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Friday night lights out: NC State fades in second half

Wolfpack can’t sustain 10-0 halftime lead; Louisville rallies for 13-10 win

Published

September 29, 2023

NC State couldn't hold a 10-0 halftime lead, falling Friday night at home to Louisville. (Graphic courtesy NC State athletics).

RALEIGH – Brock Travelstead kicked a 53-yard field goal with 5:32 remaining, and Louisville’s smothering defense made it hold up for a 13-10 victory against North Carolina State on Friday night.

Louisville’s defense delivered a second-half shutout as the Cardinals (5-0, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) maintained their perfect mark under first-year coach Jeff Brohm.

Jack Plummer threw for 286 yards on 21-for-35 passing with a touchdown toss and two interceptions. The Cardinals were credited with only 20 rushing yards.

NC State (3-2, 1-1) managed just 201 yards of total offense. Quarterback Brennan Armstrong was the game’s leading rusher with 61 yards on 17 carries, but he was just 13-for-25 for 112 yards with two interceptions in the air.

After Louisville moved in front in the fourth quarter, NC State’s defense forced fourth down, but a running-into-the punter infraction allowed the Cardinals to retain possession. The Wolfpack, without any timeouts, got the ball back at their own 34 with 1:44 to go, but Quincy Riley intercepted an Armstrong pass on the next play.

With 6:38 to play in the third quarter, Plummer threw 39 yards to Chris Bell in the end zone, slicing what had been a 10-0 halftime deficit to 10-7. After a second NC State turnover in the quarter, the Cardinals tacked on Travelstead’s tying 33-yard field goal with 1:32 to go in the period.

The Cardinals reached the NC State 5-yard line before Bishop Fitzgerald intercepted a Plummer pass early in the fourth quarter.

The teams traded punts across the game’s first six possessions before Travelstead missed on a 52-yard field goal.

The Wolfpack then drove 65 yards in 13 plays and scored on Delbert Mimms III’s 4-yard run, capping a march that included two fourth-down conversions.

Shyheim Battle intercepted Plumer and returned the ball to the Louisville 32 with 49 seconds to play in the second quarter. Brayden Narveson kicked a 48-yard field goal on the last play of the half. A week earlier, he ended the game at Virginia with a winning field goal on the final play.

–Field Level Media