Pack Wins 56-41; bowl game awaits (updated Sun AM)

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Question: What’s the opposite of NC State Sh**?

Follow up question: Can NC State Sh** happen to other teams? Because if so, that’s what happened to Maryland today at Carter-Finley. Perhaps things really are going to change around here.

For those who missed it, we saw the second HUGE comeback of the week today. State was completely dead early in the third quarter, down 41-14 after a barrage of turnovers led to easy points. At the end of the third quarter Maryland led 41-21 and I was wondering why I was staying in my seat. It was ugly and it was all but over…Except the Pack rallied for six straight unanswered TDs — 42 unanswered points — with 35 in the fourth quarter to finish 7-5, become bowl eligible, and probably secure another season for TOB.

Think about this: It was 41-21 when the 4th quarter began, and when State took the lead 42-41 there was still 7:08 remaining.
Biggest comeback in State history; second bigest comeback in an ACC game in ACC history (not sure about non-conference if someone wants to fact check for us).

Box Score (ESPN)

Recap (WRAL)

Recap (GoPack)

Paced by Mike Glennon’s school-record tying six touchdowns, NC State stormed back from a 41-14 to deficit to shock Maryland 56-41, completing the largest comeback in school history and claiming bowl eligibility for the third time in the last four years.

The Wolfpack improved on the school-record 24-point comeback set in the 2000 season finale against Minnesota in the Micronpc.com Bowl. The turnaround also marked the second-largest comeback all-time in an ACC game, trailing only Clemson’s 28-point comeback victory over Virginia in 1992.

Glennon claimed responsibility for six touchdowns, five through the air, both tying school records. He becomes the sixth Wolfpack quarterback to throw five touchdowns in a game, and equals Philip Rivers’s six-touchdown outing against Navy in 2002.

Photos (N&O)

This game was a microcosm of not just this season, but the TOB era. Caulton Tudor calls the win the punctuation of our “madcap regular season” (N&O).

We’ll find out in the next couple weeks which bowl game awaits, but it looks like the Belk Bowl is a sure bet (vs. Big East), or potentially Nashville (vs. SEC)?

Enjoy this for now. More to come.

Feel free to share your thoughts below, or head on over to the SFN Forums.

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61 Responses to Pack Wins 56-41; bowl game awaits (updated Sun AM)

  1. logarithm 11/26/2011 at 6:48 PM #

    What a game. I was a little disappointed when we sacked them with 20 seconds left on the clock so they didn’t get to air out a hopeful pass in Amerson’s direction.

  2. PeeDub 11/26/2011 at 6:52 PM #

    “What’s the opposite of NC State Sh**?”

    impending NC State Sh**

  3. leewolf 11/26/2011 at 7:18 PM #

    Wow. What a win. That was crazy.

    I would guess the Belk v. WVU possibly, maybe Louisville? Either that or the Music City v. Vanderbilt since they are crushing Wake right now and Tennessee lost to Kentucky so they are not bowl eligible.

  4. pack76 11/26/2011 at 7:29 PM #

    I hope its the Music City Bowl in Nashville! I’m going either way!!!

  5. theTHRILL 11/26/2011 at 7:34 PM #

    I tend to agree with PeeDub.

  6. Plz2BStateFan 11/26/2011 at 7:35 PM #

    It was bitter sweet on that last pick 6 for NCSU. Because it wasnt Amerson.

    Lets hope whoever we play in a bowl is dumb enough to throw to him.

  7. JEOH2 11/26/2011 at 7:50 PM #

    Lou Holtz just sang our fight song on ESPN

  8. choppack1 11/26/2011 at 7:50 PM #

    That was crazy. Aside from the obvious stuff game was huge for glennon

  9. Baylisascaris 11/26/2011 at 7:53 PM #

    Great comeback by the guys. I have to admit I had given up but kept watching and am glad I did. I am up in Blowing Rock. Walking around town after the game wearing my Wolfpack gear I heard all kinds of positive comments from folks.

  10. HPWolf 11/26/2011 at 8:11 PM #

    Some of the Maryland players after the game said this was the worst feeling in the world. Randy EggSalad sounded like he was about to cry. I say damn good and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch. I hope all their fans saw the game. I hope it hurts for a long time.

