North Carolina State University Athletics
Golden Grabs Starting Tailback Spot
8/19/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 19, 2002
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C.-When NC State opens its 2002 football season against New Mexico in the Black Coaches Association Bowl next Saturday afternoon at 4:30, sophomore Greg Golden will line-up as the Wolfpack's starting tailback. That's pretty amazing when you consider that the Ft. Lauderdale, Florida native expected to be a starting cornerback just days before the Pack opened preseason drills earlier this month.
"He's starting and he's looked really good," NC State head football coach Chuck Amato said on Monday. "He's a hard runner who has a chance to go a long, long way if he breaks the line of scrimmage. He catches the ball well coming out of the backfield and he's a competitor; he runs like you're not supposed to tackle him. He's picked up the offense really well."
Golden's move from defense to offense has gone about as smoothly as could be expected, especially for a player who really didn't see a significant amount of time as a running back in high school.
"I remember Greg Golden when he was a sophomore in high school," Amato recalls. "He was one of the best return people that I had seen down in that area. One of the best ever, really. He just made things happen when he got in the open field. He has the big strong legs; he's just so strong from his waist down. And he's got such great acceleration. When I called Greg's high school coach before we did this, he kind of laughed at me. He said, "just throw him the ball in the flat or in the open field and you'll have a lot of fun with him." If we can get him the ball in space, he'll make it difficult for people."
And although Golden goes into game one as NC State's starting tailback, his days on defense may not be over. Due to the potential season ending broken leg that was suffered by freshman cornerback A.J. Davis in a scrimmage last week, Golden will continue to get some practice time at corner.
It's been done before. While at Georgia three years ago, Champ Bailey flourished at both corner and wide receiver. Back in 1997, Charles Woodson won the Heisman Trophy after proving himself as a two-way player at Michigan.
"We give [Golden] about 10-minutes of individual work a day [on defense]," Amato said. "If we put him in there, it will be in limited situations. I told him when we talked about moving him that we would make this kind of a unique situation. I don't know if it's ever been done here, but Georgia did it with a special football player and Michigan did it with a special football player. He's not going to play 40 snaps on offense and 40 snaps on defense. He may not play on defense at all in the first game, but he's there and he's somebody that is available to get some help there if we need it. I told him it would be neat to score two touchdowns with one coming on offense and the other on defense."
And while Golden has earned the start at tailback in the season opener, freshman T.A. McLendon and sophomore Josh Brown will also figure into the picture against the Lobos.
All three backs bring something different to the table: While Golden has flashed breakaway speed, McLendon has simply been running over people in the preseason. Brown's calling card is quickness.
"All three of them have stepped up," Amato said. "I hope they all get into the game. We have a long season and you know how much running backs get hit. They're all different. Josh Brown is as quick as a hiccup; he may not have the overall burst of speed, but he makes you miss. Every time T.A. practices, he hurts people."
Just ask rover Andre Maddux, who suffered a broken nose during a tackle attempt against McLendon in preseason drills.
Once a major question mark, the tailback position doesn't seem to concern the NC State coaching staff as much as it once did. There was a time when the thought of trying to replace Ray Robinson and Cotra Jackson with players who had never taken a live snap in a college game caused Amato and Co. to cringe. For now, Golden, McLendon and Brown have eased those concerns to a certain degree.
"None of them has played in a college game as a running back thus far," Amato said. "They've all had a good fall. I'm concerned about them running and holding onto the football. They've all done well and we're really pleased with that other than the fact that they have no game experience. It's a little bit different going against your second string and going against the defense we're going to see this Saturday with New Mexico, which last year I believe was fifth in the country in rushing defense."
New Mexico set a new school record by yielding an average of just 87.4 rushing yards per game last season.
Dovonte on the mend:Sophomore wide receiver Dovonte Edwards, who sustained a knee injury in last Wednesday's scrimmage, could be cleared to come back sooner than expected.
"It all depends on how things go today," Amato said during his weekly press gathering on Monday. "We really feel good about that. I think it would be a stretch for him to be in the first game, but don't count him out."
It was initially feared that Edwards could be sidelined from 3-6 weeks.
Amato also added on Monday that kicker Adam Kiker continues to struggle with a back problem that has prevented him from doing much of anything in practice during the preseason. There's a good chance that Austin Herbert will be asked to handle all of the kicking duties in the opener.
