Dave from Carter-Finley

Saturday we unveiled the much talked about black alternate unis.  There were a lot of crazy rumors out there, but this was the only place that had it all right [patting self on back].  See for yourself:  here, here, & here.

I have to say I hate black unis for any school that doesn’t have black as a school color.  We’re the “red and white from State” so that definitely includes NC State. I’m only 30, but I guess that makes me old.  All the young kids love that kind of stuff so that’s why seemingly every school in the country does it, but I’m not a fan.

I really don’t have a problem with the Breast Cancer Awareness concept either, but the execution of it was very poorly done.  If you’re going to do pink for breast cancer, then go all pink.  The red helmets and black pants with red/white stripes matched with the black jerseys with pink numbers just looked half-assed to me.  A white helmet with pink decals matched with a plain black pant (or even our standard white pants) and the black jersey with pink numbers would have been a better execution of the Breast Cancer Awareness pink theme.

I haven’t been able to confirm this, but having black pants with red/white stripes makes me think that there is another black jersey with red numbers that we could see later.  If that’s not the case then these pants will surely become alternate pants giving us six total color combinations.

The red helmet will become an alternate helmet that we could see the team wear again at any time.  I hope it’s a road only alternate helmet, though, because I think it would look way better with the white jersey than with the red jersey.  I have to say I absolutely love the red helmet.  The triple stripe looks so sharp that I wish we would make our white helmets the same.  My only beef is that the block “S” should have the normal black accents so it’s easier to see.

I also really liked the red and white triple stripe on the pants.  I think our regular uniforms look a little plain and would look better with similar stripes on them. That ain’t happening, though, because I remember TOB making comments about striped pants being crazy.  Of course, I can’t believe he approved this black uni so maybe his tune is changing.  We shall see.

I am curious what my readers thought about the unis, so please leave your thoughts in the comments section.

[Edit:  Since these unis were completely paid for by Adidas, we should auction off the black & pink jerseys with all proceeds going to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund.  That will not be the case, though, as I have heard is we will keep the jerseys and use them in the Kay Yow Spring Game.]

I just ran across the this video on that thing the kids call the YouTube.  I actually have yet to make it into Carter-Finley in time to see it on the new Jumbotron so this was the first time I had seen it.  I like the concept, but I think it could have been executed a little better.  Also, per one of the comments on the YouTube page, the team hasn’t run out of the tunnel at the right time.  I don’t know if that’s been the case every game, but it did happen at least once and I will say that doesn’t surprise me.  Precision and attention to detail are not NC State’s strong suits.  I digress, here is the 2011 NC State Football Intro Video:

I’ve had a couple readers ask me to bring back the TOB-O-METER, currently at .491 (27-28) if you’re wondering.  I’m humbled and shocked to have a few readers that have been following this shitty blog for a year.  Unfortunately, I’ve decided to go a different route at this time.  The TOB-O-METER may make a return appearance later in the season, but I have something new.  Hope you’re not disappointed.  I present to you the TOB Wheel of Excuses:

You notice what’s not on the TOB Wheel of Excuses? … coaching … schemes … recruiting … playcalling … motivation … execution … etc.  Those are the real reasons we are sitting here at 2-3 and staring right down the barrel of a losing season.  We just aren’t a very good football team and we’ve been so bad that fewer injuries wouldn’t have made that much of a difference.  Don’t forget, this was supposed to be the easy part of the schedule too.

It’s been well chronicled how TOB is an ex-Marine.  Because of that he is a stoic, conservative, stubborn, demanding coach who runs a football program in much the same way a drill sergeant runs a boot camp.  He’s right and he doesn’t tolerate anybody questioning him about the way he does things, which the media seems to tiptoe around on a weekly basis.

Of course when things are going good he relishes it and never misses a chance to take shots at our rivals.  This, and his 4-0 record against Carolina, is the way he has endeared himself to so many State fans.  When your team is winning, you as a fan will pretty much tolerate anything.  There have even been a few instances in the good times where TOB has taken accountability, evidenced by these quotes from the Wake Forest postgame:

“I’m not going to make excuses.  We had who we had.”

“It certainly would have helped but we didn’t have them.  We have to be able to make plays.”

That is the exception, not the norm, however.  When things start getting tough is usually when TOB succumbs to the pressures and starts looking for excuses.  Once the excuses begin flowing, they come in droves and you wonder if/when they’ll ever end, evidenced by these quotes from the past few weeks:

“On defense, we’ve had too many guys going out hurt.”

“We’re back to the same situation [injuries] we had three years ago.”

