2016 Independence Bowl final score: NC State beats Vanderbilt to claim Life Championship

NC State beat Vanderbilt in the Independence Bowl on Monday, 41-17. The win brought the Wolfpack to 7-6 to finish the season, while the Commodores wrapped at 6-7.

It’s an enormous victory for NC State, because it secures the Life Championship Vanderbilt recently took from Tennessee. Vols coach Butch Jones now claims that many teams, not just Tennessee, are so-called Life Champions. But the Wolfpack are now the authentic Life Champs, and so they get this belt, to keep until their next loss:

The game was never close. NC State raced to a 28-3 lead at one point, pounding the Commodores behind a prolific night from quarterback Ryan Finley. Receiver Jaylen Samuels finished with three touchdowns and went over 100 yards.

The Wolfpack pressured Vanderbilt quarterback Kyle Shurmur, and Shurmur was never able to find any semblance of a rhythm. Neither could the VU offense, though running back Ralph Webb gave NC State his best shot and went over the century mark himself.

Vanderbilt was playing in its first bowl since 2014. Former coach James Franklin made bowls all three years he was in Nashville and won them in his last two years, but the ‘Dores backslid a little in Derek Mason’s first two seasons. This one was a nice comeback year, including the Tennessee win, another against Georgia, and a return to the postseason. Mason’s teams had gone 3-9 and 4-8 in 2014 and ‘15, and they accelerated their improvement this year. The losing result Monday doesn’t change that progress was made this season.

NC State had an up-and-down year, which included a four-game losing streak and, at turns, fans wanting to move on from head coach Dave Doeren. But the Wolfpack put themselves together in the last few weeks and got themselves eligible for a bowl. They’ve now played in one three years in a row, with their last miss a 3-9 campaign in Doeren’s first year after replacing Tom O’Brien. And they managed a win against a team that, while not superb, has been competitive.

That’s an awfully good way to head into the offseason. More importantly, they’ll get the Life Championship belt for the better part of a year.