Wake Forest 34, N.C. State 27

Perhaps N.C. State's escape of Liberty was more of an indication of how this season will play out than Wolfpack fans would like. Unlike last week, though, the defense didn't do enough to bail the offense out, and State opened its ACC schedule with a road loss.

The Wolfpack was without its three best pass rushers: J.R. Sweezy, Jeff Rieskamp and Thomas Teal are all injured. But N.C. State lost because of a lack of discipline, not because of injuries.

And Wake Forest simply avoided its Week 1 problem as opposed to solving it.

First, though, we'll get to N.C. State.

Crossed wires

Wake Forest killed the 'Pack with crossing patterns all afternoon. N.C. State, for whatever reason, couldn't adapt to the Demon Deacons' passing game, which was fairly unimaginative. But can you blame Wake Forest? They ran what worked until N.C. State showed they could stop it, and they never did.

Situation: Wake Forest ball at N.C. State's 31. Third and eight, 0-0 with 10:51 left in the first quarter.

Play: The Demon Deacons come set in shotgun with two backs and three receivers, and N.C. State counters with dime. Both backs stay back in blitz protection, but neither of them is needed because the offensive line plays it so well.

The 'Pack saw something on film that made them go after Wake right tackle Doug Weaver. Repeatedly, N.C. State sent blitzes Weaver's way. This time, they send safety Dontae Johnson. They got to Weaver for two sacks on the day, but on his first test, Weaver plays it beautifully: He forces Johnson so far to the edge that he's essentially out of the play.

Result: In blitzing Johnson, N.C. State dropped both ends into coverage, but Deacon receiver Michael Campanaro's route was too far down field for the ends to change the outcome. Price, with ample time, spots Campanaro. State blows all four chances to tackle Campanaro, who walks in for a touchdown.

Situation: Wake Forest ball at its own 46. Second and three, 7-0 Wake Forest with 5:28 left in the first quarter.

Play: Wake opens in shotgun with four wide receivers, but Price sends the running back in motion – there is now an empty backfield. The 'Pack plays nickel, but stays in its defense after the motion.

Result: N.C. State plays a Cover Two zone, but leaves the middle of the field wide open for Campanaro, Wake's best skill player. How did that happen? Great question. Camparano has nearly 20 yards before he's even touched, and Wake kicks a field goal later in the drive.

Bait-and-switch

The Demon Deacons' play-calling was astute, particularly in the first half. One seemingly meaningless play showed Wake something that led to a touchdown.

Situation: Wake Forest ball at its own 44. First and ten, 0-0 on the opening drive.

Play: Wake runs receiver Chris Givens in motion, then runs a reverse with him. N.C. State's left side over-pursues the ball – the ultimate goal of a reverse – and Givens runs for 12 yards and a first down.

Result: Two Wake possessions later, the Deamon Deacons run a reverse to Campanaro. This time, however, N.C. State stays put, and the safties crash to stop the reverse cold. The only problem is that Campanaro has no intention to run. He throws to Danny Dembry – who is 15 yards behind everybody – for a 40-yard touchdown.

Bad situation

N.C. State quarterback Mike Glennon was both good and bad, but he's a first-year starter. One particular instance, though, showed his inexperience and might have cost State the game.

Situation: N.C. State ball on its own 36. First and ten, 20-6 Wake Forest with 10:16 left in the third quarter.

Play: The 'Pack shows shotgun with two backs and three receivers – the formation gives them flexibility on first down. Wake stays in its base 3-4, and sends one linebacker to Glennon's right, who State easily picks up. The Deacons play a relatively elementary Cover Two zone, but Glennon doesn't – or chooses not to – adapt.

Glennon egregiously misunderstands the situation. The Wolfpack, only down 14 at this point, has plenty of time to change the outcome – more than 25 minutes. And N.C. State has a fresh three downs after its defense stopped the Demon Deacons. It's not time to panic. It would only be time to panic if Wake scores again, meaning that the Wolfpack has to protect the ball and play smart. Glennon decides before the play that he's throwing to T.J. Graham, and by God, he's going to throw to him.

Result: Glennon stares down Graham and forces the ball into the teeth of the zone, where free safety Josh Bush picks him off and runs it to State's 26. Wake scores a touchdown on the ensuing possession.

And the hits just keep on comin'

N.C. State's offense roared to life, but the team as a whole had little synergy. When one unit was working, another was screwing up.

Situation: N.C. State kickoff after scoring a touchdown. Wake Forest leads 27-13 with 1:47 left in the third quarter.

Play: Wake kick returner Merrill Noel finds that the right side of N.C. State's kickoff team is not present, and takes the ball to the Wake 48.

Result: Again, there was plenty of time, and the Wolfpack had the lead back down to 14. It had wrestled momentum back, and simply needed to hold. Instead, Wake started almost at midfield, then scored what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown four plays later.

Parting ways

N.C. State's offense scored another 14 points and had the ball in Wake Forest territory with less than two minutes remaining, but turned the ball over on downs. The fact of the matter is that State – or anybody else besides East Carolina – can't give up 34 points on the road and expect to win. Sure, the offense wasn't spectacular, but it was decent. 424 yards and 27 points should have been enough to win.

For Wake Forest, another week brought another fourth quarter comeback. They survived it against State, but weren't so lucky against Syracuse. The Demon Deacons have given up 50 points after halftime in two games. They can't keep melting down in the second half and expecting wins.