“Hopefully there are some more guys who can play next week.”

[Re: Baumann's injury] “When it rains, it pours, and it’s really pouring now.”

“The last two weeks, we were so beat up.”

“The bottom line is that we’ve got to get some guys back.”

Wow!  I honestly can’t believe he said that last one.  The bottom line is our coaches need to do a better job of coaching and our players need to do a better job of executing.  Simple as that.  Football has always been a contact sport and injuries have and will always be part of the equation.  Some years you get fortunate in that area and other years you have to fight harder to get through it.

I don’t know about the rest of Pack Nation, but I am sick and tired of the excuses. It’s year 5 and there has been plenty of time to “change the culture”, “get your guys”, and “implement your system.”  Coach speak is one thing, but I think this takes it a little too far.  I understand not throwing your players/coaches under the bus, but they have to be held accountable too and this just seems to be giving them a free pass.

Bitching and moaning all season about something you have no control over isn’t a good use of time and it isn’t going to help the team get any better either.  It’s time to stop the excuses and start figuring out ways to win some damn football games.

“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”  –Benjamin Franklin

Tonight’s game is suppose to be played in the rain and in a blackout:

Call me a hater, but gimmicks like this always seem stupid to me.  It’ll look good on TV, but it’ll also make it easier for me (and all the other State fans that will be in attendance) stick out in the crowd.  With this week’s news of the ACC raiding Big East schools Syracuse and Pittsburgh, I am a little curious how the Bearcat fans treat us.  I’m sure they will be a little more hostile than normal and if they win you can bet the house that “Big East” chants will ring throughout Nippert Stadium. Hopefully we don’t give them the opportunity.

As for the game, I previewed it earlier and not much has changed.  Cincy is 2-1 with impressive home wins over Austin Peay (72-10) and Akron (59-14) and a tough road loss at Tennessee (45-23).  Statistics don’t tell everything, but nevertheless here are a few interesting ones about Cincy:

• Lead the nation in turnover margin (+12)

• 4th in the nation in scoring (51.3 ppg)

• 16th in the nation in rushing offense (239 ypg)

• 50% (16 for 32) third down conversion percentage

• won 20 straight non conference games at Nippert Stadium

We have struggled mightily on defense and this game will be our biggest test to date.  For the Pack to come out victorious the defense will have to limit the big plays and get off the field on third down while the offense will have to protect the football and sustain long scoring drives.

This is a big game that will likely shape the rest of the season.  A win here would give us some confidence and momentum heading forward while a loss could send us spiraling to a wasted season.  We always seem to play better as a dog than a favorite so let’s hope it’s a good thing that Vegas has Cincy favored by 7.5 points. Go Pack!

I’m very proud of NC State for recognizing and celebrating Military Appreciation Day!!  Here’s a video of how that went Saturday:

Thanks so much to all our servicemen and women!!

I avoided re-watching the Wake Forest game as long as I could, but finally broke down tonight.  I’m still very pissed about the outcome so I’m gonna go rapid fire on my observations from the game.  Here we go:

• The tackling on Wake’s first TD (31 yd pass to Campanaro) was absolutely pathetic.

• Will Baumann’s punting was spectacular … 40.5 net yards per punt and 3 punts inside the 20 (2 inside the 10).

• With our experienced secondary, the receiver on the trick play TD pass should have never been that wide open.

• Curtis Underwood ran the ball very well (12 carries, 56 yards, 4.7 ypc).

• Niklas Sade absolutely drilled both of his FGs (45 yards & 37 yards).

• The offensive line played better than the Liberty game, but they still have a lot of improving to do.

• George Bryan, you’re a Senior Captain … Catch!  The!  Ball!

• Third down conversions killed us on both sides of the ball.  The defense allowed Wake to convert 50% of third downs and our offense only converted 36%.

• In a game against Wake and we got the only flag for chop blocking?  I call bullshit on that one.

• The penalty on T.J. Graham’s long kickoff return was ticky tack.

• David Amerson went from a stud last week to a scrub this week.

• Tobais Palmer is a playmaker.  We need to get him the ball more.

As the kids like to say these days … Saturday it gets real.  Fall camp is over and it’s time for the 2011 season to begin.  Last year was a banner year for the Pack.  It’s 9-4 record tied for the 2nd most wins in program history.  The Pack hopes to match or, better yet, exceed that this year.  For the Pack to do so here are my 3 keys to the season*:

#1 Offensive Line has to be good

The talk all offseason has been about Mike Glennon, and rightfully so, but for him to have a chance to succeed the offensive line has to be much better than last year.  For the offense to work with Glennon at the helm we have to establish a consistent running game.  Last year we averaged only 123.3 yards rushing per game (95th in the country).  If we can’t improve on that it will put more undo pressure on Glennon to do it all through the air.

