NC State’s Nick McCloud couldn’t have known something was wrong when the punt returner turned his back and planted his foot in the painted grass. Under normal circumstances, the motion would have been a display of doomed arrogance and empty panache. He or Stephen Morrison, both gunners, would have corralled the troublemaker and trotted back to the sideline. The first quarter would have gone on, and the no. 20 NC State Wolfpack might have built on their lead over the no. 4 Clemson Tigers.
These circumstances, however, were not normal. McCloud’s own name and number were stitched into the returner’s jersey, orange print on white cloth.