  11. mak4dpak 11/26/2011 at 8:59 PM #

    Unreal game. Can’t count all the fans that left the game, especially after they scored 41. But I,for one, stayed around, and got the shock of my life. Still have to pinch myself over this one. Go Wolfpack!

  12. wufpup76 11/26/2011 at 9:05 PM #

    Amazing week of comebacks … Just don’t know what to do with myself as a State fan 🙂

    Would’ve preferred not to fall behind by 27 to Maryland, but SOOO happy we came back and scored 42 unanswered against them. Couldn’t have happened against a nicer team / fanbase (if any of their ‘fans’ were watching).

    I can’t lie though, it would’ve been entertaining to me to see how badly some folks got eviscerated on here after guaranteeing victory this week, calling other people crazy for thinking Maryland could possibly beat us, and then losing the game. I was actually thinking about this when we were down 41-14.

    Glad all parties can walk away happy 🙂

    Go Pack

  13. phillypacker 11/26/2011 at 9:09 PM #

    This is such an ambivalent game for me. The BC loss was inexcusable. We did not even show up to play Florida State. Cincinnati was a very poorly played effort. We went 5-5 against Division 1 opponents. There was no excuse for this game being the “thriller” that it was. This was a 2-9 team that had lost a host of key players on both sides of the ball. Those 42 points deserve a massive asterisk because Maryland’s defense was gassed before the second half even started. They played so many freshmen, they had no business being in this game with us. Temple, let me say that again, Temple an average MAC school, beat Maryland 38-7 when they (Maryland) were much healthier.

    I remember way back when many of the BC fans were happy to see TOB go and I thought that was totally sour grapes. I don’t think it was. He and his crew will show up to coach some games and then other times they won’t, then blame the players or blame injuries even well after injuries should not continue to be an excuse.

    I feel like I am channeling Noah by writing these things so go ahead and hate on me, whatever, but the ceiling is low for TOB. The BC fans were saying he would never rise above mediocrity. He would never pull things together to have a consistently good football team and win 9, 10 games a years. Instead there would be the dropped games, the no-show games, as we have seen.

    I hate to see us have this kind of football team going into future years. Did anybody see the first 3 quarters of this game? We were getting ass-kicked by a terrible football team. In the 12th game of the year, when everyone or most everyone was healthy? Shouldn’t our offense/defense be jelled by now? And we played like crap? OK, heroic comeback, all kudos to the players, but I am sad to see TOB save his job. I worry about being condemned to mediocrity when excellence was there for the taking. (I am accounting for early season injuries in every thing I am saying. But, just as one example, we had a six-man offensive line that could not keep 3 down linemen from sacking or harassing Glennon for the most of the game. I mean, how the hell?)

  14. nav 11/26/2011 at 9:14 PM #

    ^ditto to HPWolf

  15. LRM 11/26/2011 at 9:18 PM #

    ^Only 35 in the 4th.

    The funny part was seeing a 50% capacity crowd at the end of the 3rd turn into a 75% capacity crowd by mid-4th.

  16. JEOH2 11/26/2011 at 9:21 PM #

    Phlliy, I just don’t get it…we are what are record says we are…you cannot put qualifiers on a win if you don’t do the same with a loss and vice versa…

    the Wake game makes me mad…the BC game makes me mad…not competing against UC & FSU makes me furious…

    BUT…I was impressed with our UVA win…our utter domination of UNC & Clemson…and the heart of our players/adjustments of our staff to beat Maryland…

    WHY as State fans do we have to always see the glass half-full or half-empty…and not just see it as what it is…a glass of water

    nothing more…nothing less

  17. LRM 11/26/2011 at 9:23 PM #

    ^That seems unfair to those of us that only see the glass half of the time.

  18. Wulfpack 11/26/2011 at 9:27 PM #

    The negative Nancy’s should poor a tall glass of EdsallNogg and enjoy the win. Truly amazing. Enjoy it for what it is. We could be sitting home, now we have another game to look forward to while everyone else is playing. The coaches and team deserve credit for not giving up. I’m very happy it turned out this way.

