N.C. State Football: Wolfpack Decimates Catamounts

Freshman running back Zonovan ‘Bam’ Knight rushes for 116 yards as the Wolfpack amasses 540 yards of total offense in its first shutout win since 2015.

N.C. State steamrolled through Western Carolina as the Wolfpack picked up 309 rushing yards on 53 carries as it blanked the Catamounts at Carter-Finley Stadium, 41-0.

Quick Notes

With the win, the Wolfpack earned its 32nd straight victory over an FCS opponent. This streak dates back to 1987. The Pack’s win is also the team’s 15th non-conference home win in a row.
Despite many complaints about the early start time from its fans, N.C. State is currently on a 16-game win streak in contests that begin prior to 1 p.m.
With State’s 309 rushing yards against Western’s eight rushing yards, this marks the Pack’s largest run differential since it out rushed North Carolina in 2014, 388-30.
The Wolfpack defense has now kept its last three home opponents out of the end zone entirely. State has allowed just three field goals in those last three games with one given up to East Carolina in last season’s home finale and two to the Pirates in this season’s opener.
Knight became the 57th player in N.C. State history to amass over 100 rushing yards in a game. While doing so in his second career game, he becomes the fastest to do so since Tremayne Stephens accomplished the feat in his first career game in 1994.
Sophomore placekicker Christopher Dunn booted two field goals against the Catamounts, extending his streak of consecutive made field goals to 19.

Scoring Summary

With the offense struggling in its first drive, the Pack put its first points on the board in its second drive as Dunn connected with a 32-yard field goal in the first quarter.
After punting away in its first drive of the second quarter, the Wolfpack found the end zone on three consecutive drives with all of which amassing over 60 yards each. Sophomore running back Ricky Person Jr. scored the Pack’s first touchdown from six yards out. Knight then scored on the next drive from two yards away. The final N.C. State touchdown of the first half came through the air as redshirt junior tight end Cary Angeline caught redshirt sophomore quarterback Matthew McKay’s one-yard pass in the back of the end zone.
Dunn opened the second-half scoring with a 25-yard field goal as the Wolfpack stalled on the opening drive of the third quarter at the Catamounts’ eight-yard line.
The next two drives for the Wolfpack both ended with touchdowns as Knight and freshman running back Jordan Houston scored from two and three yards out respectively.

Observations from the Game

More from Old North Banter

While McKay managed to make plays with his feet in the season opener against East Carolina, he was oddly silent in the running game while other backs ran amuck. McKay also left with 200 passing yards despite surpassing the 300-yard mark in the previous game. With the backs chewing up as much yardage as possible, this potentially gave the Wolfpack relief that it didn’t have to rely on McKay to run for extra yardage, but this will definitely be something to continue to observe moving forward.
With the transition to the 3-3-5 defense, the Wolfpack has continued to remain successful on defense. The Catamounts were held to just 106 yards of total offense and only six first downs on just over 23 minutes of possession Saturday afternoon. Redshirt sophomore defensive end Xavier Lyas provided two tackles for a loss, including a four-yard sack, and a forced fumble while sophomore defensive tackle Alim McNeill contributed with a seven-yard sack.
In the grand scheme of things, this game means virtually nothing. There was never any doubt in the Wolfpack’s ability to come away with the win. As much of a confidence booster this was for N.C. State, especially for its younger players, the Pack’s first true test will come this coming weekend on the road at West Virginia.

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