Hokies Blow 18-Point Lead In 22-21 Loss To No. 24 NC State

By Carter Hill

Staff Writer

October 27, 2022

RALEIGH, N.C. — With the clock preparing to dip under four minutes to play in the latter half of the third quarter, Virginia Tech quarterback Grant Wells took a shotgun snap from the opposing 20-yard line, dropped back and immediately took off to his left.

Weaving his way around NC State defenders, the Marshall transfer was able to get loose, eventually finding the far pylon to score Tech's third touchdown of the quarter and put the maroon and orange up 21-3 with 4:02 left in the contest.

From there, though, it was all Wolfpack.

The Hokies (2-6, 1-4 ACC) proceeded to relinquish the lead in just over 11 minutes of game time, only picking up one first down the remainder of the way. The maroon and orange didn’t even cross its own 36-yard line in the final 19 minutes of play, suffering a demoralizing 22-21 defeat at the hands of No. 24 NC State (6-2, 2-2 ACC) inside Carter-Finley Stadium.

“You’ve got to have a closer’s mentality in the fourth quarter,” Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry said. “You’ve got to play your absolute best and we just needed a play or two to change the outcome. And we’ll get there.

“I told the guys in the locker room [that] I’m just so proud of them. They’re improving all the time. They fight, they battle, the culture’s right. They’re going in the right direction. It just didn’t equal a win tonight. And we’ve got to make sure we do a better job as coaches and players. It’s the little things. It’s the details. [It’s] where can we make the difference and flip the script to be 1-0.”

The loss marked the first time in 30 years that the Hokies have dropped five consecutive contests, and the first time since 1952 that Tech has fallen in each of its October matchups — a feat that took place so long ago, that Harry S. Truman was in the White House at the time.

“You definitely have to learn how to win,” added Tech redshirt senior cornerback Armani Chatman. “There [hasn’t] been too much winning that’s happened…this season, in past football seasons. We definitely have to get used to it. We have to just keep competing day in and day out.”

For the first half, at least, it seemingly appeared as if both sides weren’t going to be able to muster enough to be able to come away victorious.

Both the Hokies and the Wolfpack combined for just 176 yards of total offense in the first two periods of play. And if it weren’t for a 35-yard field goal by NC State kicker Christopher Dunn with five seconds remaining in the half, the game would’ve remained scoreless at the halftime intermission.

“We can’t lay an egg like we did in the first half,” Pry continued. “We played so well defensively. [We’ve] talked about complimentary ball, if we had done just a little more, and been able to do some things in the first half like we did in the third quarter offensively, that thing could look a little bit differently.”

In that third quarter, it’s almost as if a completely different team had emerged from the Tech locker room.

On the opening drive of the second half, the Hokies marched quickly down the field, scoring in just six plays on a 78-yard drive that was capped off by a Wells four-yard touchdown run that gave the maroon and orange a 7-3 lead with 12:57 remaining in the quarter.

That score wouldn’t hold up for long.

On Tech’s next possession, Wells connected with star receiver Kaleb Smith on an 85-yard strike that resulted in the redshirt senior finding the end zone for the third time this season.

One-play — that's all the maroon and orange needed to take what seemed to be a commanding 14-3 advantage. And after Wells’ 20-yard house call that made it a 21-3 ballgame with just over four minutes remaining in the quarter, it seemed as if the Hokies were poised to pick up their first victory in over a month.

Turns out, it was for naught.

Just 2:20 later, NC State reserve quarterback MJ Morris would hit standout receiver Thayer Thomas from 35 yards out to pull the deficit to within 11. And with 12:15 remaining in the fourth quarter, the true freshman found tight end Trent Penix wide-open at the goaline to make it a 21-16 ballgame.

It didn’t take long for the final blow to be delivered after that.

With the clock beginning to tick under eight minutes to play, Morris zipped one to Thomas on a slip screen that would end up going 18 yards for the go-ahead score to put the Wolfpack on top for good, sending them to a 15th consecutive home victory.

“You just want to feel like…when the game’s on the line, that you’ve got enough juice in the tank that is necessary,” Pry explained. “We had chances on either side of the ball to close the game out.

“We didn’t get it done.”

Morris finished the day going 20-for-29 with 265 yards and three touchdowns, providing a major spark off the bench for NC State after relieving starting quarterback Jack Chambers for the latter half of the contest.

Meanwhile, Wells went 11-for-22 on the evening, throwing for 243 yards and a touchdown to pace the Hokies throughout. Smith’s three receptions for 141 yards certainly didn’t hurt, either.

But in the end, a whopping 10 false starts, an injury to Malachi Thomas, special teams mistakes and the inability to put together a complete fourth quarter doomed Tech once again on Thursday night in Raleigh.

The Hokies had a prime opportunity to put themselves back into a position to reach bowl eligibility in Pry’s inaugural season in charge. But a late-game collapse incited the squandering of an 18-point advantage that’s left Virginia Tech’s postseason odds in limbo with its back now against the wall.

“We’re fighting for bowl eligibility right now. We’ve got to keep pushing for those seniors,” Chatman acknowledged. “Everybody's just trying to keep our heads up, keep pushing, keep that mindset that we still have more work to do. The season’s not over.

“We have more games left on the table. We definitely have to play for one another. Coach Pry is definitely making us as a team stick together.”