North Carolina State University Athletics
Behind The Scenes With Tony Haynes: Big Game Benefits
11/19/2001 12:00:00 AM | Pack Athletics
Nov. 19, 2001
By Tony Haynes
To say that NC State's players and coaches were devastated following Saturday night's 23-19 loss to nationally ranked Maryland would be an understatement. But one day, perhaps in the very near future, this group will understand that all the pain and sadness they felt in that lockerroom late Saturday night actually made them better.
Just imagine what has happened to the NC State program in the last two weeks. On back-to-back Saturdays, the Wolfpack has played a pair of top 10 teams in games that were seen by large television audiences. The Pack won one and nearly grabbed another.
The 'big game' mentality that is a part of the football cultures at places like Miami, Florida State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Nebraska is on its way to Raleigh.
Chuck Amato wouldn't have it any other way. While extremely disappointed on Saturday night, the Wolfpack's second year head coach never took his eye off the big picture. From day one, Amato has taken it as a personal challenge set new standards for a program that has always been satisfied with seven and eight win seasons. If nothing else, the last two weeks have helped him show the younger players in his program that it is possible for NC State to compete on an even playing field with some of the nation's best teams. The experience and the exposure have been invaluable.
"Do you believe that in the last eight days this NC State football team has played two teams in the top 10?" Amato said. "We beat one on their home field and came within 40 seconds of beating another one right here. It just shows you that we can get there and we will get there."
NC State's young players now know it and so do the many high school prospects that Amato and his coaching staff are now pursuing on the recruiting trail.
It is Monday as I write this column, and naturally the Monday morning quarterbacks are coming out of the woodwork. They're saying that NC State should have thrown the ball late in the game when one first down would have done Maryland in. The Wolfpack coaching staff chose to play the percentages and lost. But they also know better than anyone, even the Monday morning signal callers, just how difficult it is to pick up Maryland's deceptive pass rushing schemes. It's really no accident why the Terps lead the ACC in sacks and turnovers forced.
Had Philip Rivers thrown an interception in that situation, would everyone have been saying, "I can live with this loss because they decided to go for it and throw the ball?" Of course not. It would have been, "I can't believe they decided to throw in that situation." If NC State chooses to throw while protecting its tenuous 19-16 lead, three things could have happened, and two of them are bad. The pass could have been completed for a first down, which is good for the Pack. The pass is incomplete, which is bad because it stops the clock and Maryland isn't forced to use any time outs. And then, of course, there could have been a tipped ball that becomes an interception. Bad, real bad.
Second-guessing is a way of life in sports, and so are would'ves, could'ves and should'ves. In this case, the winning team could play that game as well. Maryland lost 14 points on Saturday simply because two of its receivers couldn't hang onto the ball. In the first half, Terps receiver Daryl Whitmer let Shaun Hill's perfect pass hit him right in the chest at the goal line. The ball caromed into the waiting arms of Pack safety Julius Patterson who returned it 67 yards. Maryland lost seven more points late in the game when receiver Rich Parson fumbled the ball away about a foot short of the end zone when Lamont Reid hit him from behind.
The Terrapins didn't win because of conservative coaching by NC State. They prevailed because they did a better job scoring touchdowns in the red zone. The Wolfpack had four scoring drives that ended in field goals instead of touchdowns. Had the Pack been able to punch the ball in the end zone just once more, the outcome could have been different. Again: would'ves, could'ves and should'ves.
For now, NC State must do something other great programs do on a consistent basis: rebound from a tough loss.
"We can stick our head in the ground and come out here next week (against Ohio) and slop it up or we can come out here and show everyone how proud we are of each other," Amato said. "We've got to do it one more time, we've got to end up 7-4 and go on to a bowl and win that. We need to keep building."
Keep building so that the 'big game' becomes a way of life.
