North Carolina State University Athletics
PEELER: Washington Welcomes Back Pack
8/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Pack Athletics
Aug. 18, 2010
BY Tim Peeler
RALEIGH, N.C. -
The former came from new NC State athletics director Debbie Yow, who had the 600 or so Wolfpack student-athletes attending the Welcome Back Dinner howling, not with laughter, but in an attempt to sound more like a wolf than she did.
But the challenge came from former Wolfpack football player and NFL standout Dewayne Washington, the event's main speaker. He challenged the current crop of Wolfpack student-athletes to finish what they start, win more than they lose and be successful in whatever field they choose.
"Success is a choice," he told them at the end of his 15-minute speech. "It depends on how badly you want it. How badly do you want it? I know I want it for you guys, but I can't play anymore. It's all up to you. We are here to support you.
"So, to my beloved alma mater, now is the time to be great. Let's start tomorrow. Go do what you have to do to get there."
All but about 80 of the school's current student-athletes - those who had night classes on the first day of the fall semester - attended the inaugural event, a sit-down dinner on the floor of the RBC Center that replaces the annual Unity Picnic, an informal outdoor event on the Dail Plaza between the RBC Center and Carter-Finley Stadium.
Washington's heart-felt message was fairly simple: maintain academics and perform on the field.
It's a message Washington knows well. The graduate of Durham's Northern High School was a three-year starter for the Wolfpack and a co-captain and All-ACC selection as a senior in 1993. He turned his successful college career into a first-round selection in the 1994 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings.
Washington spent 12 years with four different NFL teams, but he continued to return to NC State for years in the off-season until he earned his degree in multi-disciplinary studies.
"I was determined to get that thing," Washington said. "It was something I promised my mom and myself that I would get. To be honest, it was probably the most gratifying thing I have ever done in my life.
"Besides my wife and my three kids, that college degree is the most important thing I have."
Washington retired in 2005 after spending one season with the Kansas City Chiefs. He finished with more than 700 career tackles, 31 interceptions and seven touchdowns. When he hung up his cleats, he knew he was leaving a job and embarking on a career.
"That's one thing I really want current student-athletes to understand: No matter how talented they are, their athletic careers are going to end sometime, whether it's in college or in the pros," Washington said. "They are here to get a career, not a job.
"I considered playing in the National Football League a job, not a career. It wasn't something I could do for the rest of my life."
Washington has devoted himself to giving back in his hometown of Durham. He operated the Dewayne Washington Foundation from 1995-2004 and contributed funds from charity golf tournaments and other fundraising events to help underprivileged students from his community and to benefit NC State.
He is currently the chief executive officer of the Washington Construction and Development Group and a founding partner of Carolina Skills Academy, a year-round athletic training school based in Durham.
"I'm a no-nonsense kind of guy," Washington said. "I've been molded to answer one question: Did you finish what you started? Did you finish? This is a question I want to challenge you with.
"Athletics really and truly can't be your first priority. If you don't have the [grade-point average] you need, you can't play, plain and simple. You have to maintain that to play in college. Make the right educational choices."
It was exactly the right message Yow wanted NC State's student-athletes to hear as they begin a new school year, as she again shared her mantra of "Wolfpack Unlimited: Refuse to Accept the Status Quo."
She continued her energetic push to revitalize NC State athletics, telling the assembled crowd of players, coaches and administrators that she was glad to be home, the place where her older sister Kay spent most of her Hall of Fame basketball coaching career.
"Sometimes, you get to see your dream come true," Yow said. "I always had a dream of coming home to NC State and being your director of athletics. It didn't look like it was going to happen. I was focused on my work at the other place, doing the best I could for them.
"All of a sudden the pieces fall in place and it becomes a reality. All the pieces fall together in the right way and to have the opportunity to come home. This is the place I want to be."
But, after her brief introduction, she turned the attention from her arrival to the student-athletes' return and the start of a new academic year.
"This is not the Debbie Yow Show - this is about NC State athletics," she said. "It's about you. It's about all of us as a team working together to get it done for NC State. My message is simple: I want you to set the ACC on fire, athletically and academically.
"Why not? What is it about NC State that keeps us from doing that?"
In her busy first month on the job, Yow already has made some changes that she believes will help her coaches and her student-athletes get the job done, if not immediately, then in the near future.
"I am not saying it will happen overnight," she said. "We can do this together. I know we can. I've met with your coaches. They have passion. I've met with a number of our student-athletes, though I haven't met with everyone yet. I see in your eyes that you want something better. You want to do great things competitively and hopefully athletically as well."
With that, she challenged everyone in the room to howl out loud, just as she did from behind the podium.
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
