NC State's Bam Knight Blazes For 46-Yd Touchdown | ACC Must See Moment

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) Ricky Person Jr. scored three first-half touchdowns and was one of two NC State players to run for more than 100 yards in the Wolfpack's 45-0 season-opening win against South Florida.

It marked the Wolfpack's first season-opening shutout victory in 17 years.

Person had a 33-yard TD catch from Devin Leary on a perfectly executed wheel route on the Wolfpack's first drive, then scored a pair of 11-yard runs in the second quarter for a 24-0 halftime lead.

It marked the second straight year that Person opened the season with a multi-TD game, and he went on to finish with 105 of his 148 total yards on the ground.

Fellow back Zonovan Knight ran for 163 yards and a 46-yard touchdown, part of a 293-yard rushing day in a dominating performance by NC State to start coach Dave Doeren's ninth season in Raleigh.

The Wolfpack also had a solid return from Devin Leary, who was playing for the first time since going down with a broken leg last October. Leary completed 17 of 26 passes for 232 yards and two scores, with his main mistake being an underthrown ball for an interception that could've been a touchdown.

NC State had little else go wrong, from the offense rolling right along to the defense making everything difficult for USF and picking off three passes.

That had second-year coach Jeff Scott pulling starter Cade Fortin - a transfer from Wolfpack rival North Carolina - for Timmy McClain before halftime in search of a spark. It didn't work, with McClain throwing a pair of deep-in-Wolfpack-territory interceptions before Fortin returned early in the third quarter.

By the end, USF had managed most of its 271 yards after the outcome was long decided, with Fortin completing 7 of 20 passes for 41 yards and a fourth-quarter interception.

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NC State: The Wolfpack will face an SEC opponent on the road, visiting Mississippi State on Sept. 11.