Like Father, Like Son

As you may already know, South Carolina TE Weslye Saunders announced earlier this week that he was going to talk with his coach, Steve Spurrier.

"I'm going to talk to Coach (Steve) Spurrier beforehand and see if he's OK if I get a 15-yard penalty," Saunders said. "Because I'm gonna do some sort of extra celebration if I get a touchdown on the Wolfpack."

In today's Charlotte Observer (via The State), there is another quote from good ol' Weslye:

“A lot of the Wolfpack fans hate my dad, so (there is) a little extra incentive to go out there and do well and show them up a little bit.”

In case you didn't know, Weslye's father is News & Observer columnist Barry Saunders. In today's article about the story, the elder Saunders says:

“I cringed, but I appreciated the quote. I wish someone else on the team had said it. But as a journalist, I appreciate it.”

There are several problems with this whole situation.

Mr. Saunders (the old one) is NOT a journalist. He's a columnist. If he was a journalist (someone whose work is based in fact, rather than fiction), NC State fans wouldn't "hate" him.

Mr. Saunders turned 4 or 5 State fans taunting Chris Paul over the death of his grandfather into an arena-wide chant that he used as the basis of a column ripping Wolfpack fans. He failed to mention the State fans who immediately got the taunting fans to be quiet.

He wrote a column chastising NC State's administration for failing to interview a minority candidate for their head basketball coaching vacancy. I'm only assuming that it was written before Sidney Lowe got the job.

I'm pretty sure he wrote a column stating that the tailgating restrictions put in place after the tragic shooting a few years ago weren't restrictive enough. That ignores the fact that no one involved in that incident was a student at NC State or had a ticket to the game.

Any ill feelings that NC State fans have for Mr. Saunders have been earned.

As for the younger Saunders, I don't really have a lot to say. Unlike his father, he doesn't get to hide behind a keyboard. Young Weslye has to play the game, and has a chance to back up his bravado. He is a very talented player, so he may do it. Or, an NCSU LB may make him eat those words.

The only real problem I have with anything that he said is that he attended high school in Durham, but claims Raleigh as his hometown. Maybe he should mix in a geography class at some point.

I just wouldn't recommend any special dances.

NC State versus South Carolina

The 2009 college football season gets under way Thursday, in a nationally-televised contest between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the NC State Wolfpack. The game is a rematch of last year's season opener, which saw the Gamecocks win in a rout, 34-0.

I have spent a some time over the last week or so in message board conversations at GamecockAnthem.com, the South Carolina scout.com affiliate. According to most of the fine people there, NCSU shouldn't even bother to take the field. Granted, the people there aren't coaches or players, so there opinions don't matter anymore than mine, but I've never seen a fanbase so convinced that a game is over before it starts.

"johnnyplaid" wrote:

"It should be an easy win for us. We'll probably hold back so as to not give too much away to Georgia, our first real test."

"kickatigerinthearse" wrote:

"Your WR corps is about the 10th best we'll see this season."

It goes on and on.

The most entertaining idea they have come up with is that NC State's offense is not any good. Since South Carolina shut out the Wolfpack, obviously the Wolfpack is no good. Nevermind the firepower that the offense showed down the stretch last season. Forget that Russell Wilson was All-ACC as a redshirt freshman. NC State's offense returns almost everyone from last season, so the most likely occurrence will be that the offense will come out of the gate firing on all cylinders.

I'm not going to suggest that Wilson will only throw one interception. That was a highly unusual event, and isn't likely to repeat. However, Wilson doesn't seem to be the type of QB that is going to make huge mistakes, as some recent NCSU QB's have done. The running game is solid, with a healthy Jemelle Eugene and a rejuvenated Toney Baker. The wide receivers are talented, fast, and experienced.

Most of the time, teams whose lineup is peppered with freshmen and RS-freshmen (or upperclassmen who haven't played a lot) are much better in the last half of the season than they are at the beginning. That's what happened to NCSU last season. Just don't suggest that to a South Carolina fan.

The Gamecocks have (by my non-scientific count) 13 freshmen listed on their two-deep depth chart. 3 RS-FR and 1 true FR will be starting, the other 9 players will be coming off the bench.

South Carolina fans seem to expect that these players will be able to step in and play without any first game jitters. They lost seven players to the NFL draft last year, and will tell you that every player who replaces them is an instant upgrade. They replaced their offensive line coach (among others), and don't expect the line to have any problems adjusting to the new philosophies.

Don't get me wrong. I don't pretend to see things objectively. I do, however, realize that NCSU has some question marks. There are several untested players in the secondary. Audie Cole has to live up to the hype he's been getting at LB, and Dwayne Maddox or Terrell Manning (or both) have to try to fill the gap left by Nate Irving's absence, which will not be easy.

I am very confident in the offense, though. I don't think NC State is going to have problems scoring points against South Carolina. South Carolina has talented players on offense, but they don't have a lot of talented players who have been productive. Their quarterback has had turnover issues (among other issues), and you can't tell if that is solved by preseason scrimmages (right, Daniel Evans?).

