NC State 24, NIU 17: 5 takeways from the Huskies’ second straight loss

RALEIGH, N.C. — One week after falling out of the AP Top 25, Northern Illinois finds itself back at .500. The Huskies (2-2) were dealt their second straight loss, falling 24-17 to NC State on Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium.

The Huskies allowed a touchdown on the game’s first possession, trailed 17-14 at halftime and never recovered. Ethan Hampton was picked off in the end zone by Tamarcus Cooley to end it.

What stood out about the result? Here are five takeaways.

Bit of trickery

NC State reached into its bag of tricks to set up its first scoring drive late in the first half. Facing a 4th and 1 from their own 45, the Wolfpack executed a fake punt with Sean Brown taking a direct snap two yards for a first down.

The surprise call came much to the delight of the home crowd, which had booed coach Dave Doeren’s decision to send out his special teams unit.

Four players later, after a 34-yard pass from CJ Bailey to Noah Rogers moved NC State down to the 2, Bailey took matters into his own hands and scampered in for a quick 7-0 Wolfpack lead.

If it was any consolation, NIU tied things on its next possession when fullback Brock Lampe pounced on an Antario Brown fumble in the end zone for a 2-yard score.

Coughing it up

Donovan Kaufman squandered an opportunity for a game-changing play when he dropped an interception near midfield on the game’s first drive. However, the Wolfpack safety made up for it later in the half.

Two plays into the second quarter, with NIU backed up to its 16 on 3rd and 6, Kaufman blitzed around the edge, hit quarterback Ethan Hampton from behind and jarred the ball loose. Kaufman then did the rest by scooping up the fumble for a 2-yard score to go up 14-7.

Hampton also lost a fumble early in the third quarter, giving way to Kevin Concepcion’s 3-yard touchdown grab. This one was forced by defensive end Davin Vann and recovered at the Huskies 1 by Brandon Cleveland.

O-line uncharacteristically struggles

NIU’s normally reliable offensive line was anything but, leaving Hampton under constant duress. The Huskies allowed their first four sacks of the season. Two of those produced fumbles that led to easy NC State touchdowns.

Hampton finished with a season-low 159 yards passing, a majority of which came in the first half, and a pair of interceptions.

What was most concerning? NC State’s defense began the day bottom-10 nationally in scoring (37.8 PPG allowed).

Minor victories

NIU’s defense rebounded from an ominous start to hold NC State to just 171 yards of total offense. Most of that production came on the game-opening, 64-yard scoring drive.

That, of course, is where NIU’s inability to protect the ball came into play. Things might’ve turned out much differently had the Huskies not turned it over twice deep inside their own territory. Only three NC State drives went for more than 25 yards.

Unsung hero

Not to go unnoticed was the effort of NC State punter Caden Noonkester, who averaged 49.8 yards on his eight punts. Remarkably, he pinned NIU inside its own 20 on seven of those.

That only made things tougher for the Huskies and their struggling offensive line.