NC State quarterback CJ Bailey met with the media Wednesday for the first time since his role in the Wolfpack's gut-wrenching loss to Vanderbilt, a game that unraveled after NC State controlled it from the start.
With a few days to process the unthinkable finish, Bailey smiled while answering the first question and maintained a level-headed demeanor while facing questions about the final play.
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After deactivating his Instagram account in the hours following the 35-31 defeat, Bailey said he's been "waking up on the right side of the bed, feeling good" and taking in reassurance from teammates and others inside the program.
"The last several days have been good," Bailey said. "Everybody in the facility - they've been leaning on me; I've been showing up."
On Saturday, the Wolfpack led 24-7 at one point and held the lead for 56 minutes and 5 seconds of game time. NC State appeared headed toward its first road win against an SEC team since 1977.
But all anyone will remember is the final play.
On fourth down, with six seconds remaining and the Wolfpack holding a 31-28 lead from its own 2-yard line, Bailey took the snap and drifted to his right in an effort to run out the clock. He was tackled from behind, and two other Vanderbilt defenders joined the play, knocking the ball loose. Vanderbilt's Cayden Daniels recovered it in the end zone, sending the Commodores and what remained of the home crowd into a frenzy.
Bailey was not made available to reporters immediately after the game, but spoke candidly about the miscue Wednesday after having a few days to process it.
"Like coach [Dave] Doeren said, we worked on the play a couple of times, but never in that situation," Bailey said. "You know, it didn't go the right way I wanted it to and I fumbled the ball. It is what it is. We got to move forward."
The disastrous finish became one of football's biggest talking points over the weekend, with commentators expressing disbelief. The play even drew discussion on CBS's "The NFL Today" pregame show and was the subject of a Wall Street Journal article.
An NC State Athletics representative told WRAL that former NC State star Philip Rivers and NFL legends Peyton Manning and Eli Manning reached out to Bailey to offer their support.
“I was just trying to draw all the clock out," Bailey said. "The biggest thing was just hold the ball. That was the biggest thing. I was just trying to run around, make a play ... I’m a competitive guy, and I was just competing until the final second. ... It happens, you know ... I'm going to pick my stuff up and keep going.”
Now, the Wolfpack's attention turns to Appalachian State, which comes to Carter-Finley Stadium for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday. The Wolfpack and Mountaineers haven't played since 2006. NC State has won all six all-time meetings.
"It's always tough when you lose a game — especially that way," Bailey said. "So I just got up in the locker room and, you know, there's a lot of emotions, but, you know, we moved forward. We move on to the next day coming in with a better mindset."
On Monday, Doeren said the Wolfpack has practiced those types of late-game situations every Friday for 14 years.
“We decided as a staff to take a safety, and the plan was to take a safety play that allows us to also milk the clock,” Doeren said. “That play is designed to allow the quarterback to roll to his right, milk the clock until people get near him and then fall down and not take contact. And obviously that’s not what happened.”
Doeren said the responsibility for the failed play did not fall on Bailey alone.
“CJ takes ownership. I take ownership. [Offensive coordinator] Kurt Roper takes ownership. We take ownership,” Doeren said. “It’s a terrible way to end a football game that you controlled and so there was a lot of pain in that locker room after the game and a lot of anger. I know the fans feel the same way.”
