North Carolina State University Athletics
Football Preseason Diary, Day Eight
8/14/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 14, 2001
Today was kinda sad around here. ?There's not really much I can say about the Tramain Hall situation except that it is very unfortunate. ?I don't know much about the eligibility side of things and I don't know much about his football ability, but I do know that he is a great young man. ?He has handled this situation so well and with so much class. If all student-athletes were as classy as he is, my job would be easy.
I had my yearly reminder to stand behind the line of scrimmage this morning. ?When the offense is on one field and the defense is on the other, it's fun to stand in the middle and look back and forth to both drills. ?However, I was looking at one when the other came right at me. Special thanks to wide receiver Sterling Hicks for not mowing me down on the sidelines when he went for an overthrown pass! You can't imagine how fast those guys come at you when they're going full-speed. It always amazes me when I go to games and see folks with their small children on the sidelines.
This morning, safety Rod Johnson broke his left ulna near the elbow joint in practice while diving to break up a pass. ?He will probably be out for a while. ?Rod has had several injuries during his career- let's hope this one doesn't keep him out too long.
Practice was the same routine today, except this morning the guys worked out on the lower fields while they lined the field at the track. That helped alleviate some of the folks who like to skulk around in the bushes and try to sneak and watch the closed practices.
Tomorrow, full pads. Because our season starts late this year, we don't get as many two-a-day sessions in as usual (classes start next Monday at NC State, which means the end of two workouts a day). I forecast that the guys will take the intensity up a notch over the next couple of days as they get ready for the first scrimmage this weekend.
Our office is really in full gear right now. We're busy trying to get the game programs done for football, the media guides done for men's and women's basketball and we're about to begin the seasons for volleyball, cross country and the two soccers. Getting ready for football season means taking care of a multitude of details: ordering phone lines for the press box, sending out press credentials, lining up food for all the home games, planning press conferences. I don't know what I'd do without Ray Brincefield and his staff out at Carter-Finley. Those guys make my job so easy because of their get-it-done attitude and their love for the Wolfpack. Ray, Clark, Cline, Greg, Daryl, Derek and Joey have that field looking like a carpet and everything else shined up and ready to go. The stadium may be old, but those guys work tirelessly to make sure it's the best it can possibly be. They make me look good, too, when the networks come to town.
