North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Gets `Geared Up'
8/2/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 2, 2005
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C. - It was quite obvious that summer break officially came to an end at NC State's Murphy Center football complex on Tuesday morning. Even before entering the building, one couldn't help but notice that the parking lot was almost completely full for the first time in a few months. Inside the building on the first floor, Wolfpack football players started to filter in between 9:00 a.m. and 12 noon. The first order of business was to get fitted for shoes, shoulder pads and helmets. It was the beginning of a journey that the Pack hopes won't end until early January.
The first official day of the preseason isn't very dramatic, but it is nonetheless symbolic. After going through an orientation period, NC State will hit the practice field for its first workout on Friday.
"I'm excited and just ready to get out there and have fun," said senior wide receiver Brian Clark. "This is my last [season], so I'm hoping to go out there and make it memorable."
Like the other upperclassman, Clark is quite familiar with reporting day. Having been there and done that, they know that the real action won't really start until Friday. But for the freshmen who were being fitted with new equipment for the first time, it was a day of both anxiety and anticipation.
"When I was a freshman, I was a little nervous the first day," Clark recalled. "The pads have more of a custom fit and everything is more customized. You're a little bit nervous. You want everything to feel right and you just want to make a good impression on the first day of practice. They're probably anxious to get in there and do something."
As he strapped players into their new helmets and shoulder pads, assistant equipment manager Jimmy Stewart double-checked to make sure all of the gear fit properly. Then players would be sent off to the equipment room to try on new cleats. Senior receiver Tramain Hall wrote his number `21' on the heels of a new pair he selected.
The mood was mostly cheerful and upbeat as players joked around with members of the equipment staff on hand. But for a team that is determined to prove that last season's 5-6 mark was an aberration, it won't be long before things start to get real serious.
"I know personally that I'm tired of the perception that NC State is almost there," Clark said. "I'm ready to prove that NC State is here and starting a tradition. It's frustrating because 5-6 isn't NC State football. It was a setback, but sometimes you have to scrape the bottom of the barrel before you start going up. We got a taste of what losing feels like and it's a bitter taste. We know we never want to feel that way again."
