Wolfpack Rushing Defense Haunted by Big Plays in Losses

It was a third-and-1 when Castle iced the game, bringing up a trend within NC State’s rushing defense. Against Virginia in week two, there were two instances where the Wolfpack defense faced a short-yardage situation against the Cavaliers. NC State fans don’t need a reminder, but in those two instances, Virginia running back J’Mari Taylor rushed for a 39-yard and 66-yard touchdown.

Football is the ultimate team sport, and the Wolfpack defense has felt it in the short-yardage situations. The majority of the defense filled the correct gap, but in those two instances, one or two players missed a tackle, springing Taylor open.

In the Castle run, linebacker Kenny Soares Jr. didn’t fill the correct gap and got washed down in the traffic, opening up a wide-open hole for Castle to spring through.

• “It’s frustrating,” head coach Dave Doeren said after the game. “That was a short-yardage situation … I’ll have to see the film to see what happened on that play. I couldn’t see it from my vantage point. But you’re definitely going to be in a loaded box in that situation at that time in the game. You have to be. They’re going to run the football, and you’ve got to win your gap, gotta get off blocks, and our unblocked hats have to make tackles. Obviously, that didn’t happen. It’s disappointing. We’ve had three of those this year.”

Throughout four games, the Wolfpack defense has given up 123 rushing yards a game, and it’s been a different story in every game. Against East Carolina and Wake Forest, the defense allowed under 100 rushing yards.

Against Virginia and Duke, it’s a different story, with the unit giving up over 100 in each of those matchups. It’s been an up-and-down road for the Wolfpack defense, but there is a chance to find solid ground again against Virginia Tech in Raleigh this weekend.