North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Wants Perfect 10
11/1/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 1, 2002
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C.-When it walks off the Wayne T. Day Field at Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday, the NC State football team (#8 in Coaches Poll/#10 AP) hopes it will look like the most perfect "10" since Bo Derek graced the American consciousness with her slow motion jog across a California Beach.
By whipping Clemson 38-6 in front of a national television audience more than a week ago, the 2002 Wolfpack became the first team in school history to win its first nine games without a loss. The next milestone is that perfect "10"-as in 10-0. Nine different NC State teams have recorded as many as nine victories in season, but never has a Wolfpack club reached double figures. But getting there won't be easy. To reach its latest short-term goal, the Pack must defeat a confident Georgia Tech team that has prevailed in six of the last seven games in the series.
After stumbling through a mini two-game losing streak, the Jackets (5-3) rebounded with an impressive 23-15 victory over Virginia last Saturday. It appears that Tech is finally recovering from the loss of two key players: Tailback Tony Hollings was leading the nation in rushing earlier this fall before sustaining a season-ending knee injury. First year Coach Chan Gailey's club has also been without All-ACC defensive end Greg Gathers, who is out with a kidney ailment.
"What that shows you is that coach O'Leary had done a good job of recruiting because that means they have quality depth," Amato said of Tech's former coach. "They've got a lot of skill and speed on defense. When you have those things, you always have a chance."
Tech's strength may be a huge offensive line that is anchored by massive 6-6, 330 pound left tackle Nat Dorsey. Even without Hollings, the Yellow Jackets are one of the top rushing teams in the ACC (3rd) with an average of 183.9 yards per game. Last week against UVA, freshman tailback P.J. Daniels (98 yards) led a rushing attack that accumulated 211 yards on the ground.
"If you go by the past, you knew that you were going to be sore the morning after playing Georgia Tech," said NC State senior defensive end George Anderson. "It's a smash mouth football game when you play Georgia Tech. When you play them, you better be ready to strap it up tight and be ready to come off the football."
If given time to throw, Jackets quarterback A.J. Suggs can be effective, as he was last week in a 26-of-41, 220 yard passing performance versus the Cavaliers. Suggs' favorite target, Kerry Watkins (46 catches), currently leads all pass catchers in the ACC.
"I don't think I can't put into words what [Watkins] has meant to our football team this year," said Gailey, a former head coach of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys. "You look at statistics and see that he leads the ACC in receptions, but he's been an excellent leader for us as well."
The Wolfpack's best hope of shutting down the Suggs-to-Watkins combination will be to generate pressure up front. NC State currently leads the entire nation in sacks with 36 on the season.
Amato has spent most of the week reminding his team that to be satisfied over what has been accomplished so far is a sure recipe for disaster. Of course, many of his sentiments have also been echoed by seniors like Dantonio Burnette and free safety Terrence Holt, who have been the ringleaders of several players only meetings over the last few weeks. For the older players that have experienced many highs and lows during their careers, letdowns at this stage of the game are not an option.
"I was here when we beat Florida State and then lost to Baylor the next week," said Anderson, who joined the Pack in 1998. "The closer and closer that you get to your goal, the more you see what you can do and the more focused you become. We're having some of our best practices now. We're knocking at the door now and we can see what we've been working for during the offseason."
The naysayers and critics that have had a field day barking about NC State's schedule most of the year probably won't be heard from over the next four weeks. In order to go unbeaten through the entire season and make a push in the Bowl Championship Series, the Wolfpack must beat four teams that have a great chance to land in post-season bowls. The combined record of Georgia Tech, Maryland, Virginia and Florida State is 22-11. Of the other teams in the top-10, only AP #9 Washington State will face a more difficult slate from here on out.
"They're a great football team," said Gailey. "I didn't need that [Clemson] game to convince me. All they did was go out and confirm what we thought all along. They did it on national TV in front of everybody and it was very convincing. That game wasn't their coming out party, it's been there all along."
NC State is one of only eight undefeated teams in college football heading to the weekend and the Pack's nine-game winning streak stands next to Notre Dame and Ohio State as the third longest streak in the nation.
Saturday's ACC match-up, which will begin at 3:30, can be heard on the Wolfpack Radio Network, which will kick off its broadcast at 2:30. The contest will also be televised regionally by ABC. Prior to the football game, coach Herb Sendek's men's basketball squad will make its first public appearance in the annual Red/White Game. Activities inside the arena begin at 12:30 and admission is free.
More Wolfpack Football Notes:With its next touchdown, NC State will set a new school mark for touchdowns in a season. The Wolfpack currently has 51, which equals a record set by the 1973 team. Quarterback Philip Rivers needs just three more TD passes to set the Wolfpack record. He currently has 57 in his career. Freshman tailback T.A. McLendon also has his eye on the record books. Currently tied with former North Carolina star Leon Johnson for rushing touchdowns by a freshman (14), McLendon needs just one more to own the ACC mark outright. And senior receiver Bryan Peterson needs just one catch in the Tech game to set a new NC State standard for consecutive games with at least one reception. Peterson, who has made at least one catch in 34 straight games, is currently tied with Jimmy Grissett.
