2008 NC State Wolfpack Preview

At the end of spring practice North Carolina State coach Tom O’Brien was asked how his second spring with the Wolfpack compared to his first one, in 2007.  “It’s night and day,” he said. “I think everything in our program is way ahead of where we were a year ago.”

Two Minute Drill

A Quick Look at the Wolfpack

Thanks to a 4–2 finish last season and a strong recruiting class in February, North Carolina State fans are feeling pretty good about the future. But the immediate future, as in this season, might not be so bright. First, there’s the schedule. Road games at South Carolina and Clemson, as well as a visit from rising power South Florida, come early in the schedule. Given that the Wolfpack are still trying to figure out their quarterback situation — sound familiar? — and will likely still be tinkering with its offensive line combinations, another slow start is possible. Something in the 2–5 range, perhaps. At least the Chuck Amato days of penalties and turnovers appear to be over. Because of that, the Wolfpack should give themselves at least a chance in just about every game they play. And because of that, if NC State can find cohesion on its offensive line, unearth a playmaker or two on the back seven of its defense and turn kicker Josh Czajkowski into this year’s version of Steven Hauschka, it has the chance to have a special season. Most likely, all of those “ifs” won’t come to fruition, and the Wolfpack will finish somewhere below the .500 mark. Either way, NC State’s future looks better than it did a few years ago. That’s a sign of progress in O’Brien’s second season.

This almost sounds like the type of bravado that O’Brien’s predecessor in Raleigh, Chuck Amato, used to serve up on a regular basis. Trust us, it’s not. The Wolfpack may be ahead of their 2007 schedule, but they’re still behind overall in a lot of ways, which O’Brien is more than happy to point out if asked. There’s uncertainty at quarterback, an annual rite since Philip Rivers graduated. There’s uncertainty on the offensive line, uncertainty at linebacker and uncertainty in the kicking game. The most certain thing about the Wolfpack’s 2008 season is that it will be filled with tough competition. Beginning with a non-conference trip to South Carolina and continuing on into a deep Atlantic Division schedule — Clemson, Florida State, Wake Forest, etc. — State won’t have much time to catch its breath.

At least the Wolfpack won’t be learning on the fly the way they did last season, when the players and the coaches didn’t really get on the same page until midway through the season.

By that measure, State certainly is ahead of its 2007 schedule. Whether that translates into a better record than last year’s 5-7 mark is another matter.

Quarterbacks

Maybe O’Brien was just being his usual secretive self about his quarterbacks when he declared, “We’re still in a situation where I don’t think that position will be solved until the week of the South Carolina game.” Or maybe, given the current situation, he was actually being optimistic. The Wolfpack’s most promising prospect, freshman Mike Glennon, won’t take a snap until fall practice begins. Redshirt freshman Russell Wilson has shown playmaking ability but hasn’t played in a live college game yet. Incumbent starter Daniel Evans missed all of spring practice after having shoulder surgery. The player Evans split time with some last season, Harrison Beck, is still around. And the one quarterback everyone had ruled out, Justin Burke, actually had the most impressive performance in the Wolfpack’s spring game. Look for Wilson to get an early chance to grab the starter’s role. But if no one steps forward, don’t be surprised if Glennon eventually gets on the field.

Running backs

Running back is the area where State has the most proven, talented depth. It’s also the area where that depth is most needed. Toney Baker and Andre Brown, the Wolfpack’s highly touted one-two combination, both went down with injuries in 2007. Brown fractured his foot, while Baker suffered a knee injury early and was granted a medical redshirt. O’Brien says he’s been told that both backs should be ready to go in the fall. Fortunately for the Wolfpack, they don’t have everything riding on the health of Brown and Baker. Last season Jamelle Eugene, who was sixth on the depth chart when he arrived at NC State from Naples, Fla., finally got his chance to shine. And shine he did, leading the Wolfpack with 667 yards rushing, including three 100-yard games. Eugene also proved he could carry a heavy workload if needed, leading O’Brien to dub him “the Energizer Bunny.”

