North Carolina State University Athletics
O'Cain Talks About Duke
10/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Football
On the loss of another starting wide receiver: "I don't think I have ever been through anything like this. It was a position that we didn't need to get anybody hurt, and now we've lost two receivers in two weeks. You not only lose your best two receivers from a playing standpoint, but you lose that comfort and that leadership that they bring to the other three receivers. They make those other receivers better because they can help them with all the little things, you just don't learn that position in seven games there are a lot of things that go into playing wide receiver. It was a real scramble this past Saturday with losing Ryan (Hamrick) that early in the game, but that is just some of the adversity you have to overcome."
On Eric Leak moving back to wide receiver: "We are going to move Eric Leak back to receiver. Obviously he does bring some experience to the position because he did play the position for a couple of years, but since not having been there since last December a lot of it has to be refreshed quite a bit. Him just not catching the football is the biggest thing that he has not been doing since not lining up there."
On any concerns about the offense: "I think I might be frustrated with all the adversity that we have had to overcome on offense. I understand that injuries are just part of the game, you just have to fight through it and live with it and its going to make us better down the road. It's a tremendous challenge for us."
On Saturday's game versus Virginia: "If you would have told me before the game that we would lose Ryan Hamrick on the third play of the game and still score 26 points, I would not have believed it. It is just a tribute to the way our players responded, our staff in getting the right things called because we were limited in the things that we could do, and other than that 10 minutes (in the third quarter) we played pretty good football. We didn't make plays at those critical times that we needed to, to win the game."
On simplifying the offense for this week's game: "I don't know how much we will simplify the offense for this week, we are still planning but I think we will probably take 25-40 percent less than that of what we normally take."
On Duke: "I see from an offensive standpoint that they are playing with a lot more confidence. I think earlier they might have been overthrowing or under throwing the ball, but now they are making those catches and making those throws. They played really well this past Saturday. Their offensive line did a good job of protecting, and they are running the ball enough where you can't just load up on the pass. They are 1-5, but they are going through some growing pains and a system change. Now they are beginning to execute that system, and defensively they have played very well the whole time."
