What they’re saying after NC State’s fifth straight win over UNC

They walked into Carter-Finley Stadium with a new coach, one with a Hall-of-Fame resume, armed with a roster that was green to the rivalry. Having Bill Belichick on the sideline didn’t seem to matter with NC State earning its fifth straight win over UNC in a 42-19 victory Saturday night.

Here is what those who covered the game, including TheWolfpacker.com, are saying about the Pack’s blowout win.

Noah Fleischman, The Wolfpacker — How NC State freshman QB Will Wilson became the X-Factor in dominant win over UNC

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound bruising ball carrier posted 12 carries for 54 yards and the four touchdowns. He moved the chains six times with his legs, including an eye-popping 3-of-3 on fourth down. NC State posted five touchdown drives that went at least 75 yards, and Wilson had a hand in all of them. 

Wilson’s ability to run was something the Wolfpack noted in the recruiting process — he had 1,114 rushing yards as a senior at Columbia (S.C.) Richland Northeast — and the team built a unique package to take advantage of that. NC State knew he was strong enough to handle teams knowing his play is to run, but watching it all come together has been a welcomed sight. 

Just ask starting quarterback CJ Bailey, who threw for 201 yards and two touchdowns on 21-of-30 passing with another 65 rushing yards on eight attempts.

“I’m already getting ready for the next play when it comes to short-yardage because I already know he’s going to go get the first down,” Bailey said. “My mindset is as soon as he goes in, I don’t worry about anything else but the next play because I already know what’s going to happen. He might score. Will has been a great asset for us. Our short-yardage has been really great. … I just applaud the offensive line, they did their job.”

Wilson’s role has been confined to being the short-yardage thumper that the Wolfpack running back room didn’t have this fall. He rose to the occasion all season with his skill set being deployed in critical situations, racking up 23 first downs with an 8-of-8 showing on fourth-down conversions and nine rushing touchdowns in his first season of college football.

The sustained success seemed to carry over into the regular season finale. Wilson hasn’t logged a first down or touchdown on just seven of his attempts this season, making his package one of NC State’s most-consistent parts of its offense this fall.

Jacey Zembal, The Wolfpacker — NC State wins battle in trenches in dominating UNC

The team that has won the rushing battle has ended up winning the game in 10 of the last 13 meetings since NCSU coach Dave Doeren took over in 2013. Doeren improved to 9-4 all-time against the Tar Heels, including the last five years.

“We asked them to be the most physical team in the stadium, and it was very clear that we were,” Doeren said. “We needed to put our hands in the dirt and get after them up front on both sides of the football.

“When you play well on the O-Line and you play well on the D-Line, good things happen. And that’s what happened. They couldn’t run the football.”

Brian Murphy, WRAL — ‘Losing to them is unacceptable’: NC State dominates UNC for fifth straight rivalry win, ends Belichick’s first season

Doeren, who is expected to return for another season in Raleigh, improved to 9-4 all-time against the Tar Heels.

“To me, losing to them is unacceptable,” Doeren said. “And I take a lot of pride in that rivalry game. Nine wins out of 13, 8 out of 10, that sounds pretty good. Feels good, sounds good.”

NC State (7-5) is headed to a bowl game for the sixth consecutive season. The Wolfpack continued their excellence in the rivalry, having won 14 of 19 since 2007 and 17 of 26 since 2000. The five straight wins in the rivalry are tied for the longest streak by NC State.

Doeren said he was motivated to coach against Belichick, who is up for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and has a claim to the title of best NFL coach of all time.

“There was a pep in my step this week for sure,” Doeren said. “I wanted that win. The competitive part of me against him. It’s very meaningful to get a win against a coach of his status. That guy is one of the top five NFL coaches of all time. You could argue he’s the best NFL coach of all time. It means a lot.”

Belichick, who won six Super Bowl titles as head coach of the NFL’s New England Patriots, ended his first season in Chapel Hill at 4-8. Belichick’s hire brought unprecedented attention to the UNC program, which sold out its home schedule over the summer and attracted headlines throughout the year, but it didn’t translate into victories for a program that brought in 70 new players and never seemed to click.

Jadyn Watson-Fisher, News & Observer — How Will Wilson’s historic performance lifted NC State over North Carolina

Bailey and Fordham said Wilson’s production and consistency is one thing the team doesn’t have to worry about in games. When Wilson goes in, the sophomore QB is on the sideline getting ready for whatever comes next. Bailey, specifically, is already preparing for the next play.

The team knows it’s almost always getting the first down or the touchdown. It has that much trust. 

“Dude’s hard to stop in those short-yardage situations,” Fordham said. “They’re huge plays in the game. Fourth-down conversions win ball games. It’s awesome to have that on our side and be able to use that tool.” 

Bailey said he loves seeing players be great, and Wilson deserves every bit of praise. He put in effort behind the scenes to get to this point, pushing everyone in the quarterback room to be their best selves.

Aaron Beard, Associated Press — Wilson runs for 4 TDs as NC State beats UNC 42-19, winning rivalry game for 5th straight year

Short-yardage quarterback Will Wilson ran for four touchdowns while starter C.J. Bailey threw two scoring passes as N.C. State blew out rival North Carolina 42-19 on Saturday night, ending NFL icon Bill Belichick’s first college season with the Tar Heels.

Wilson ran for 54 yards and had a 15-yard pile-moving score in the third quarter for the Wolfpack (7-5, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who scored touchdowns on all four first-half drives to firmly take control of this one.

That prompted Bailey to crash Wilson’s postgame news conference with reporters.

“The GOAT!” Bailey yelled, an acronym meaning “Greatest of all time,” as he threw his arm around a chuckling Wilson. “Four touchdowns!”

Jeremiah Holloway, Inside Carolina — What Now? Offseason Begins As Calamitous First Year For Bill Belichick Ends

Red LED lights covered Bill Belichick as he swiftly left the field inside Carter-Finley Stadium, with chancellor Lee Roberts and athletic director-in-waiting Steve Newmark not too far behind.

Belichick’s Tar Heels suffered their eighth loss of the season to N.C. State on Saturday, 42-19, at the hands of the Wolfpack, ending his first season — a severely underwhelming one — as a collegiate head coach. Less than 15 minutes later, Belichick stood before a microphone and fielded questions inside a crammed room near the visiting locker room.

Many of the questions focused on what went wrong this season, what he learned in his first year as a college coach, and what his next steps going into the offseason.

He wasn’t in a reflective mood.

“The season just ended like a few minutes ago,” an agitated Belichick said. “And so now we’re going to move into the offseason. That’s what we’re going to do.

“We’ve been trying to work on NC State. The week before that, we worked on Duke. Before that, worked on Wake Forest. Week before that, work on Stanford. Week before that, we’re on Syracuse. That’s what we’ve been doing, working on a team every week. I haven’t started on the season recap for you. We haven’t done it.”

The 2025 season won’t be an easy one to stomach when looking at it in totality. A year that was supposed to propel North Carolina forward resulted in a sizable step back for the program.