North Carolina State University Athletics
Tony Haynes: Wolfpack Expects Akron Air Show
9/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Tony Haynes
Raleigh, N.C. – A week ago, the NC State defense smothered Appalachian State’s spread offense, holding the Mountaineers to a measly 133 yards. Of the 53 plays ASU ran in the relatively quick two-hour and 45-minute affair, only 17 were forward passes. Death and Taxes are guaranteed. So is the fact that the Wolfpack will see a far different ratio on Saturday when Akron visits Carter-Finley Stadium.
Wolfpack Sports Network airtime for the 12-noon kick off will be 11:00 a.m.
‘Air Akron’ relies heavily on the accurate right arm of quarterback Luke Getsy, a fifth-year senior who came to the Zips by way of Pittsburgh. Getsy, a candidate for most of the preseason quarterback awards, will give the entire NC State defense – especially the secondary – a far different test than it encountered against the ground-oriented Mountaineers.
“We have a lot of respect for this quarterback,” Wolfpack corner Jimmie Sutton said. “He can put the ball on the money. They’ll be throwing the ball a lot more.”
Yes they will Jimmie. In fact, they will probably throw the ball three times as many times as Appalachian State and do so with tremendous expertise.
Getsy is once again an example of a very good college quarterback who makes up for any physical shortcomings he may have by simply possessing an advanced understanding of the position he plays. Getsy might not be able to throw a football through a brick wall, but he knows where it should go and when it should get there.
Sounds a lot like the guy whose No. 17 jersey was retired by NC State three years ago.
And while Getsy may not quite be in the same league as Philip Rivers, he goes about his business in a very similar fashion.
“This is going on Luke’s fifth-year in this system,” said Akron head coach J.D. Brookhart. “He’s played a little bit of ball before. He’s just an extremely intelligent kid. I don’t think he’s going to overly impress you with his arm or his speed or his size, but he’s an extremely effective football player.”
It took 105 years of football to make it happen, but Getsy was the main reason why Akron won its first conference title of any kind when it captured the MAC championship to qualify for the Motor City Bowl last season.
And when Getsy gets in a groove, the Zips have the ability to zip down a football field. Against Memphis last season, he passed for 338 yards....in the second half. When the dust had cleared and the Memphis secondary resuscitated, Getsy owned a single-game school record with 455 yards.
“He’s awfully good throwing it; he’s a big-league quarterback,” said Pack head coach Chuck Amato. “This summer I talked to friends of mine who coach in that league and they say he’s the man.”
And Amato can only hope his defense has as much success pressuring the quarterback as it did last week when it sacked Appalachian State’s Trey Elder four times. But getting to the quarterback on Saturday will be a totally different challenge simply because pass-first teams like Akron naturally have an elevated level of pass-protection expertise.
While deep and talented, NC State’s secondary will still be vulnerable if the defensive front can’t make Getsy uncomfortable in the pocket. Following an impressive debut, ends Ray Brooks, Martrel Brown, Willie Young, John Amanchukwu and Littleton Wright, along with tackles Tank Tyler and DeMario Pressley, will be lining up against bigger, stronger and better offensive linemen this week.
Noting that one game does not a season make, Amato has not allowed his defensive line to rest on its laurels in practice.
“It was a good start,” he said. “I was encouraged. But you know what? Don’t ask me who’s going to start this week. We’re going to keep that competition going all week long. I’ll take a couple of them and [defensive line coach] Stroud will take the rest of them.”
With first-round draft picks Mario Williams, Manny Lawson and John McCargo now preparing for their first regular season games in the NFL, the Wolfpack defensive line isn’t what it once was. But after watching tape of last week’s demolition of Appalachian State, the Akron coaches might beg to differ.
“You see the same size and athleticism on the defensive line,” Brookhart said. “I know they’ve got guys that have been replaced, but it’s like they’re just plugging in parts. You compare that to last year’s film, you just transpose some numbers but with different guys doing the same things they did last year.”
But Brookhart has the same quarterback as last year, which could make things interesting on Saturday.
Pack Injuries: NC State will likely be trying to contain the Akron passing attack without its best and most experienced cornerback. Senior A.J. Davis is listed as doubtful after straining a hamstring early in last week’s game against Appalachian State. For the second straight contest, center Luke Lathan will be held out because of a concussion he suffered in the Pack’s final preseason scrimmage. Receiver Lamart Barrett (hamstring) and linebacker Ernest Jones (knee) have been cleared for action.
Wolfpack and the MAC: Although this will mark the first ever football meeting between NC State and Akron, the Wolfpack’s all-time record against schools from the MAC Conference is 8-1. Under Chuck Amato, NC State is 15-1 in non-conference home games. The only blemish was a loss to No. 9 Ohio State in 2004.
Walking the Walk in a Different Spot: The Walk of Champions, normally held in front of the Murphy Center, is changing locations this week. At approximately 9:45, the Wolfpack team will be dropped off in the Fan Zone between the big scoreboard on the north end of the stadium and the RBC Center.
