Wolfpack Unable to Get Past Stanford - NC State University Athletics

Friday, October 23

Stanford, CA

10:30 PM

NC State

3-4 , 1-3

Stanford

4-4 , 2-3

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
NC State	7	7	0	14	28
Stanford	14	7	7	3	31

Game Book

10/24/2026 2:15:00 AM | Football

Box Score

Stanford, CA. – In the Wolfpack's first-ever trip to Stanford, NC State wasn't able to stop the Cardinal offense, which put up nearly 500 yards as the Wolfpack fell 31-28 Friday night.

Despite coming back from an early 14-0 deficit and tying the game in the second quarter, the hosts scored 14 unanswered points to pull away from NC State, which scored only twice in the second half.

Quarterback CJ Bailey finished 17-30 for 256 yards with two touchdowns and a team-leading 59 yards on the ground.

Sophomore running back Deandre Desinor broke the ice for the NC State offense, grabbing a ball between double coverage before running it the rest of the way for a 58-yard touchdown. The score was the first of his career and topped his previous longest catch of just five yards.

Keenan Jackson caught the other Bailey touchdown pass for the junior's team-leading sixth of the season.

Short-yardage specialist Will Wilson scored on a pair of two-yard touchdown plunges to tie the program record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, now even with Scott Smith, who set the record at 18 in 1979 while winning the ACC Championship. Wilson currently has eight on the season, two shy of last year's campaign.

Junior running back Davion Gause continued to get the bulk of the carries, with Duke Scott still recovering from an injury. The transfer finished with 15 carries for 49 yards and 51 yards through the air, 47 of which came after the catch.

The NC State defense especially struggled to stop the run, allowing Micah Ford to rush for 150 yards on 22 attempts, the most by any player against the Pack this season, despite all four of the Cardinal touchdowns coming through the air.

Junior defensive back Ronnie Royal III led the Pack in tackles, finishing with ten, tying his personal best against Notre Dame last season. Freshman Elijah Satchell recorded the Wolfpack's lone sack of the night, matching the team lead at four.

The Cardinal offense started the contest with a long field, taking the kickoff to just their own 16-yard line. It didn't stop them from getting on the board first; they marched down the field in 11 plays, converting on both third-down opportunities before throwing it in from eight yards out.

A quick Wolfpack punt gave Stanford another long field; they marched again, capping off consecutive drives with a touchdown pass, this time from 17 yards out, to give the Cardinal an early 14-point lead.

The Pack offense found life on the next possession with a 58-yard receiving touchdown from Desinor.

The Wolfpack defense made their first stand of the night, snuffing out a screen pass behind the line of scrimmage on Stanford 4th-and-20 attempt at the NC State 34-yard line.

After trading punts, the Pack evened the score at 14 behind a Wilson touchdown run from two yards away – set up by a 23-yard Bailey run on the previous play.

Stanford finished the half with a touchdown, going 90 yards in just 1:29 to take a 14-21 halftime lead. It marked the second time this season the Wolfpack has trailed going into the break and is now 1-1 when they do.

The Cardinal offense continued to thrive to start the second half, taking on another long field and going 84 yards to re-extend their lead to 14.

The NC State offense responded with Wilson's second rushing touchdown of the night to make it 21-28 on the first play of the final period. The play capped off an 18-play, 86-yard drive that spanned over nine minutes. Bailey found Snow on a crucial fourth-and-one, extending the drive.

Stanford brought it back to a two-score game with a 31-yard field goal with eight minutes remaining.

Bailey found Keenan Jackson for a 16-yard touchdown pass before failing to recover an onside kick, ending the scoring.

The NC State loss moves the all-time series to 1-1. The Wolfpack will next face California at home on Saturday, October 31st for homecoming, with kickoff set for noon and on the ACC Network.