RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — N.C. State has fired men’s basketball coach Kevin Keatts. That marks an abrupt end to an eight-year tenure and comes less than a year after the Wolfpack’s improbable run to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship and the Final Four. The school announced the move Sunday, a day after the Wolfpack closed a 12-19 season.… Continue Reading
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Hollywood Smothers slipped through the middle of the line for a 2-yard touchdown with 25 seconds left to help N.C. State beat rival North Carolina 35-30 on Saturday night in the Tar Heels’ final game under Mack Brown. Smothers’ short TD run capped the go-ahead 75-yard drive that pushed the Wolfpack to bowl eligibility. That capped a wild finish that saw the Tar Heels take a 30-29 lead on Omarion Hampton’s 47-yard catch and run to the end zone with 1:51 left. Hampton ran for 185 yards and a touchdown to go with four catches for 78 yards.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Hollywood Smothers and Jordan Waters each rushed for two touchdowns, and quarterback CJ Bailey added three more while being nearly perfect through the air as North Carolina State crushed Stanford 59-28. Bailey, who took over the starting job in midseason after Grayson McCall retired because of head injuries, completed 18 of 20 passes for 234 yards. The Wolfpack ended a two-game home losing streak while handing Stanford its sixth consecutive defeat. North Carolina State scored three touchdowns on four plays, capped by Waters’ 94-yard run that was the second-longest rushing TD in school history. Stanford also lost quarterback Ashton Daniels to injury.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina State quarterback Grayson McCall has announced his retirement from football less than three weeks after a vicious hit knocked him out of a game for the second time this season. McCall was a sixth-year player who was a graduate transfer following five seasons at Coastal Carolina, where he threw for more than 10,000 yards and 88 touchdowns, but also had concussion issues. McCall was knocked out of the Sept. 14 game against Louisiana Tech and in his first game back left on a cart after taking a helmet-jarring hit in the first quarter against Wake Forest on Oct. 5.… Continue Reading
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — CJ Bailey scored on the ground and through the air as North Carolina State defeated visiting Northern Illinois 24-17 at Carter-Finley Stadium. Bailey, a true freshman making his second start for the Wolfpack, completed 13 of 20 passes for 108 yards. He supported a strong defensive effort from N.C. State that forced NIU into four crucial turnovers. Antario Brown paced the Huskies with 114 yards rushing on 28 carries. DK Kaufman scored on a defensive touchdown for N.C. State when he recovered a fumble in the second quarter.… Continue Reading
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Cade Klubnik threw for three touchdowns and added a 55-yard scoring run as No. 21 Clemson continued its offensive revival with a 59-35 victory over NC State to start Atlantic Coast Conference play Saturday. Klubnik and the Tigers scored eight first-half touchdowns in a 66-20 victory over Appalachian State two weeks ago. This time, Clemson had six first-half TDs and led the Wolfpack 45-7 by halftime. It was Clemson’s 800th victory in program history, the first ACC team to reach that mark.… Continue Reading