COLLEGE FOOTBALL

NC State 38, Western Carolina 21

ASSOCIATED PRESS

RALEIGH, N.C. - KC Concepcion slithered free from contact and broke loose to the right for a 35-yard catch-and-run touchdown — his third score of the night — to help No. 24 N.C. State finally push ahead for good and beat Western Carolina 38-21 in Thursday’s opener for both teams.

Concepcion had a diving 17-yard scoring catch over the middle in the first quarter along with a 5-yard catch-and-run to the left pylon in the second. He finished with nine catches and 121 yards as a highlight in what was at times a slog for N.C. State — and other times an unexpectedly tense test against a Championship Subdivision opponent.

The game was tied at 14-all at halftime and the Catamounts led 21-17 going into the final quarter, putting them within reach of a shocking upset. But Concepcion’s highlight-reel effort put the Wolfpack ahead for good, then Jordan Waters — a transfer from nearby Duke — shook off what had been a rough debut to that point by keeping his legs churning through multiple tacklers for a 7-yard TD that pushed N.C. State to a 31-21 lead with 6:33 left.

Waters sealed this one by breaking free for a 50-yard scoring sprint with 1:50 left in what morphed into a 123-yard rushing day, while Coastal Carolina transfer Grayson McCall threw for 318 yards in his first game in Wolfpack red.

The takeaway

Western Carolina: The instate Catamounts, picked to finish third in the Southern Conference, fell to 0-63 all-time against Bowl Subdivision opponents. Those struggles include eight losses to N.C. State, nine losses to ranked FBS teams and 34 losses to Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. Despite breaking in new coordinators on both sides of the ball, they hung in on this one with opportunistic play and by largely stuffing N.C. State’s attempts to run the ball.

N.C. State: The good news is Dave Doeren opened his 12th season with a win. But this was an often-bumpy outing, starting with dropping a potential pick-6 on the game’s first offensive snap and including twice being stuffed on fourth-and-1 running plays. That means there’s plenty to work on with a marquee matchup looming for a team picked to finish fourth in the ACC.

North Carolina State athletics press release

August 29, 2024