North Carolina State University Athletics
Chuck Amato Quotes From Press Conference (10/9)
10/9/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
On playing North Carolina the first time as a head coach at NC State:
"Wherever you are at as a coach there is some team on your schedule that
is a rival. It's big for everybody. It's big for the boosters, for the
administrators, and the players, and the students and everybody involved.
The media, you know, you sometimes make a bigger thing out of it than
what it is. It's a game. This is the big game this week, last week there
wasn't a bigger game on our schedule than Clemson. Next week there won't
be a bigger game on our schedule than Bobby. It's a big game this week.
You know more about that than I do because I haven't been here in 18
years. But it's a big game it really is because of the rivalry, that's
what makes it fun.
On the game being back on campus versus a neutral site:
"It's going to be even bigger because we are now playing it back on
campus. I like it being on campus because of the atmosphere."
On his first trip to Kenan as a freshman at NC State:
"I remember the first tiimeI went there.Might have been the first
college game I ever saw. I was a freshman and North Carolina State played
over there in the first game of the year. Took a bus for the freshman
over there because freshman were not eligible at the time to go over
there and watch the game. It was unbelieveable. All of the freshman were
wearing ties and white shirts. Except for about eight of us from up
north and we didn't know any better and we had blue jeams and sweatshirts
on. We stuck out like a sore thumb over there but there was alot of
atmosphere, and there is alot of atmosphere."
On being being 21 point underdogs for the Clemson game and getting votes
in the poll:
"The people that do the voting also said we were going to get beat by
twenty-two points. To get ranked you have to do something consistent.
If we can do something this week and can do something in the weeks to
come then you deservingly earn it. It s just that perception of the wins
and losses. We played awfully good last week against an outstanding
team. We made believers of them, and we made believers even more so of
our players. And now we have to do it all over again. That's the fun of
it. You play 11 games a year and thank goodness you don't play them all
in one day."
On Clemson being a top 5 team:
"I think they can be. They are awfully good on defense. And to me to get
up there you have to be awfully good on defense. They were No. 1 in the
country and defense and we still held our own. One player can really
carry a team. If Virginia Tech did not have Michael Vick they probably
would not have played a national championship. He can control a game and
that is what Dantzler does. I think they do desreve to be that high in
the rankings. When you are good on defense you have a shot to beat
anyone. We scored five times and they scored five times, but two of ours
were field goals. They scored touchdowns when they got in the red zone."
On NC State's passing game against UNC's secondary:
"When you play man coverage you do not get people that break on the ball
as much because they are copncentrating on a man. They have great skill.
I think their wide receivers as a group are better than Clemson's. Their
secondary is more skilled. They have some corners that can fly. When I
was at Florida State, we recruited some of those players. It will be
interesting. The bigger match-up is not the skill, the bigger match-up is
upfront. UNC has some awfully good personnel on defense. They have people
that are big and run, and that is what you need to play defense. When you
add Curry and Spoon to their football team that were not there last year,
that is a big plus."
On Curry:
"Don't forget that recruiting gurus said he was the best quarterback in
the country. The best free safety in the country. The best point guard in
the country-- as a junior. We played him at FSU when he was a freshman.
He came in and did some awfully good things. He has ability. Look what he
did against Georgia Tech. When you are putting the football in the hands
of one of their best players that is tough to stop. That is what Indiana
did to us and that is why they scored so many points. That is what
Clemson did and that is whty they scored so many points."
On Levar Fisher:
"Levar is one of those special people whose motor runs and runs and never
stalls. If a team had 85 people with his mentality, you would not lose a
game. He does not know any way, but overdrive. He is playing with a
stinger. You would not know it by watching him. His motor runs hard. He
goes after the football. His prescence on the field is incredible. When
he was hurt for one of the scrimmages, he was not out there, and it was
like 'what are we missing'. We are missing #44. Clemson had a #43 that
was like that."
On the losing streak, who has an edge:
"It is a rival game. There will be emotions flying high. They have an
advantage because they are playing there. Playing the game there, gives
them added emotion. They have the noise and more people on their side."