  19. MrPlywood 11/26/2011 at 9:34 PM #

    “State was completely dead early in the third quarter…”

    Correction: ALMOST completely dead… unless they are zombies

  20. wufpaxno1 11/26/2011 at 9:37 PM #

    JEOH2 that is one of the best responses that I have read here. Well said. We were never more then a 6 to 7 win team from the begining this year and we damn near, and probably should have, won 8. Just enjoy this game for what it was, very entertaining and a positive win that propels us into the post season for the second year in a row. Go Pack! Let’s get number eight in a bowl game.

  21. phillypacker 11/26/2011 at 9:49 PM #

    Wufpack, “negative nancy?” “edsallnog?” what, are you are a grandmother writing from the old folks home? Wanna crochet?

    JEOH2, OK, UNC (3-5) in conference, not that big of a deal to me. I cannot count on two hands how many years we have had a stand out game or two including beating the crap out of UNC and others and we all coast with it. UVA and Clemson games were very strong. In year 5 of a coach’s career at a school, we should be much better. If we had lost this game everyone would be seeing this whole season and the TOB legacy much, much differently.

    The glass of water is never just a glass of water. Again, engage the argument and you will be more effective. I do not think TOB et al are that much stronger of a crew than Sendek or Sydney Lowe. Time has already shown us that and will continue to show it. Take away two non-division 1 wins and we don’t have a winning season this year either. That would make 4 out of 5 years. Enjoy your mediocrity.

  22. Wulfpack 11/26/2011 at 9:56 PM #

    TOB managed to find a way to win 2 of 3 down the stretch. It wasn’t always pretty – but it goes down in the books. That’s now two consecutive bowl seasons, and of course 5 in a row over our bitter rival. If that isn’t good enough for you, then you haven’t been watching Wolfpack football very long. Couch it however you want to – in the end, the team got it done and we’re going bowling. That beats the alternative.

  23. JEOH2 11/26/2011 at 10:12 PM #

    Philly, you made an assumption regarding my position on your main point…when what I was saying has very little to do with your basic argument…

    my problem is the qualifiers people continue to use when the actual stats, facts, results are good enough to prove their particular point…

    You said “if we had lost this game…” and “take away two non-division 1 wins”

    Some other person could say “if Glennon hadn’t have thrown that pick against BC” or “take away our game where we were blown out” and it’d sound just the same to me…

    Thus the glass half full/empty analogy…and our fanbase being inundated with both sides…I just wish State fans would see things on their face more often then not…

  24. hball57 11/26/2011 at 10:22 PM #

    Sometimes I just don’t get it. We all would like to be a football power. Will we ever be? I don’t know. Unlike basketball, that is virgin territory for us. But I reject the “shouldn’t we be better” argument. We want to give credit to the BC fans for being glad TOB left? Didn’t they go to 8 bowls in a row under TOB? Can we wait until we go to 8 bowls in a row before we get fed up with TOB? Has NC State EVER gone to eight bowls in a row? Would we not be happy with that? We should, since we have never done it before.

    Perhaps we learn to enjoy the process. Look at our perennial beatdown partners in CH. They hired a big name coach to make the next step and where have they gone? Nowhere really. It may be a lot harder to get where we want to go than most of us believe. It may not be with TOB; it may be with his successor. But his leveling out our program and taking the perennial bowl game step might be the foundation for the big move.

  25. ADVENTUROO 11/26/2011 at 10:26 PM #

    We had the GK’s and daughter with us today. My wife was down in their section. She commented that the stadium looked half full, then it was beginning to fill back up like folks left the parking lot and came back in.

    I had my 8 YO GS with me. This game brought back memories of the 54 Yd FG that Penn State kicked in 1979 and we lost a heart breaker.

    Does ANYONE know the record for the longest Collegiate FG in CF?

    This season ended at 7 & 5, which is not too far off where it should have been based on the injuries. The coulda and shoulda about WF and BC is history. As TOB put it, the bad team was on the field.

    Don’t know who we will play or where, but we will be BOWLING.

    Stayed for the very end and bought every family member a souvenir at the tents.

    Great Game. Unbelievable comeback. Whether we need to critique the season and the ups and downs is not for me to do.

    I was glad to be there and witness history and have my GK’s with me. I had my son at the PSU game and still remember the agony of the defeat…or the agony of DA FOOT of Herb Menhardt (54 Yds….bounced off the upright and went through).

    GO STATE! Bowl Time again.

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