To sum up, I think any South Carolina fan expecting anything close to last year's result is in for a rude, rude awakening. This game is a big game for both teams, but it's bigger for NC State. South Carolina is basically playing for 3rd in their division. NC State has its eyes on a bigger prize: a division title, and a chance to win an ACC Championship.

I expect the Wolfpack to win, and I don't think it's going to be a terribly close game.

Wow...

I haven't posted anything since August 25. At that time, I was quite excited by the fact the Russell Wilson was taking over as quarterback at NC State. I announced it by saying "Hello Mr. Wilson!" in the post just below this one.

As I write this, NCSU sits at 1-2. They have sandwiched losses to South Carolina (34-0) and Clemson (27-9) around a relatively lackluster victory over William and Mary. The defense has actually looked pretty good, and has been getting the turnovers that defensive coordinator Mike Archer and head coach Tom O'Brien talked about last year and over the summer. The problem has been that the offense has been inefficient.

That's really the nicest thing I can say about the offense.

Some of the ineptitude of the offense I attribute to Russell Wilson getting knocked out (literally) during the South Carolina game. The team had seemingly found a groove, and was moving the ball down the field, when Wilson got his bell rung. Daniel Evans entered, and you could literally hear the air come out of NC State's sails. Before you knew it, a 0-0 defensive struggle was a 34-0 blowout.

After missing the William and Mary game, Wilson played OK against Clemson. He didn't light the world on fire, but he did show an ability to avoid "big negative" plays. He may actually be too quick to throw the ball away. But, he is a redshirt freshman...I expect that as the season progresses he will learn when to challenge defenders and when to throw the ball away. Right now, he's a little timid about throwing the ball to receivers who aren't wide open.

So, going into this week, here's the story: NC State, decimated by injury, is getting ready to host the 15th-ranked team in the country. They are down to the 3rd string TE, have no receivers who made any significant contributions last year, have two converted defensive linemen starting on the offensive line, have lots of freshman and sophomores in the two-deep, and their quarterback is a RS-Fr. who has already been knocked cold this season. Recipe for disaster, right?

WRONG!!

That 15th-ranked team is from Greenville, NC. The East Carolina Pirates.

NC State's "get right" opponent.

Remember last year? 1-5 NC State went to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium and thumped the Pirates.

This year, ECU is riding high. Their fans are talking about going undefeated and making the a BCS bowl. Tickets for the game are selling on the "black market" for ridiculous prices. The Pirates and their fans are hyped and ready to come to Raleigh. They have something in store for the Wolfpack.

Whatever. I do not and will not believe it until I see it.

I think that the ECU team that played Tulane is much closer to the real thing than the team that beat West Virginia. I don't think the Virginia Tech victory means much, because Virginia Tech with Sean Glennon at QB is not much better (if any) than NCSU on offense. I think that Russell Wilson will be much more comfortable this week, and will begin to put things together. The Wolfpack offense doesn't necessarily need to score a ton of points. They just need to string together a few first downs, so that the defense can stay off the field for a while. I think that happens this week.

I don't care who they have beaten. I don't care where they are ranked. They are still East Carolina.

North Carolina State will win the game.

NC State, UNC Reach Super Regionals

Congratulations to the Wolfpack and the Tar Heels on reaching the second weekend of the NCAA Baseball Tournament. Both teams are now just two wins away from a trip to Omaha for the College World Series.

North Carolina will host Coastal Carolina, and NC State will go on the road to face the Georgia Bulldogs.

Best of luck to both teams.

Hickson To NBA? Possibly.

North Carolina State C/F JJ Hickson has decided to enter his name into the NBA Draft, head coach Sidney Lowe said on his final radio show of the season. Hickson will not hire an agent, but will show his wares at pre-draft camps and workouts. After determining where he is likely to be drafted, Hickson would then determine whether he stays in the draft or returns to NC State for another season.

Hickson's current draft status is unclear. Collegehoopsnet.com does not have him listed in their two round mock draft at all, but lists him as a potential first round pick. Draftexpress.com has Hickson projected to go 26th overall. Insidehoops.com projects JJ at 27th overall.

The assessment of Hickson's draft potential will be up in the air until the April 27th early entry deadline has passed. Up until that point, there are several players whose decisions about leaving college early for the NBA will affect where Hickson ends up in the draft.

Ultimately, the decision will most likely come down to Hickson's willingness to risk his future.

At the current projected draft positions, he would be going to playoff teams. Those teams are usually not as "needy" when it comes to rookies, so JJ could end up in the NBA Development League for long stretches. Also, rookie contracts are guaranteed for two year, with two more years as team options. If JJ is unable to crack the roster of the team that drafts him in two years, he may not get an immediate chance anywhere else. He'd then be faced with going overseas to try to work his way back to the NBA. Foreign basketball leagues are littered with U.S. players who thought they were more prepared for the NBA than they actually proved to be.

The only real risk in returning to NC State is injury. The work ethic that Hickson displayed as a freshman makes it likely that he would further develop his skills if he spent another year at NCSU. If he could improve his defense, and become better at recognizing double teams in the post on offense, Hickson would stand a good chance of improving his draft position considerably.

