Wolfpack Squanders Fourth-Quarter Lead; Falls to Syracuse 34-31

Saturday, November 14

Raleigh, NC

12 p.m.

NC State

4-6 , 2-5

Syracuse

5-5 , 3-5

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Syracuse	3	3	7	21	34
NC State	0	7	21	3	31

Game Book

11/14/2026 4:42:00 PM | Football

Box Score

RALEIGH, N.C. - NC State led 31-20 with just under seven minutes remaining, but Syracuse scored 14 unanswered points to leave Raleigh with a 34-31 victory on Senior Day at Carter-Finley Stadium.

With the Wolfpack winning 31-20, the turning point for the visitors came when Syracuse forced the first turnover of the game with five minutes left in the fourth. The Syracuse defensive end jumped off his block, picked off a would-be tunnel screen, and ran it back 18 yards for the defensive touchdown.

The Pack got the ball back with the lead but couldn't put up any points and were forced to punt. On the ensuing Orange drive, Syracuse faced a fourth-and-three on the NC State 29-yard line with 1:54 left in the game. A Wolfpack defender broke up the pass over the middle, popping it up into the air and into the arms of another receiver for a five-yard gain to keep the drive alive.

Syracuse made good on their fortune, cashing in with an 11-yard touchdown catch over a Wolfpack defender in the back corner of the end zone, and this time the two-point conversion succeeded, making it a three-point deficit.

Quarterback CJ Bailey finished 15-27 for 211 yards, with a touchdown and an interception, along with 56 yards and a score on the ground. He is now fourth all-time in NC State history for passes completed.

Transfer receiver Davion Dozier was the Pack's leading receiver, pulling in one catch for 69 yards – the longest reception of his career and his most yards in a game since joining the Pack.

Junior receivers Chance Robinson and Keenan Jackson also had productive days, with Robinson finishing with 38 yards on four catches and Jackson finishing with 52 yards on three receptions.

Running back Duke Scott looked like his normal self after returning from injury, rushing for a game-leading 127 yards on 14 carries and scoring. He also surpassed 1,000 career rushing yards.

Safety King Mack and freshman linebacker Jordan Moreta led all players in tackles with ten each – career bests for both players. Fellow safety Brody Barnhardt also tallied a career-high nine takedowns.

Defensive tackle Isaiah Shirley had the Wolfpack's lone sack on his Senior Day. He also finished with a game-leading 1.5 tackles for loss.

On the Syracuse side, receiver Calvin Russell caught 17 passes for 137 yards and a touchdown. That is the most receptions in a game against NC State since Ervin Philips III, also of Syracuse, matched the number in 2017.

Syracuse received the ball to start the game, methodically moving down the field in 13 plays before the Wolfpack defense made a red zone stand to force a 31-yard field goal. It marked the first field goal the Pack has given up on an opening drive this year.

The sides traded punts until Bailey broke the ice for the Pack offense with three minutes before the break, diving for the pylon on a nine-yard touchdown run, his third rushing score of the season. Keenan Jackson caught a 26-yard pass on fourth-and-nine to keep the drive alive.

It marked the first NC State touchdown since Halloween against Cal – over 90 minutes of game time.

The Orange converted on a 35-yard field goal after the Pack defense made its second red zone stand in as many opportunities as the first half came to a close.

The 7-6 Wolfpack lead marks the first time they've held an advantage going into the break since October 10th against Wake Forest, and they are now 3-3 when doing so.

The combined 13 points is the fewest first-half total in an NC State game since beating Florida State in November of last year – the sides combined for ten points over the first two periods.

After being held to just 16 yards in the first half, Scott ripped a 62-yard run on the second half's first play from scrimmage. Bailey found Robinson in the end zone three plays later from 12 yards out, extending the Pack advantage to eight.

Following a quick three-and-out for the Orange, the Pack offense once again kick-started a drive with an explosive first snap. This time, Dozier streaked down the sideline for a 69-yard gain, taken down at the Syracuse six-yard line. Davion Gause bounced a direct snap outside for the touchdown a couple of plays later from two yards away.

The Wolfpack offense surpassed its first-half production in just its first seven plays, gaining 150 yards and scoring 14 points, compared with its first-half total of seven points and 120 yards across 27 plays.

Syracuse responded on their next possession with a rushing touchdown of their own form 13 yards out to cut the NC State advantage to eight.

The second-half surge continued with Scott hitting the hole and stiff-arming a Syracuse defender on his way to a 32-yard touchdown run – his fifth score of the season and first since returning from injury.

Syracuse continued to hang around, following up a 53-yard pass with a three-yard touchdown pass before a 21-yard Kanoah Vinesett chip shot restored the Pack's two-score advantage. Vinesett is now eleventh in points all-time (217) for NC State and eighth in field goals with 33.

After the pick-six, the Orange two-point conversion failed when Joseph Adedire took down the quarterback in the backfield, keeping the Wolfpack advantage at five.

The Pack offense, down three with 48 seconds left, marched to the Syracuse 30-yard line before a holding call and a strip-sack recovered by the Orange secured their victory.

The NC State loss moves the all-time series advantage to 13-5 as the Wolfpack have now lost three straight to the Orange. The Wolfpack will next face Florida State in Tallahassee on Saturday, November 21st, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. on the ACC Network.