How Smothers, Harsh Stood Out in NC State’s Win

Pro Football Focus released its grades, stats, and all the other good nerdy stuff associated with the Wolfpack; it’s time to take a closer look to see who stood out. 

Offensive Breakdown 

If you want to talk about the Wolfpack’s win on Saturday, redshirt sophomore running back Hollywood Smothers should be one of the first names that come to mind. He finished with 140 rushing yards on the day, but he wouldn’t be named Hollywood without a little flash. 

Smothers forced six missed tackles, and 121 of his yards came after contact. It’s his second straight week with at least five forced missed tackles, putting his total up to 14 for the season. Smothers is now tied for second in the ACC for forced missed tackles with Virginia running back J’Mari Taylor – Stanford’s Micah Taylor is first with 16. 

Sophomore quarterback CJ Bailey had a quieter day through the air, box score-wise, but that wasn’t the case at all. He made great reads throughout the day, but the game flow didn’t need him to be an elite passer – he still showcased his arm when he needed to. 

The highlight of his day was on play action. He went 6-for-7, 83 yards, one touchdown and had one big-time throw. Bailey didn’t have a single turnover-worthy play on the day – a good sign for the young signal caller. 

Since throwing the ball wasn’t the main focus of the offense, none of the receivers had an eye-popping day, numbers-wise. Still, the receiving core showed up when it was needed, and Terrell Anderson was the one to show up. Anderson finished with three receptions for 44 yards and led the team in yards per route run with 2.75.  

In terms of the offensive line, the unit took a step forward in its run blocking, but pass blocking was a struggle in week two. They gave up eight total pressures on the day, three from redshirt junior Teague Andersen, two from graduate guard Anthony Carter Jr., one from senior center Jalen Grant and one from redshirt sophomore guard Yousef Mugharbil. 

Redshirt junior Jacarrius Peak has stood out in the first two weeks of the season, as he still hasn’t given up a pressure point on the season. 

Senior tight end Cody Hardy had a day run-blocking, having a higher grade overall than the entire starting offensive line, other than Peak. 

Defensive Breakdown 

The run defense for the Wolfpack front seven didn’t look like the same dominant unit it was in week one, but that’s the nature of football. The factor that remained the same was the dominance of graduate defensive end Sebastian Harsh – he led the team in overall defensive grade for the second week in a row. 

In week two, he totaled three pressures and three quarterback hurries. His partner in crime, graduate defensive line Cian Slone, was right there with him, totaling three pressures and three quarterback hurries as well. 

Outside of Slone or Harsh, no one else had consistent pressure throughout the night. As a whole, the team totaled 13 pressures against the Cavaliers. 

Redshirt senior Sean Brown led the way with four defensive stops for the run defense, while Brown and the unit overall struggled. They still ran around the field hunting for the ball every play. Senior linebacker Caden Fordham struggled against the Cavaliers' rushing attack, but he still finished with three defensive stops. 

Senior defensive back Jamel Johnson led the team for the second week in a row to allow yardage. In week two, he allowed 51 yards off of five targets. Brown allowed five receptions for 31 yards with an average depth of target of 1.8, meaning most of them were short, little dump-offs. 

Slone had the lone interception of the day, and we all know how important it was. Graduate defensive back JJ Johnson was the only member of the secondary to have a pass breakup on the day, a quiet day overall for the secondary as a whole. But like the Wolfpack, the running game for Virginia was working like a charm.