The days are dwindling on N.C. State’s preseason football practice, and players are ready to start hitting people other than their teammates. The Wolfpack started practice on July 31 and have already learned a lot about themselves. The team is set to take the field next Thursday at South Carolina.
From the ongoing quarterback battle, to the injuries the team has suffered, preseason practice has produced the story lines. Here are a few that you may have missed from over the summer.
Quarterback raceAt the first preseason practice, last year’s starting quarterback, graduate student Daniel Evans, said that if you put each of the Pack’s five quarterbacks together, State would have Tim Tebow at quarterback.
But without Florida’s Heisman trophy-winning quarterback, coach Tom O’Brien has been left to observe what he called the biggest quarterback battle he’s ever been a part of.
“The quarterback is your leader of the offense. Other than the center, he’s the only guy that touches the ball every play, and he has to make decisions to do things with it,” O’Brien said. “The faster we can get to that point, the better off we can be. But I don’t know when that will be.”
That day could be today. O’Brien holds his pre-game press conference for South Carolina today and may decide to announce the final starter then.
The coach cut the race to three quarterbacks last week: graduate student Daniel Evans, redshirt freshman Russell Wilson and true freshman Mike Glennon.
The exclusion of redshirt junior Harrison Beck and redshirt sophomore Justin Burke resulted in Burke transferring to Louisville and Beck on the outside of the race looking in.
Injury bugAs with most college teams in the preseason, the Pack has suffered its fair share of injuries. While some players, like Evans and tight end Anthony Hill, used the spring to recuperate, other key players suffered injuries this summer.
Redshirt junior running back Toney Baker, while recovering from last year’s knee injury, had surgery to clean out residue from his last surgery and could be out for an extended period. The surgery comes despite Baker claiming he was 100 percent this summer. Andre Brown re-broke his foot in spring practice, but recovered over the summer and re-joined the team two weeks ago.”I know I’ll be cleared to play before games,” Brown said. “I’ll definitely be out there Thursday.”
The receiving corps also suffered with last week’s news that junior Donald Bowens, the team’s leading returning receiver, will be out for the season with a spine injury. But coaches are hoping that the return of redshirt junior Geron James will help fill the void.
“I feel a lot better and my spirits are back up,” James said. “I just love being out here with my teammates.”
The injury to junior college safety transfer Clem Johnson further depletes an already thin secondary unit. Johnson broke his jaw in one of the team’s scrimmages. Afterwards O’Brien noted Johnson’s rise up the depth chart, saying he probably would have been a starter.
South Carolina watchAfter Tuesday night’s scrimmage, the last for the team this preseason, focus shifts to the Gamecocks. While the coaches have been poring over game tape for months, players will turn their attention to team they’ll be facing in Columbia next week.
The season opener is a nationally televised game, and the players say they are looking forward to the opportunity of having the nation’s eyes upon them.
One of the Pack’s main focuses leading up to the game will have to be South Carolina receiver Kenny McKinley, the speedy six-feet-tall receiver that has garnered preseason All-American honors.
“We’ve seen some tape on their receivers and we know they’re a great passing team,” cornerback DeAndre Morgan said. “We have to step our game up to another level. We’re facing a great receiving core and we know we’re going to be tested a lot.”
The Gamecocks have their own quarterback controversy going, with Chris Smelley and Tommy Beecher battling former hot prospect Stephen Garcia, who coach Steve Spurrier let re-join the team last month after off-the-field problems caused him to be kicked off.
