Second-Half Surge Sparks Demon Deacons to 38-14 Win Over Big Four Rival NC State

Saturday, October 10

Raleigh, NC

12 p.m.

Wake Forest University

5-1 , 3-1

NC State

3-3 , 1-2

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Wake Forest	7	3	21	7	38
NC State	7	7	0	0	14

PDF Box Score Postgame Notes

Second-Half Surge Sparks Demon Deacons to 38-14 Win Over Big Four Rival NC State

10/10/2026 4:42:00 PM | Football

Box Score

The Deacs outscored the Wolfpack 28-0 in the second half on Saturday afternoon as quarterback Gio Lopez totaled four touchdowns including three in the third quarter.

By: Stephen Czarda & KJ Smith

RALEIGH, N.C. – Powered by a dominant second half performance, the Wake Forest football team (5-1, 3-1 ACC) routed Big Four rival NC State (3-3, 1-2 ACC) by a final score of 38-14 on Saturday afternoon at Carter-Finley Stadium.

After entering the halftime locker room trailing 14-10, the Demon Deacons outscored the Wolfpack 28-0 in the second half. Overall, the Deacs totaled 265 yards of offense while allowing the Wolfpack to only 63 yards over the final 30 minutes.

Quarterback Gio Lopez continued his stellar start to the season as he finished the game going 26-of-33 for 303 yards and three touchdown passes, as well as a touchdown on the ground. Lopez was dominant down the stretch, completing his final 13 passes for 184 yards.

Wide receivers Carlos Hernandez and Jack Foley both shined for the Deacs as they both eclipsed 100-yards receiving on Saturday. Foley led the Deacs with eight receptions for a career-high 156 yards and a touchdown, while Hernandez added a career-high 12 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown.

This marks the first time a pair of Wake Forest wide receivers logged 100 yards receiving in the same game since Nov. 6, 2021, when A.T. Perry and Jaquarii Roberson did so against North Carolina.

Elsewhere, running back Deuce Lawrence logged 46 yards and a rushing touchdown, while tight end Matthew Lusardi notched his first career reception and his first career touchdown to open the scoring.

Defensively, the Demon Deacons were led by defensive lineman Langston Hardy, who tallied eight tackles with four solo efforts, two tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks against NC State. Linebacker Vincent Firenze also recorded another solid performance on Saturday as he finished the game with eight tackles with four solo tackles, as well as a forced fumble on the first possession of the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Demon Deacons forced a turnover on the Wolfpack's opening possession as linebacker Vincent Firenze forced a fumble on third down that was scooped up by defensive back Braylon Johnson and returned to the two-yard line.
- The Deacs capitalized two plays later as quarterback Gio Lopez found tight end Matthew Lusardi from a yard out to give Wake Forest a 7-0 lead.
NC State tied the game at 7-7 at the 8:17 mark in the first quarter.
The Wolfpack took a 14-7 lead with 9:42 remaining in the second quarter.
The Deacs headed into halftime trailing 14-10 as kicker Connor Calvert converted on a 23-yard field goal as time expired in the first half.
Wake Forest marched down the field on the opening possession of the second half to take a 17-14 lead as Lopez connected with wide receiver Carlos Hernandez on a six-yard strike.
- Hernandez caught four passes for 54 yards on the drive.
After the defense forced a three-and-out, the Demon Deacons extended its lead to 24-14 at the 7:29 mark in the third quarter, as Lopez found wide receiver Jack Foley from 10 yards out for his third touchdown pass of the afternoon.
Lopez kept it himself from one-yard out to extend the lead to 17 points with 2:27 left in the third.
Wake Forest pushed its lead to 38-14 as running back Deuce Lawrence strolled into the endzone on a 17-yard rushing touchdown at the 11:24 mark in the fourth quarter.
The Demon Deacons defeated the Wolfpack, 38-14.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Quarterback Gio Lopez finished Saturday's game with 313 yards (303 passing, 10 rushing) along with four total touchdowns.
Through six games, the Madison, Ala., native is also one of only six active quarterbacks in the country with 15 or more total touchdowns to just one turnover.

Quarterbacks With 15+ Total Touchdowns, One Or Fewer Turnovers

Player	School	Total TDs	Interceptions	Fumbles Lost
Gio Lopez	Wake Forest	20	1	0
Josh Hoover	Indiana	18	0	0
Darian Mensah	Miami	17	0	0
Connor Weigman	Houston	17	1	0
Lincoln Keinholz	Louisville	15	1	0
Julian Sayin	Ohio State	15	1	0

STAGGERING STATISTIC

With the victory, Wake Forest is now one of just two programs to win three Power 4 road games through the conclusion of the 12 p.m. window alongside Miami.

Date	Opponent	Location	Score
Oct. 10, 2026	NC State	Raleigh, N.C.	38-14
Sept. 26, 2026	No. 16 Louisville	Louisville, Ky.	30-27
Sept. 12, 2026	Purdue	West Lafayette, Ind.	38-36 (2OT)

FROM COACH DICKERT
"I'm really proud of our whole football program. The celebration in that locker room is pretty special. Going on the road in the ACC and to play that dominant in the second half is incredible. We challenged them at halftime. I thought we lacked a little intensity coming out the gate. NC State was beating us on the line of scrimmage. I thought our offensive line responded to that. Our run game came to life. I think Gio Lopez is that guy. He only had one incompletion in the second half. He's a hell of a leader. Our defense continues to find ways to be dominant, especially in the second half. Credit to our players, our coaching staff and our entire program. In year two, to have that type of performance against a 14-year program is important to us. It's important in our recruiting in taking this thing to the next step."

UP NEXT
Wake Forest will return to road action next Saturday, facing Cal in the first-ever matchup between the two schools at California Memorial Stadium. The game will kick-off at 10:30 p.m. PST/7:30 p.m. EST and be televised nationally on either ESPN or ESPN2.