Samuels had six catches for 104 yards and three touchdowns. (Getty) North Carolina State wide receiver Jaylen Samuels is now the answer to an Independence Bowl trivia question.
Samuels set an Independence Bowl record with three touchdown catches in NC State’s 41-17 win over Vanderbilt. He finished with six catches for 104 yards and two of his touchdown catches came on screen passes, including a 55-yard catch and run that put the Wolfpack up 14-3.
Vanderbilt got within 28-17 in the fourth quarter, but the two-score deficit was erased within seconds as Nyheim Hines returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and gave NC State a 35-17 lead with 10:21 left.
The Vanderbilt offense was woeful in the first half and couldn’t get into any sort of rhythm. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur threw three picks and averaged less than four yards a pass attempt as the Commodores were 6-18 on third down. Shurmur’s last interception came on the final play of the game and, fittingly, was returned for a touchdown.
Before Samuels set an Independence Bowl record, the best part of Monday’s game might have been NC State coach Dave Doeren spending his halftime interview with ESPN complaining about a lack of holding calls being called on Vanderbilt.
In the interest of fairness, we’ll point out that officials clearly missed a fumble by NC State running back Matt Dayes near the Vanderbilt end zone, though the gaffe ultimately didn’t matter. After NC State retained possession, the Wolfpack went for the end zone on fourth down and failed, which gave the ball back to Vanderbilt.

The win means NC State has a third-straight winning season at 7-6. Vanderbilt, in its first bowl game under head coach Derek Mason — who was dressed in long sleeves and a heavy vest at kickoff when the temperature was at 80 degrees — finishes 6-7.
– – – – – – –
Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
Follow @NickBromberg