North Carolina State University Athletics
PEELER: Wilson Strives to Improve Everyone
11/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 18, 2010
'The Kick' Still Flies 20 Years Later
Burning Down the (Out) House
There's No Crying on Senior Day
From the First 99 Games
Editor's note: Nothing like a little Holt brother inspiration to get NC State ready for its 100th meeting with North Carolina. The legendary Wolfpack siblings attended practice Thursday morning and spoke with the team for about 15 minutes afterwards. "Any time you hear from a Hall of Famer like Torry Holt and a great player like Terrence, it's inspiring," head coach Tom O'Brien said. "Hopefully, they will take some of the things they said to heart. If that makes us play better on Saturday, I'll be happy."
BY TIM PEELER
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Russell Wilson makes the people around him better. Even head coach Tom O'Brien.
Last year, shortly after the NC State football team found out that offensive coordinator Dana Bible had been diagnosed with leukemia and was about to begin a 30-day treatment in Chapel Hill, O'Brien took over the offense's play-calling responsibilities for the Wolfpack's final two regular-season games.
The coach was admittedly rusty, since it was a duty he hadn't attempted in more than a decade. But against the Tar Heels, Wilson threw four second-half touchdown passes and led his team to a 28-27 victory at Carter-Finley Stadium.
"I made some boneheaded calls against them, but Russell made some good plays and made me look good," head coach Tom O'Brien said. "That happens."
By design, in fact.
Wilson says his goal in every practice, every game, every situation, is to improve the people around him. He believes it's not only his job as the starting quarterback, but his responsibility this year as team captain.
"I still have the personal motivation of trying to get every person out on the field in the huddle with me better, to be successful that one particular drive, that one particular play," he said. "That's my same motivation for me every game."
From the day he threw his name into the helmet for starting quarterback as a redshirt freshman, Wilson has pushed for that extra yard on the field.
"That first year, I knew I could always go harder," Wilson said. "Don't just run five yards and stop, or 10 yards and stop. I want to get it to the end zone on every play. I do that every day. If for some reason I don't do that, I try to catch myself and make sure I have it right. I try to get everyone else to do the same thing, to put themselves in a game situation and visualize themselves being in a stadium with the 60,000 people there and making a big-time play."
Wilson has made more big-time plays against the Tar Heels than just about any other team. As a redshirt freshman, he guided the offense to a 41-10 win over North Carolina in Kenan Stadium, passing for 279 yards and running for 50 more.
Last year, at Carter-Finley Stadium, he threw four touchdown passes, two to Jarvis Williams and two to Owen Spencer.
His mistake-free offensive leadership - in 55 passes against the UNC defense, he has not thrown an interception - has played an important role in extending NC State's winning streak to three games over its biggest rival.
Yet he steadfastly refuses to take any more credit than his teammates.
"More than anything, we've capitalized on some opportunities," Wilson said, explaining his success against the Tar Heels. "We've stayed on the field and made some big plays."
But Saturday, when the two teams meet for the 100th time in the history of this in-state rivalry, Wilson will put those past successes behind him. And look for a new way to beat the Tar Heels.
"Those are two games from before. Do I remember them? Definitely," Wilson said. "But every game is different. We have to come into the game ready to play, no matter what the circumstances are. And weather storms. They have a great team. We know there're going to peaks and valleys. We have to get through them.
"Hopefully, at the end of the game we'll have played well enough on offense, defense and special teams to win the game."
The junior signal-caller knows there is more riding on this game than any recent games in this series. If the Wolfpack wins, it will solidify its advantage in winning its first ACC Atlantic Division title and a spot in the ACC championship game on Dec. 4 in Charlotte. And, as much as he's heard around campus this week about the importance of beating the school's biggest rival another time, Wilson knows he has to stay focused on the smaller picture of the game, not the broader picture of the implications of the outcome.
"It's another game that we have to win to get to where we want to go," he said. "You can't diminish the fact that it is a rivalry game, an in-state game, and that's important. If I said it wasn't, I'd be lying."
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
