolfpack prepared for a return by Bra'Lon Cherry.
But big-play junior tight end Pharoah McKever, a special teams newbie since the Wake Forest game, broke through the line and blocked Tyler Newsome's punt into a puddle in the southwest corner of the field. Teammate safety Dexter Wright, in just his second game of the season after returning from a shoulder injury, managed to control the ball and run it in for a 16-yard touchdown.
"My job on that play was just to cover the punter and make sure he kicked it," Wright said. "I didn't even see him block it. I just heard it.
"We had been talking a lot during the game about whether you should scoop up a fumble and run or just fall on it, but I didn't feel like there was anybody behind me on that play who could get to the ball before I did, so I just grabbed it and ran."
It was an opportunistic play in messy conditions, something that hurt the Wolfpack earlier in the game when punter A.J. Cole III slipped while catching the snap and let his knee touch the ground at the Wolfpack 25-yard line, setting up a 23-yard field goal that turned out to be Notre Dame's only score of the day.
"It was kind of a crapshoot every time the special teams went on the field for both teams," Doeren said. "It's hard to snap the ball 14 yards in hurricane conditions and catch it. It's challenging. It was a huge factor for both sides.
"The blocked punt ended up being the game."
It's not the first time the Wolfpack has won a game on a field soaked by a hurricane or tropical storm, but it was certainly the most important.
In the 1998 season opener against Ohio, Wolfpack reserve receiver Roderick Brown broke through the line to block a punt with two minutes remaining in the game. The ball squirted through true freshman linebacker Brian Jamison's hands and into the arms of receiver Chris Coleman, who raced in for a 13-yard touchdown.
The next week, the Wolfpack stunned Florida State with a dominating 24-3 victory in what is arguably the biggest upset in Carter-Finley Stadium history.
In the 1999 season-opener, former Wolfpack coach Lou Holtz returned to Carter-Finley in his first game as head coach at South Carolina. A driving rain storm caused by Tropical Storm Dennis caused the Gamecock offense to fumble the ball eight times, four of which were recovered by the Wolfpack. The game's only touchdown came when Brian Williams blocked a Gamecock fourth-quarter field-goal attempt. Receiver Koren Robinson picked the ball up and ran in for a 5-yard touchdown to solidify the 10-0 victory.
In 2002, safety Terrence Holt helped the Wolfpack beat Wake Forest 32-13 on a Hurricane Hanna-soaked field by blocking a field goal in the fourth quarter. It was his ACC-record 12th career block kick.
But this victory, coming on the 50th anniversary of Carter-Finley Stadium against the biggest name in college football history, will be remembered for much longer than it took those who sat in the all-day rain to dry out.
"Making history is why you do this," Doeren said. "To be part of something special."
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Coach Doeren Weekly Press Conference (Nov. 24)
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