NC State did everything it could against Richmond to wipe away the heavy stench of losing to Virginia in Week 0. 

In doing so, State scored 73 points and pitched a shutout.

They also rushed for 428 yards as a team while posting 734 total yards of offense. 

“All the things we wanted to do, we did in that football game,” Head Coach Dave Doeren said on Monday. 

Everything finally came together. 

“I love the way that we started the game with a completion, with an explosive run, very effective on third down on both sides of the football,” Doeren said. “We had eight three-and-outs on defense and two takeaways, played much tighter coverage, contested coverage, rushed landing integrity, our leverage on the football, our rushing defense.”

It was a record-setting effort and a necessary step in this team’s evolution. 

Now NC State sets its focus on a Vanderbilt team that has won 9 straight at home. 

“You're playing a 10-win team in their stadium, and arguably the best team in program history there last year, so you're getting them at their peak.”

Commodores Head Coach Clark Lea is coming off his best season in Nashville since he arrived in 2021. 

Doeren said it best: “It’s a great test, and we look forward to the opportunity to compete against them.”  

Vanderbilt saw the departure of its Heisman runner-up Diego Pavia (QB) at the end of last season. 

Pavia was a big reason why the Commodores were so successful. 

Clark hasn’t settled on a new full-time starter, but he’s used the team’s two FCS games this season to test out Blaze Berlowitz and Jared Curtis.

All indications point to Curtis, who accounted for three touchdowns and gave Vandy a 21-point comeback win over Delaware, but Clark hasn’t made it official yet. 

In many ways, this game will be a measuring stick for both teams. 

However, I would argue that NC State needs this win more. 

The loss to Virginia was disappointing, but a loss to Vanderbilt would be devastating. It shatters hope that NC State is capable of finally exceeding expectations. 

Vandy’s success last season should be viewed more as an anomaly. 

They are not a football power. The Commodores have historically been a basement dweller in the SEC. 

If NC State shows up to this game as they did against Richmond, there will be no doubt. 

“For us, it's building on what we just did and learning from what happened in the first game, seeing the improvement in the second, and then continuing with better competition to be able to go out and play well and put ourselves in position to win this next football game,” Doeren said. 

State fans must keep hope alive that NC State can place the next building block this weekend.