North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Learns Lessons in Tallahassee
9/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Football
NC State's football players got a break from their classroom obligations on Saturday, but that doesn't mean they didn't learn anything. These are, after all, student athletes. Playing the nations top ranked team in its stadium is the ultimate test. And while the Pack didn't come out of it with a win, it did emerge with its pride in tact.
"Even though we lost by the score we did, I think we came out of that game feeling good about ourselves-especially defensively," said NC State coach Mike O'Cain. "You go to Florida State, turn the ball over six times and only give up, in essence, 19 points, you've played pretty good defense."
25 of Florida State's 42 points came as a direct result of turnovers. The fact that Seminoles kicker Sebastian Janikowski booted five field goals is a testament to how well the NC State defense played. Florida State's high-octane offense only scored two touchdowns and had just 378 yards of total offense for the game.
Of course, it's not by design that the Wolfpack defense has been forced to play with its back to the wall through the first four games. At some point, the offense will have to start making some plays in order to relieve some of the pressure being placed on the defensive unit.
"Our offense just isn't consistent enough right now," O'Cain said during his weekly press conference on Monday. "We had too many dropped passes and we missed a couple of blitzes against Florida State."
Quarterback Jamie Barnette's inability to find a reliable receiving target other than Chris Coleman has also hampered the passing game. Coleman has 13 catches in his last two games and a total of 17 for the season. Between them, receivers Ryan Hamrick and Koren Robinson have only 13 catches in four games.
"Ryan and Koren are getting open, but a lot of times we just haven't had time to get them the ball," O'Cain said. "We had Koren open one time on Saturday and he dropped the ball. Ryan was open another time and he dropped it. That was probably the most disappointing thing in the game on Saturday. We probably had four or five balls that you've got to catch. You're only going to have a few opportunities against Florida State. You've got to make those plays."
In the latest ACC statistics, the Wolfpack is once again dead last in total offense and passing offense. There is one other trend that will prove to be most costly if it continues. NC State has turned the ball over 13 times in its first four games. On the season, the Pack is -0.50 in the all-important takeaway-giveaway ratio.
Injury update: Sophomore linebacker Edrick Smith, who suffered a torn ACL and MCL in the season opening win at Texas, will undergo surgery on Friday, September 24. Center Keegan Weir, who broke his right fibula in the Texas game, will have x-rays taken this week to determine his progress. If the x-rays show favorable results, Weir could possibly be back in action as early as the Clemson game on October 9.