Also, last year the offensive line allowed 40 total sacks (114th in the country).  We did have the 6th most passing attempts so that stat doesn’t tell the whole story, but Oklahoma and ECU were 1 and 2 in total passing attempts and allowed only 21 and 15 sacks respectively.  Glennon doesn’t have the scrambling ability of Russell Wilson so the offensive line must give him ample time in the pocket so that he can make plays down the field.

TOB is known for being an offensive line “guru” but we’ve yet to see evidence of that so far in Raleigh.  The offensive line has improved and we do have quality depth, but it’s time to start seeing results on the field.

#2 Special Teams can’t cost us any games

Former Pack head coach Chuck Amato put it best in this episode of the R&R Podcast, ”the kicking game is where routs occur and where upsets occur.”  Hidden yardage on special teams often times determines who wins and loses a game.  You can dominate a game offensively and defensively and still lose because of poor special teams … just ask the 2010 San Diego Chargers.

So special teams are very important and we have true freshmen starting at kicker, punter, and long snapper.  How did this happen?  It would be nerve-racking enough to have a true freshman at one of these positions, but at all 3 is just crazy.  All 3 guys were among the best at their position in high school last year, but until they prove that they can handle the duties in college this will remain a huge question mark.

Last year the special teams, minus a few sub 10 yard punts, were a huge positive surprise.  A repeat performance in this phase of the game is a must if the Pack wants to have a special year.

#3 Defensive Line has to help out the back 7

In 2009, State fans sat through a whole season of terrible play from a young, inexperienced back 7.  It was absolutely painful to watch, but now the back 7 is coming off a very good 2010 season where they made huge improvements.  This year’s back 7 could be among the best in NC State history, that is if the defensive line can do it’s job of clogging up the running lanes and getting enough pressure on the opposing QBs so they’re not sitting in the pocket all day.

Of course, our best defensive lineman J.R. Sweezy will miss the first month of the season with a broken foot.  This is a huge blow, but not as big as if it were later in the season.  Hopefully we can take advantage of our back loaded schedule and build some quality depth while Sweezy is on the mend.  Coach Willis has done a tremendous job of getting these guys to play hard, fast, and smart so if a couple young guys emerge this unit could surprise some people.

It’s not that I don’t have faith in the defensive line, it’s just the achilles heel of our defense.  If they are just league average our back 7 will be able to make plays and our defense will have a chance to match last year’s success.

*3 keys … other than Mike Glennon.  As much as TOB has hyped him I’m drinking the kool-aid that he’ll be good.  If TOB is wrong it’ll be a long season and all these points will be meaningless.

The college football season officially kicks off tonight.  It really feels like this should be a holiday.  I’m a baseball guy so I’ve had plenty of things to watch this summer, but it still doesn’t match college football.  Today almost feels like Christmas.  Maybe even better.

There’s two games tonight that Wolfpack fans should be interested in.  First the national ESPN matchup between UNLV and Wisconsin will be Russell Wilson’s debut for the Badgers.  He’s generated a lot of national buzz this offseason so I’ll be very interested in following him this season.  Don’t worry, this won’t become a blog about Russell Wilson.  WRAL Sports Fan has a different idea, though with this website:

I’m sure some State fans aren’t happy about that, but it was inevitable after the way it all went down this summer.  If you look at the fact that TOB has been singing the praises of Glennon all Summer and had Russell returned he was in line to break a lot of NC State and ACC records, this is what you get.  My recommendation to Pack fans everywhere is to root for both guys and not fall to this media trap.  The best case scenario will be for both guys to put up great numbers and render this comparison trivial by midseason.

The other game tonight that Wolfpack fans should be paying attention to, although it won’t be on TV anywhere to actually watch it, is the matchup between Wake Forest and Syracuse.  We play at Wake next week and their game tonight could give some indication if they are any better than last year or still one of the worst teams in the ACC.  They are an underdog playing on the road in what should be a hostile Carrier Dome so an upset could give them a lot of momentum and confidence heading into next week.

Sit back, crack a few beers, and celebrate tonight … college football season is here!!!