Receivers

The Wolfpack lost their two starters at wideout, John Dunlap and Darrell Blackman, but there shouldn’t be a dropoff. In fact, things should improve. Donald Bowens showed late last season that he is ready to become a No. 1 option. On the other side, Jarvis Williams and Darrell Davis have size (both are 6'4") and plenty of athletic ability. The biggest difference for NC State should be felt at tight end. The Wolfpack get back All-ACC tight end Anthony Hill, who missed all of last season after tearing his ACL in the summer of 2007. His presence over the middle should free things up on the perimeter for State’s receivers. Hill’s backup, redshirt freshman George Bryan, opened eyes during spring practice and also caught a game-winning Hail Mary pass at the end of the spring game.

Offensive linemen

O’Brien has sent plenty of offensive linemen to the pros, but right now he’s not asking for NFL-worthy studs. First, he just wants a cohesive, reliable unit. “We’re still trying to find the best rotation to get five guys up front, the best five guys,” O’Brien says. That could mean a few guys who were playing on the opposite side of the ball last season. NC State moved defensive tackles John Bedics and Ted Larsen over to the offensive line during the spring. In the spring game, both worked with the first unit — Bedics at guard and Larsen at center. If Larsen works out at center, then the Wolfpack could be well on their way to having a solid line. If he doesn’t, Meares Green will fill the spot. Both tackles, Jeraill McCuller and Julian Williams, return, and right guard Curtis Crouch has always had tons of potential. Sophomore Jake Vermiglio, who saw a good deal of action as a true freshman, could work his way into the mix, possibly ahead of Bedics at left guard.

Defensive linemen

There are plenty of holes to fill here with the loss of tackle DeMario Pressley and end Martrel Brown and the shifting of Larsen and Bedics to offense. Fortunately for the Wolfpack, they have some viable options. Markus Kuhn should mitigate the loss of Brown. The native of Germany saw action as a true freshman last season and blossomed when the staff moved him from tackle to strong-side defensive end. The opposite end spot is manned by the line’s biggest playmaker, Willie Young. He finally began to deliver on his potential in the second half of last season, and he finished with 5.5 sacks and 24 quarterback pressures. Inside, one tackle position is firmly held down by Alan-Michael Cash, who led the line in tackles last season. Antoine Holmes, who showed flashes of promise last season after transferring in from junior college, has been moved inside to play next to Cash at tackle.

Linebackers

For the second straight year, State has to replace all three starting linebackers. This time might be even trickier than in 2007. “You had guys that were all seniors coming back that have been in the program,” O’Brien says of 2007. “Now it’s different.” Now, third-year sophomore Nate Irving with his four career starts qualifies as the most experienced member of the unit. The man in the middle should be Ray Michel, who finally gets his chance as a fourth-year junior. Over on the strong side things get, well, trickier. Right now, the listed starter is former walk-on safety Robbie Leonard, who is “pushing 200,” according to O’Brien. That’s pounds, not tackles made.

Defensive backs

This was shaping up to be a position of strength for the Wolfpack until safety DaJuan Morgan, the team’s leading tackler in 2007, elected to enter the NFL Draft. Even without Morgan, though, State brings back experience at the corners in senior Jeremy Gray and sophomore DeAndre Morgan, who split time as a starter as a redshirt freshman last season. Having those two at the corners has allowed the Wolfpack to shift J.C. Neal back from corner to one of the safety spots. Currently the other safety position is a question mark, but if Javon Walker is fully recovered — as expected — from the late-season knee injury he suffered in 2007, he should slide back into a starting role. Walker was emerging as a key playmaker for the defense when he went down last fall.

Specialists

Last season Steven Hauschka came out of nowhere — Middlebury College, actually — to give NC State a very consistent kicker. This time, the Wolfpack really need Josh Czajkowski to at least partially fill those shoes now that Hauschka has moved on. The punting duties will likely fall again to former walk-on Bradley Pierson. He wasn’t very consistent last year, but the other options there haven’t panned out. Who will replace dangerous return man Blackman? It may be a rotation, but don’t be surprised if Brown, with his great straight-line speed, gets a shot.

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