RALEIGH – For nearly 90 minutes Friday night, lightning managed to do something Richmond could not: stop NC State.
Even that proved temporary.
The Wolfpack overwhelmed the Spiders from the opening minutes at Carter-Finley Stadium, weathered a lengthy lightning delay during the second quarter and returned to finish a dominant 73-0 victory Friday night.
NC State amassed 734 yards of total offense while limiting Richmond to just 110, turning a game interrupted by Mother Nature into a showcase for virtually every corner of the Wolfpack roster. NC State rushed for 428 yards, averaged 10.6 yards per offensive play and finished with 31 first downs compared with Richmond's six.
The rout began quickly.
Davion Gause put the Wolfpack ahead with a 19-yard touchdown run less than four minutes into the game. Just 37 seconds of game time later, Jayden “Duke” Scott broke loose for a 65-yard touchdown, giving NC State a 14-0 advantage.
Scott struck again late in the opening quarter, scoring from seven yards out to make it 21-0.
The Wolfpack needed little time to extend that advantage in the second. Quarterback CJ Bailey capped a five-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, pushing NC State's lead to 28-0 with 11:33 remaining.
Then the game stopped.
Lightning in the area forced the teams off the field and sent the game into a delay that stretched for nearly an hour and a half. A night that had begun with NC State scoring four touchdowns in barely more than a quarter suddenly became a waiting game.
When the teams finally returned, however, the interruption had done little to change the direction of the contest.
NC State scored three more touchdowns before the second quarter ended.
Freshman quarterback Will Wilson scored on a 1-yard run with 8:30 remaining. Bailey then connected with Preston Douglas for a 15-yard touchdown with 6:23 to play, and Wilson added another 1-yard scoring run with just 24 seconds remaining.
By the time the second quarter finally ended, the Wolfpack led 49-0.
After already spending nearly 90 minutes off the field because of the weather, the teams did not head back to the locker rooms for a conventional halftime. Instead, they took only a three-minute break before beginning the third quarter.
The unusual schedule did nothing to slow NC State.
Wilson added his third rushing touchdown of the night early in the third quarter, scoring from five yards out to make it 56-0. He later threw his first touchdown pass, finding Hunter Provience for a 3-yard score with 4:12 remaining in the period.
NC State carried a 63-0 lead into the fourth quarter.
Kanoah Vinesett added a 45-yard field goal with 6:31 remaining before Dylan McCoy provided the final points with a 51-yard touchdown run with 1:49 to play. The score completed a night in which NC State produced eight rushing touchdowns and two through the air.
Scott led the Wolfpack rushing attack with 128 yards and two touchdowns on only nine carries, averaging 14.2 yards per attempt. McCoy added 73 yards on four carries, while Wilson rushed for 62 yards and three scores.
Bailey did most of his damage through the air, completing 13 of 17 passes for 281 yards and a touchdown. Keenan Jackson was his leading target, catching four passes for 123 yards, including a 54-yard reception.
The Wolfpack defense was every bit as dominant.
Richmond managed only 34 rushing yards and 76 passing yards, averaged 2.2 yards per play and converted just two of 13 third-down opportunities. The Spiders never reached the red zone and punted nine times. NC State, meanwhile, scored on all eight of its trips inside the Richmond 20.
Richmond running back Warrick Stephenson accounted for 58 of the Spiders' 34 net rushing yards, while quarterbacks Jack Callaghan and Ashten Snelsire combined to complete eight of 27 passes for 76 yards and an interception.
The game began at 7:03 p.m. and did not end until 11:51, stretching to an elapsed time of four hours and 47 minutes. An announced crowd of 56,919 watched a contest that included a weather delay, an almost nonexistent halftime and one of the most lopsided performances possible on a football field.
Lightning may have interrupted NC State's momentum Friday night.
It never took it away.
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