Finally … game week is here!!!  I don’t know why, but the offseason has seemed extraordinarily long this year.  It’s time to start talking games, depth chart, injuries, tailgating menus, and everything else.  TOB had his first weekly presser this week to talk Liberty.  I won’t bore you by rehashing that so go over to GoPack to get all the info and quotes.  Here’s the depth chart (courtesy of The Wolfpacker):

A few quick thoughts … It’s nice getting Duran Christophe back so quickly after his surgery for a torn knee meniscus.  No sooner than getting good news like that, though, we find out Sterling Lucas will be out the entire season with a knee injury.  James Washington will get the first shot at stepping in for Mustafa Greene while his out with his foot injury.  Other than that there weren’t many surprises.  The biggest surprise will be if the depth chart looks the exact same next week for Wake and then again the following week for South Alabama and so on.

I’m ready to get out to Carter-Finley and start tailgating now.  Saturday can’t get here soon enough.  Here’s a video to tide you over until then.  Go Pack!

Affiliation:  Big East

Nickname:  Bearcats

Stadium:  Nippert Stadium (capacity 35,097) … 4th oldest playing site in college football (since 1901)

Recent Results:  Went to back-to-back BCS bowl games in ’08 and ’09 under previous coach Brian Kelly.  Only prior meeting between State-Cincy was last year’s 30-19 win by the Pack.

Head Coach:  Butch Jones (2nd season at Cincinnati, 4-8)

After the 3 best seasons in school history (10-3 in ’07, 11-3 in ’08, and 12-1 in ’09) the Bearcats took a huge step back last year to a 4-8 record.  Their offense was one of the best in the Big East and their defense was middle of the pack so they shouldn’t have been that bad.  Enter the ugly T word that all college football coaches hate like the devil … turnovers.  They coughed up 29 giveaways, while only managing 14 takeaways for a -15 turnover margin good for 2nd worst in the FBS (and a 24 turnover swing from ’09).  A regression to the mean in the turnover department combined with repeat performances every where else would put the Bearcats back in a bowl game and the mix for the Big East title.

This year’s team returns 15 starters (5 offense, 10 defense) including players to watch QB Zach Collaros, RB Isaiah Pead, and LB J.K. Schaffer.

QB Zach Collaros (Senior) is a dangerous dual-threat quarterback.  He started 4 games in 2009 (1,434 yards, 10 TDs, 2 INTs … 344 yards rushing, 4 TDs) in replace of injured starter Tony Pike keeping the Bearcats’ undefeated season intact.  Big things were expected of him last year and, while he largely disappointed, he was still good enough (2902 yards, 26 TDs, 14 INTs … 202 yards rushing, 4 TDs) to be selected 1st team All-Big East.

RB Isaiah Pead (Senior) is a tough, small back that will be the workhorse of the running game.  Last year he rushed for 1,029 yards, 6 TDs and added 190 yards, 1 TD through the air earning him 2nd team All-Big East honors.  Several pundits, way smarter than myself, expect him to have a huge year and possibly break the Cincinnati single season rushing record of 1,361 yards.  Pead could be in for a big day against our already shaky defensive line playing without DT J.R. Sweezy for this game.

LB J.K. Schaffer (Senior) is the unquestioned leader of the defense as the Bearcats top tackler two years running (100 tackles in ’09, 111 tackles in ’10).  To go along with those tackles he had 9.5 TFL, 3 sacks, 1 INT, and 2 forced fumbles earning him 2nd team All-Big East honors last year.

Offensive Summary:  Cincy gained more yards and scored more points last year than any other offense in the Big East.  Against the Pack, however, they struggled mightily all game.  We will try to do a lot of the same that we did last year (see pic below), but Cincy will be looking for a little revenge.  Expect them to run a lot of read-action out of their shotgun spread offense and keep pressure on our back seven to stay disciplined and make plays.

Defensive Summary:  The Bearcats defense struggled last year due to youth and inexperience.  This year they return almost everybody so they should be much improved.  They run a 4-3 base defense with a lot of zone coverages, very similar to our base defense.  Expect the defensive line to take up blockers, clog running lanes, and leave the linebackers free to make plays.  Our offensive line must play well to give us a chance.

Prediction:  We absolutely dominated the game last year in Raleigh, but it will be very tough to repeat that.  Both teams have a short week to prepare for the game which always benefits the home team.  This will be Glennon’s first game under the prime time ESPN lights and first true hostile road environment (let’s face it, Wake is anything but hostile) so chances are he will struggle.  This game will be a tough test for the Pack … the first one that not having Russell Wilson could ultimately cost us in the W column.

Note:  This is the final game preview that I’ll do before the season starts.  I’ll post all others the week of the respective game.