North Carolina State 27, Texas Tech 14
(AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker)
By AARON BEARD
AP Sports Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. - Aydan White returned one of his two interceptions 84 yards for a touchdown to lead a strong defensive effort that carried No. 16 North Carolina State past Texas Tech, 27-14.
Facing the Bowl Subdivision's top passing offense, N.C. State's veteran defense harassed quarterback Donovan Smith and shut down any ground game the Red Raiders tried to muster. The highlight was White's fourth-down pick of Smith's overthrown second-quarter ball, with White taking the interception down the left side with three teammates sprinting to escort him all the way to the end zone.
"That's a DB's dream," White said, "to see that much green."
White also had a sack on a cornerback blitz, one of four for the Wolfpack (3-0). Jakeen Harris came up with a fourth-down interception near midfield with 8:38 left as Texas Tech (2-1) tried to make a late push.
The defensive effort offset a shaky day by the Wolfpack's offense, which had its own troubles with stalled drives and score-negating mistakes. Demie Sumo-Karngbaye - who lost a sure TD catch when he was stripped near the goal line and fumbled out of the end zone - scored twice, the second on a 38-yard catch off a trick-play pass from Thayer Thomas for a 27-7 lead early in the fourth.
Smith ran and threw for scores to lead the Red Raiders, as his 3-yard keeper cut the deficit to 27-14. But after Texas Tech forced a three-and-out to get the ball back, Smith fired incomplete on three straight passes before Harris picked him off over the middle to keep the Wolfpack in control.
"We're going to face some good defenses in the Big 12," first-year Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire said. "I think we have to be better in catching all catchable balls, getting vertical when you catch it. We've got to put ourselves in good situations. ... But there's some stuff that we've got to do as a staff to put these guys in better situations."
THE TAKEAWAY
Texas Tech: The Red Raiders elevated expectations for McGuire, whose team was picked to finish ninth in the 10-team Big 12 but upset a ranked Houston team last weekend. The defense made things difficult on the Wolfpack. But the team didn't get its offense going until falling behind and lost a muffed punt to go with its three picks.
N.C. State: Much of the attention has focused on the presence of preseason Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year Devin Leary at quarterback. But the defense that returned 10 starters from a unit that ranked 14th in FBS in scoring defense (19.7) and 21st in total defense (331.6 yards) carried this win as N.C. State managed 270 total yards. Lineman C.J. Clark had two sacks while the Wolfpack smothered the Red Raiders' rushing game by allowing 54 yards on 26 carries.
| Scoring Summary |
| First Quarter |
TxTch | NCSU |
| NCSU |
FG |
7:39 |
Christopher Dunn 29 yd FG |
0 |
3 |
| NCSU |
FG |
2:29 |
Christopher Dunn 47 yd FG |
0 |
6 |
| Second Quarter |
TxTch | NCSU |
| NCSU |
TD |
10:13 |
Demie Sumo-Karngbaye 14 yd run (Christopher Dunn kick) |
0 |
13 |
| NCSU |
TD |
4:40 |
Aydan White 84 yd interception return (Christopher Dunn kick) |
0 |
20 |
| TxTch |
TD |
0:50 |
Myles Price 24 yd pass from Donovan Smith (Trey Wolff kick) |
7 |
20 |
| Fourth Quarter |
TxTch | NCSU |
| NCSU |
TD |
14:20 |
Demie Sumo-Karngbaye 38 yd pass from Thayer Thomas (Christopher Dunn kick) |
7 |
27 |
| TxTch |
TD |
10:46 |
Donovan Smith 3 yd run (Trey Wolff kick) |
14 |
27 |
| Team Stats |
| |
Texas Tech |
North Carolina State |
| First downs |
20 |
15 |
| Rushing |
5 |
7 |
| Passing |
13 |
6 |
| Penalty |
2 |
2 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency |
2-12, 17% |
6-16, 38% |
| 4th down efficiency |
1-4, 25% |
1-1, 100% |
| Rushes-Yards |
26-54 |
37-111 |
| Passing Yards |
299 |
159 |
| Return Yards |
104 |
84 |
| Completions-Attempts-Int |
25-43-3 |
16-24-0 |
| Sacks-Yards Lost |
4--26 |
2--11 |
| Punts |
6 |
7 |
| Punts-Average |
41.2 |
38.9 |
| Fumbles Lost |
1-1 |
1-1 |
| Penalties - Yards |
7-69 |
9-74 |
| Time of Possession |
25:33 |
33:04 |
| Texas Tech Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| D. Smith |
21 |
36 |
214 |
1 |
2 |
| B. Morton |
4 |
7 |
85 |
0 |
1 |
| North Carolina State Passing |
| Player |
Cmp |
Att |
Yds |
TDs |
Int |
| D. Leary |
15 |
23 |
121 |
0 |
0 |
| T. Thomas |
1 |
1 |
38 |
1 |
0 |
| Texas Tech Interceptions |
| Player |
Int |
Yards |
| Texas Tech Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| A. McNamara |
6 |
247 |
41.2 |
| North Carolina State Punting |
| Player |
Punts |
Yards |
Avg |
| S. McDonough |
7 |
272 |
38.9 |
| Texas Tech Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| D. Hocutt |
2 |
6 |
3.0 |
| North Carolina State Punt Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| North Carolina State Kick Returns |
| Player |
Ret |
Yards |
Average |
| Texas Tech Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
| North Carolina State Missed FG |
| Player |
Length |
