HAYNES: Pack Battles Maryland Seniority

BY TONY HAYNES

 

RALEIGH, N.C. Maryland’s depth chart this week indicates that 15 seniors will start in Saturday’s 3:30 ACC game against NC State...nine of those starters will be on the defensive side of the football. The top five defensive linemen for the Terps are all seniors, while three seniors man the offensive line.

Maryland is big, powerful, physical and often downright nasty.

Forgive Tom O’Brien for being envious.

In the master plan, O’Brien envisions an NC State program that will one day be big, powerful and physical. And yea, there might also be a little nasty thrown in for good measure. Of course, getting to that point requires patience, another recruiting class or two and a redshirt process that will eventually produce older and more physically mature players at just about every position.

Two decidedly different agendas will be at work when the Pack and Terps  (5-2, 2-1) clash for the 65^th time at Byrd Stadium. On the heels of a rare four-game homestand that produced only one win, NC State will be trying to shake a three-game losing streak on Saturday. With a 2-5 overall mark and 0-3 in the ACC, the Wolfpack will find itself in the roll of spoiler against a Maryland team that has as good a chance to capture the ACC title as anyone.

To get there, however, the Terps can’t afford another slip. If this team checked in for therapy, it would likely be diagnosed with multiple personality disorder. How could a team go from getting whipped by Virginia 31-0 in one game, then come back and drill Wake Forest 26-0 the next? Robert Louis Stevenson would love this team.

NC State can only hope that the Dr. Jekyll Mr. Hyde pattern continues on Saturday.

Given the fact that Maryland totally dominated the Wolfpack 37-0 the last time these two teams played back in November of 2007, Terps coach Ralph Friedgen’s biggest challenge this week has been to convince his players that the Pack is indeed good enough to hand Maryland another unexpected defeat.

“I think they’re a very good team,” Friedgen said. “They were very close against Boston College and Florida State. I see them improving each and every week. They have some weapons on offense and they’re very athletic on defense. They’re just young.”

In the game of life, youth is wonderful. In the game of college football, the benefits are not quite the same. Most of us would like to be younger, but Tom O’Brien wants a football team that possesses a little more seniority, much like the one he’ll face on Saturday.

Here are some key things to listen for on the radio, unless of course you get ESPN 725 or whatever that channel is called.

Dirty up Turner’s uniform: It’s being rumored around College Park that Maryland team managers didn’t even bother to wash quarterback Chris Turner’s uniform after last week’s game against Wake Forest. So effective was Maryland’s offensive line against the Wake Forest pass rush (what pass rush?) that Turner could have stood in the pocket, called in an order for crab cakes and still gotten his throws off in time. All he did was to complete 28-of-41 passes for 321 yards, a performance that earned Offensive Back of the Week’ honors in the ACC.

“On tape, their offensive line looks as good as any we’ve played,” O’Brien said. “[Turner] is No. 1 in the league in passing efficiency because nobody is touching him. He stands back there and throws to some good receivers. It’s a senior dominated football team with a quarterback that’s playing at a high level, which generally means it’s a championship-caliber football team.”

Timing is everything, and during its current three-game losing streak, one of NC State’s biggest problems has been its inability to make opposing quarterback uncomfortable in the pocket. The last three quarterbacks the Wolfpack has faced Matt Grothe of South Florida, Boston College’s Chris Crane and Christian Ponder of Florida State were a combined 77-of-115 passing (67 percent) for an average of 313 yards per game with only one interception.

No wonder those three teams converted 52 percent of their third downs in those games and stayed on the field for more than 80 plays. In fact, the Wolfpack has averaged 27 fewer plays per game than its last three opponents primarily because the defense has not been able to get itself off the field on third down.

“It’s kind of heartbreaking when you get in that situation and you have to run back on the field for another set of downs,” said NC State defensive tackle Keith Willis. “It just takes the air out of you.”

After being yanked out of the starting line-up for last week’s game against Florida State, Wolfpack defensive end Willie Young did respond with a couple of sacks and a tackle for loss. The Pack will need more of the same on Saturday from a player who was pegged to be one of the league’s best pass rushers this season.

But if Chris Turner again looks like Mr. Clean’ by the fourth quarter on Saturday, the NC State defense could be in for yet another 80-play day.

The Wilson factor: On Wednesday, Friedgen claimed that he and his coaches met for three hours trying to devise a plan to deal with NC State quarterback Russell Wilson. Nothing scares a coach more than a quarterback who can run and throw equally well. Wilson is getting to that point. When his first passing option in the progression wasn’t available earlier in the season, Wilson’s inclination was to tuck it and run. Now, with five starts under his belt, the redshirt freshman runs only as a last resort on pass plays. He’s becoming very good at buying extra time in the pocket with his legs and still keeping his eyes down the field. Wilson has evolved from being a running quarterback who could throw to a throwing quarterback who has the ability to run.

“He’s very elusive,” Friedgen said. “If he doesn’t like something he’s going to be scrambling, so obviously you have to contain him. A lot of his scrambles come when he moves up within the pocket, gets outside and then he’s a threat to run it or throw it and he throws the ball very well on the run. He creates a lot of problems for you. Because he’s so athletic, he can create plays.”

Wilson’s growth over the last month is the main reason the NC State offense is much more threatening than it was earlier in the season. Over his last three starts, the Richmond, Va product is 53-of-89 (59 percent) for an average of 203 yards and six touchdowns. Just as impressively, Wilson has thrown 89 consecutive passes without an interception.

“That’s been coach O’Brien’s philosophy,” Wilson said. “He wants us to protect the football, but at the same time he wants me to make the big time throws. It’s mainly being patient and knowing what I’m looking for and where I’m going with the ball.”

For the first time since 2002, NC State has played back-to-back games without turning the football over. Obviously, it will take another clean game to make it competitive at Maryland. And given the fact that the Terps are currently ranked 11^th in the ACC in total defense (369 yards per game), it’s not out of the question that Wilson and his offensive mates could cause a few problems on Saturday.

North Carolina State University Athletics

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