North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Holds Pre-Dawn Relays
5/3/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
May 3, 2002 (Very Early!!!)
If the level of competition in Friday morning's "Superstars Competition" was any indication of what the 2002 season will hold, Wolfpack fans better buy their tickets now. Before the sun peeked over the horizon, the offense and defense were already engaged in heated battle at the Paul Derr Track infield.
The competition, which consisted of a variety of strength, endurance and speed events, began at 6:00 a.m. Bryan Peterson and Scott Kooistra captained the offensive players and Dantonio Burnette and Terrence Holt led the defensive squad, but several other players also had plenty of input, particularly quarterback Philip Rivers (who, it is rumored, worked into the wee hours of the morning to help plot the offensive's strategy).
The first event, which began in the dark, was the dumbbell relay. Each team chose six players, each of which had to carry a 120-pound dumbbell in each hand as far as they could before the next player picked them up and started. The defense took a large lead early in the competition, mainly due to the long carry of defensive end Drew Wimsatt. The offense's last man was Rivers, who couldn't make up the distance between himself and Dyron Liverman before he dropped the weights. Score: Defense 1, Offense 0
Next came the keg toss, which involved several interesting techniques. Quarterback Jay Davis and punter Casey Dimeo actually tossed the keg over their heads (which definitely did not result in much distance). Linebacker Avery Gibson then stepped up for the defense and had a heckuva hurl, but a fault call by the judge (strength coach C.J. Hunter) brought some heated arguments from the defense. Gibson tried again and this time threw it even further. Kooistra, all 304 pounds of him, then stepped up for the offense, but couldn't quite reach Gibson's mark. After an interesting exhibition by J.J. Jones (he spun several times and then sorta forgot to release the keg), the offense's last hope came at the hands of walkon fullback Jim Slattery (do we smell a ringer?), who had the top throw of the morning to win the event for the offense. Score: Defense 1, Offense 1
Next, we moved on to the head-spinning relay. Here, each player had to either push a sled, flip a tractor tire, or carry a 100-pound weight plate for 20 yards, put their forehead on a traffic cone and spin eight times, then come back the other 20 yards. This might have been the most interesting event from a spectator standpoint - watching Terrence Holt and Corrie Dawson trying to gain their equilibrium after spinning was pretty hilarious. Tailback Cotra Jackson ended up stopping and waiting for Julius Patterson to catch up on the final leg. Score: Defense 1, Offense 2
The fourth event really separated the men from the boys, as players paired up in a circle and tried to sumo wrestle each other out. The offense won the first two matches, as Sean Locklear defeated George Anderson and Shane Riggs won over Roger Pollard. Jerrick Hall won the next bout for the defense over Mike McCall, and then in a highly controversial decision, Brandon Strickland defeated Dantonio Burnette, giving the offense a 3-1 lead with just three more matches left. Hall, better known as "Hovah" to his teammates, then singlehandedly won the event, defeating Riggs, Strickland and Locklear in back-to-back battles. Score: Defense 2, Offense 2
Everyone headed over to the practice field for the final field event, a tug of war in a mudpit. The first battle matched defenders Terrance Martin, Justin Wortham and Ricky Fowler against John McKeon, Brandon Sanders and Brook Payne. The red flag in the center of the rope stayed in the center of the pit for a long time, as both sides grunted and groaned and pulled and their teammates surrounded them, screaming encouragement. Finally, one last tug and a deep dig for the defense brought the offensive guys across the center line. Score: Defense 3, Offense 2
The final event was a 4x100 meter relay. While the big boys were digging in over at the mudpit, the track stars were practicing handoffs and starts. The rest of the team sat in the bleachers, as leadoff runners Troy Graham (defense) and Fred Span took their marks. The first leg was close, as Graham handed off to Victor Stephens and Span passed the baton to Dovonte Edwards. Edwards built a slight lead before giving the baton to Bryan Peterson, but J.J. Jones managed to get close as they approached the final leg. Cornerback Lamont Reid and wide receiver Andy Bertrand were the anchors for their respective squads, and came down the straightaway neck-and-neck before Bertrand won in a photo finish. Score: Defense 3, Offense 3
Oh no! Not a tie?!?! Coach Todd Stroud and the strength and conditioning coaches had to think fast to determine what would decide the winner. Much to the dismay of the offense, the result was a 4x400 meter relay. The offense was running out of speedsters, while the defense had several waiting in line. The Peterson to Jerricho Cotchery to Chance Moyer to Adam Kiker combo could not compete with the J.J. Washington to Andre Maddox to J.J. Jones to Troy Graham quartet. In the spirit of teamwork, Graham graciously waited at the 200-meter mark for Adam Kiker to catch up, before he turned on his jet propulsion engines and sailed into victory.
FINAL SCORE: Defense 4, Offense 3
