North Carolina State University Athletics
Amato Not Getting Kick out of Kicking Game
10/6/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 6, 2003
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C.-Don't talk to Chuck Amato about the fact that NC State's defense is ranked 116th in the nation against the pass. And don't bring up the problems his offense has experienced in short-yardage situations the last few weeks. As far as the Pack's head football coach is concerned, the culprit in the Wolfpack's 3-3 (1-2 ACC) start to the season is a kicking game that hasn't been nearly as rock solid as it was during a 2002 campaign that produced an 11-3 record. Now as Amato sets a course for the second half of the current season, he's ready to re-emphasize the elements of football that have made his program successful in the past.
"If you really want a story, I'm going to give you a story to write," Amato said at his weekly press gathering on Monday. "We've got three losses and in all three losses, we lost the kicking game. If we don't have a punt run back for a touchdown in the Wake Forest game and we block the punt that we just missed, we win that game. At Ohio State, if we don't have a ball (kickoff) his us in the head, the game doesn't go to overtime. In [Saturday's Georgia Tech game], neither team wanted to win the kicking game. I looked up about seven bad plays on each side in the kicking game. If we win the kicking game here, we're undefeated. It has nothing to do with offense and it has nothing to do with defense."
To add further credence to his point, Amato went on to say that the Pack's only three losses last year came in games in which it lost the kicking game as well.
On Saturday in Atlanta, three big kicking game errors by the Wolfpack proved costly in a 29-21 loss to the Jackets. There was a pooch kickoff that was muffed by Cotra Jackson in the second quarter, a play that set up a Yellow Jackets field goal. Tech got another easy three points following a 90-yard kick return by Kenny Scott. Later in the 4th period, Georgia Tech added its only touchdown of the second half following a roughing the kicker penalty on NC State.
"I put the pressure on our kicking team because that's where you win or lose a football game, in the kicking game," Amato said. "That's where huge plays occur. That's where upsets occur. That's where routs occur. It's not because somebody throws for 580 yards. Remember the coach from Texas Tech? He said 'I've never been in a game where we threw for that many yards and lost.' Well, don't get a punt blocked for a touchdown."
NC State beat Texas Tech a few weeks ago, despite giving up 586 yards passing to B.J. Symons. One of the big plays in the opening quarter of that game was a blocked punt by Manny Lawson that was recovered in the end zone by Richard Washington.
In answering questions about his team's pass defense, Amato had statistics prepared, detailing the rankings of other teams that have played Texas Tech.
"Do I like where we are? No. I hate it," Amato said about the fact that NC State's first six opponents are averaging 329 yards per game through the air. "Let me tell you where the teams that have played Texas Tech are ranked in pass defense. Texas A&M, they're 91st in the country. That kid (Symons) threw for 505 yards and eight touchdowns and didn't play the fourth quarter. New Mexico? They're 105th. NC State is 116th and Mississippi is 117."
A proponent of doing whatever it takes to stop the running game first, Amato went on to lay out the passing defense ranking of some other teams that are highly ranked in the polls. Teams like 9th ranked Southern Cal (pass defense rank: 109), No. 15 Pittsburgh (99), 21st ranked Michigan State (98), No. 3 Ohio State (71). He also mentioned that Penn State is ranked No. 2 in passing defense, but only has a 2-4 record to show for it.
On the flip side, Amato said, most of the teams that are doing a good of stopping the run are also winning the majority of their games. NC State is one of only three teams ranked in the top 28 in rushing defense (the Wolfpack is #21 against the run) that has dropped as many as three games. All the others have two losses or less.
As for the remainder of NC State's season, the Wolfpack will begin the second half with a non-conference home game against 4-2 Connecticut this Saturday at 1 p.m. Saddled with three losses, it's pretty obvious that some of the lofty goals the Pack set for itself in the preseason must now be modified.
"At the beginning of the season, we were shooting for an ACC championship and a national championship," said center Jed Paulsen. "With three losses, I don't think a national championship is still in the picture, but an ACC Championship still is. Some teams could lose along the road, upsets have been happening in college football and you never know. We're going to keep playing and try to win every game from here on out."
Backs Banged Up: NC State's top two tailbacks - T.A. McLendon (hamstring) and Josh Brown (hip flexor/lower abdominal strain) are listed as questionable for Saturday's contest. Amato believes Brown was actually injured in the North Carolina game nine days ago, while McLendon has been sidelined since pulling a hamstring early in the third quarter against Texas Tech on September 20.
"A hamstring pull for a skill athlete is not an easy thing," Amato said. "If he was an offensive tackle and all he had to do was kick-step or put a hat on somebody, I'd say he'd play, but that's not what he does. I'll know more at practice today. He did some weightlifting in his lower body yesterday. The swelling is completely down, but it's still a little bit tight."