There really is no clear-cut right or wrong answer. It is entirely up to JJ. As a State fan, I'd like to see him spend another year in college, but I can't blame him for chasing his dreams, if that's what he ultimately decides to do. I wish him the best of luck, no matter what he decides.

StateFans' Wake Comparison A Little Off Base

StateFansNation posted this comparison of NC State's basketball season to Wake Forest's season. While everything in the comparison is factual, I can't really convince myself that the comparison is a fair one.

For one thing, they use recruiting rankings as part of their reasoning. Recruiting rankings are opinions, and the way that those opinions are reached are sometimes suspect.

Wake's class was 28th, but probably because they had 3 guys, and NCSU had four. Jeff Teague was the 8th-ranked point guard, and James Johnson was the 9th-ranked small forward. Both were four-star players. The third player, Gary Clark, was the 24th ranked shooting guard. NC State's class consisted of JJ Hickson (3rd center), Javier Gonzalez (30th point guard), Tracy Smith (18th power forward) and Johnny Thomas (40th small forward).

If you take the players national rank at their position, Wake's three average a 13.7, and the three that played this year for NCSU average 17. If you add in the fourth player, Johnny Thomas, State's average drops to 22.75.

Teague and Johnson Wake's top 2 scorers, and Teague is the leading rebounder. Hickson is NCSU's leading scorer and rebounder, but the difference is that Teague is not dependent on anyone else getting him the ball. JJ requires help to get the ball, and there hasn't been a lot of that for NCSU this year.

Also, StateFans mentions that Wake had to replace Kyle Visser, while NCSU had to replace Engin Atsur. Obviously, a senior point guard is more important than a senior PF/C. Atsur was responsible for a lot of the positive things that happened to the '06-'07 Wolfpack, while Visser was playing on a young team with a freshman point guard, Ishmael Smith.

I'm pretty sure that Wake Forest had 7 or 8 players during last year's season, as well. While that seems like something simple, remember that NCSU only had 6 that played regularly. And by regularly, I mean a lot. When Teague came in and earned a starting spot, he didn't replace anyone who had any reason to complain. There was no player on Wake's team who thought he was going to the NBA after this year that now had to back into Teague's shadow, and end up a shell of last year's version of himself.

The talent of JJ Hickson, and Sidney Lowe's (right) decision to try to utilize it as much as possible, may very well have led to some chemistry issues. The fact is, in today's college game, the players have to deal with not being guaranteed anything. They have to earn their minutes THIS YEAR, no matter what they did last year. With the current NBA rules, there are players every year in college who would have gone into the NBA. Sometimes, those players go to teams with returning players at their position. Returning players who are simply not NBA players. Should the more talented freshman sit, and yield to the less-talented upper-classman? Or should the upper-classman understand that the team is bigger than he is, and accept his role?

Ask Quentin Thomas. The UNC senior came in to back up Raymond Felton. Felton left, and Bobby Frasor took Thomas' starting spot, relegating him to the backup role, again. Then, Ty Lawson came in, and beat out Frasor, who became the backup, dropping Thomas to 3rd string. When injuries knocked both Lawson and Frasor out of the lineup, Thomas came in and performed. He wasn't sad, and he wasn't out of shape. He was ready to do his job.

StateFans also references the death of Skip Prosser in the comparison. While I'm sure they mean it as something that should have hurt the team, in reality it probably made the team immune to the type of chemisty issues that plagued NC State this season. Wake's players banded together to support Dino Gaudio, and each and every one of them would run through a wall for him. Also, Gaudio probably helped to recruit the players, and they probably still run a system similar to Prosser's.

The fact is, StateFans' comparison could be used as a reason to look forward to improvement next year. Last year's Wake team was 5-11, with a freshman PG learning the ropes. Ishmael Smith has played much better this year, just as NCSU fans should expect Javier Gonzalez to improve going into his sophomore season.

Julius Mays is a combo guard who is playing the point for his high school team, just as Jeff Teague did as a high school player. If Mays has the ability to penetrate a defense, he may be able to contribute very quickly next season. Also, CJ Williams, a G/F, will provide a boost to the team's overall quickness and athleticism. Also, Johnny Thomas will be healed from his injury, which should add another athletic slasher to the mix.

Finally, let's look at the preseason predictions. NCSU was picked third, Wake was picked 11th. I would say that's probably because all the media members knew Sidney Lowe, and did not know Dino Gaudio. If Skip Prosser were the coach, this Wake team would have been picked higher than 11th, I'm sure.

The fact is that last year both teams finished 5-11 in the ACC. Both teams lost a senior to the European leagues. Both teams brought in good recruiting classes. What reasoning was used to predict that they'd finish 8 places apart in the standings? I'd question the predictors, personally, who chose to believe the ACC Tournament performance instead of the performance for the entire season.

I choose to look at this comparison and think that next year could see NC State finish somewhere near .500 in the ACC. That would get them back to respectability, and show some of the doubters that Sid's plan may actually work.