Wolfpack Defense Stifles Florida State and Becomes Bowl Eligible

Friday, November 21

Raleigh, NC

8:00pm

NC State

6-5 , 3-4

Florida State

5-6 , 2-6

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Florida St.

NC State

Wolfpack Defense Stifles Florida State and Becomes Bowl Eligible

11/22/2025 12:33:00 AM | Football

Box Score

NC State capitalizes on four Florida State turnovers as the Wolfpack defense stands tall to lead NC State to a 21-11 victory under the Friday night lights at Carter-Finley.

The win makes the Pack bowl eligible for the sixth year in a row and the 11th time in the 13 years under Dave Doeren. He is now only one shy of the most consecutive in school history. The record is seven between 1988-1994 under head coaches Dick Sheridan and Mike O'Cain.

Punter Caden Noonkester had a fourth quarter to remember that included a punt that bounced off a Florida State player's helmet and bounced backward 26 yards for Noonkester to recover his own kick. If that wasn't enough, just four plays later, his punt was muffed and recovered by senior Tra Thomas on the Seminole 16-yard line, where the Pack would go on to score a touchdown and put the game away.

Senior cornerback Devon Marshall finished the day with six pass breakups. The six PBUs are the most by a Wolfpack defender in school history. He is only the third player in school history to reach at least five, joining Hakim Jones and David Amerson.

Quarterback CJ Bailey finished the day 18-25 for 152 yards on 72% completion with two touchdowns – the first of which marked Bailey's 20th passing score of the campaign. He is the first NC State quarterback to reach that number since 2021, when Devin Leary finished with 35.

Justin Joly once again led the Wolfpack receiving core, coming away with 66 yards and a score on five catches to further cement his team lead.

The ACC's leading rusher in Hollywood Smothers, had another strong showing, finishing with 84 yards on 21 carries. Quarterback and short yardage specialist Will Wilson finished with a career best 33 yards on the ground on nine attempts and a touchdown.

Caden Fordham, who leads all of P4 in tackles, tied his career high of 15 for the third time this year. Redshirt Freshman Assad Brown Jr. finished with a career best 12 takedowns. In addition to Marshall pass breakups, he finished the game with two interceptions.

Marshall was busy on the first Florida State drive, coming away with two PBUs and an interception on the Wolfpack's ten-yard line. The Pack offense took advantage, striking first from 25 yards out on a grab by Terrell Anderson – his fifth of the season.

The Seminoles responded on the next drive with a 46-yard field goal after yet another Marshall pass break up – this time in the endzone – to force fourth down.

The Wolfpack defense came up big when it mattered once again, making a red zone stop before a delay of game penalty forced Florida State to back up five yards on the way to a missed field goal, keeping the Wolfpack's advantage at 7-3.

The Pack took a 7-3 lead going into the half. That marks the fourth time this season they have been ahead at halftime and are now 4-0 when doing so. The three points allowed is the lowest first-half number by an NC State defense since holding Wake Forest scoreless before the break in 2023.

The Wolfpack defense continued its momentum into the second half, forcing a quick Seminole three-and-out. The offense followed it up with a 15-play, 79-yard touchdown drive spanning just under nine minutes.

Wilson willed them down the field, converting on a 4th-&-1 and a 3rd-&-2 before punching it in from a yard out for his fifth rushing score of the season. The run game specialist also had a career-long 16-yard rush during the drive.

Florida State entered desperation mode early, attempting and failing a 4th-&-6 on the 50-yard line as the third quarter wound down.

The Seminole offense finally broke through for its first and only touchdown of the contest on a pass from nine yards out with 8:17 left in the 4th quarter. The successful two-point try that followed cut the Wolfpack's lead to three.

Joly put the game out of reach with his fifth touchdown of the season from 12 yards out on a gutsy 4th-&-6 play to put the Pack up by 10. Marshall came away with an interception on the final play of the game to cap off his historic night.

The NC State win moves the all-time series to 17-26 and 6-5 under Dave Doeren. NC State will next face UNC at Carter-Finley on Saturday, November 29, at 7:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on the ACC Network.