“The Pack is Back”

'06 Football Chuck Amato General36

I wanted to thank WRAL-TV’s Blog for the great NC State coverage over the last few days and take a moment to highlight and some recent items. Before I get too far into the entry, I would be making a big mistake if I did not send your attention to this great entry setting up Saturday’s key game with the Demon Deacons. The Wolfpack is in a position to contend for the ACC Atlantic Division Championship and Saturday’s game is too important to ignore in this entry.

Trestman Coming Into His Own
I will start with David Glenn’s blog entry focusing on Offensive Coordinator, Marc Trestman. Trestman is in the middle of his second year with the Wolfpack and seems to be adjusting to calling a college game.

The Wolfpack’s second-year offensive coordinator had against the Seminoles a coach’s equivalent of a 300-yard passing game, or a 150-yard rushing effort. And Trestman did it against FSU’s Mickey Andrews, one of the best defensive coordinators in the nation.

On Thursday night, Trestman earned his stripes for NCSU, which rushed for 150 yards (on 37 carries) and passed for 190 (13-20, no interceptions, three touchdowns) against the Seminoles. It proved to be the perfect recipe for success.

What do good coordinators do on game day? They know their own personnel and tendencies extremely well, they know their opponent’s personnel and tendencies pretty well, and they make decisions based on those facts that are designed to put their players in the best possible positions to succeed. Against FSU, that’s exactly what Trestman did all night long.

To be fair, Trestman’s statistical performance to this point in his career leaves A LOT to be desired. NC State has scored more than 24 points only once in Trestman’s tenure…and that was against Eastern Kentucky. Through five games this season, the Wolfpack ranks only 90th in the country in scoring offense with 19.6 points per game.

But as Dave Glenn pointed out, it seems that Trestman is hitting his stride and becoming more comfortable with his rhythm and style. It is no coincidence that this improved perception of Trestman corresponds with the switch to Daniel Evans as starting quarterback. Evans passing ability and decision making obviously create significant lattitude in Trestman’s mind. This is manifested in play calling and offensive versatility that makes Trestman feel much more comfortable and confident in what he can call for the offense and what the offense can execute on the field.

Bob Holliday – Inside the NC State Turnaround
Bob Holliday lauds NC State’s win over Florida State in this blog entry.

Not only did N.C. State defeat Florida State, it played with a flair. The Wolfpack braintrust kept the Seminoles off-balance with a mix of running plays-wide, straight ahead, and even a couple of reverses. State also threw the ball 22 times-mostly downfield. Although the statistics were dead even, and Florida State certainly had its chances to win, credit should go to the N.C. State players and coaching staff. The Wolfpack out-thought and out-fought Florida State.

Tom Suiter – “The Pack is Back”
In this entry, Tom Suiter chronicles his personal observations of the NC State football program’s transformation over the last two weeks. Lots of good stuff in this.

It’s easy to criticize Amato because he puts himself out there. He once said that he knew his personality wasn’t for everybody and he added “You know what? I don’t care.”

That’s Chuck Amato. That’s why a lot of State fans love him, and that’s why others don’t. But the emotional coach, the flamboyant often-combative coach, is a fighter who believes in himself and who believes in his team and who loves N.C. State. He has to be given a lot of credit for turning around what could have been a disaster and that thump you hear are people jumping back on the red and white band wagon.

The Pack is back and Amato has held it together. It’s not easy to be a coach. Your fans love you one game and want to have you fired the next. Amato has made State fans think big and what’s wrong with that? Nobody ever gets to the top without thinking that they can.

'06 Football Chuck Amato General

36 Responses to “The Pack is Back”

  1. noah 10/13/2006 at 4:49 PM #

    It would be interesting to compare the revenues of schools with the word “State” in their title vs. the other in state schools.

    With the exception of Ohio, the “state” school is pretty much forgotten in the athletic world.

  2. WolfRed 10/13/2006 at 4:50 PM #

    Does anyone know for sure what the sources of income are for the “RICH” schools? Who makes the most money and where does it all come from? I know this is a big subject, but it is very important.

  3. RAWFS 10/13/2006 at 4:51 PM #

    chop – we’re in complete agreement. We just need some sustained excellence in order to make the branding more marketable. Whether that would be done effectively by WSM is anyone’s guess, but one thing’s for sure: NCSU is not in the bottom 5% of on-the-field performance lately, not with the four major sports anyway.

  4. Wolfpack4ever 10/13/2006 at 6:28 PM #

    Yes FSU burned us in the flat once early. That play was nailed for no gain by DeJuan Morgan after we made our adjustments. Our rover handled that, not the OLB. After we made the adjustment to stopping it (not neccessarily preventing it from being thrown), Jeff Bowden stopped calling it.

    We are being about that like they were about our reverses in the first series — can’t get it out of our mind.

  5. Woof Wolf 10/13/2006 at 7:33 PM #

    I have loved these 4th quarter comebacks, but I’m ready to relax and party in the 4th quarter for a change.

    How about 21-7 at the half and a 31-10 final. That would be great but… I’ll probably have to take out my teeth so I don’t bite my fingernails again.

  6. Wolfpack4ever 10/13/2006 at 8:49 PM #

    Dan Says: …Our biggest problem this year hasnt been play calling. Its been the O-line getting a push. That happened in the 2nd half against FSU. If that keeps happening, you’ll see the 3rd and shorts you ask for.

    Dan, got room for a differing opinion? I watched my DVR to get a look at the O-line. It wasn’t so much a push as it was the result of “pass-action run” plays — delays and draws out of the gun — something DE did at Brougton. Yes, our O-line was clearing people out but it was a sideways push creating running lanes. Pushing the line of scrimmage gives away that it is a run. Using the rushing D-lines momentum to take them where you want them to go is beating them with coaching.

    BTW Since Mr. Tyler took it as his personal objective to destroy the opponents O-line, the runner and the line of scrimmage were meeting at the QB the last time BC had the ball.

  7. CaptainCraptacular 10/14/2006 at 8:01 AM #

    ^ *With the exception of Ohio, the “state� school is pretty much forgotten in the athletic world.*

    Gotta throw LSU and to a lesser degree FSU in there. LSU in particular has in-state revenue pretty much to itself and its numbers reflect that. FSU not as much because its sharing with UF, but judging by the number of people I see on a daily basis displaying some kind of FSU gear, their marketing is doing just fine.

  8. legacyman 10/14/2006 at 9:09 AM #

    Several posters got it right. We just have never, except on a few short periods, had a sustained athletic excellence in any sport. We have been good for periods but not great. Two NCAA titles in basketball should be enough to keep us up there but we have to win big and often to keep it going. Dook and unc-ch have had the spotlight, it seems, for decades now and it is hard to inch into it for us.

    On another point, NC State has had a pitiful effort at marketing itself as long as I can remember and that goes back to 1960. For some reason, perhaps a tight-fisted approach, we have never produced a classy ad program. Things do appear to be improving but we need to blast the airways with pro NC State info and that goes to the athletic dept. and their info folks.

  9. Wolfpack4ever 10/14/2006 at 6:58 PM #

    For some reason, perhaps a tight-fisted approach, we have never produced a classy ad program.

    Oh, so you know about Willis Casey. So proud of the fact that Athletics Department was always in the black. Probably paid cash for his personal car. The guy is dead so I’d better cool it.

  10. class of 74 10/15/2006 at 4:08 PM #

    ^I’d take Casey over Fowler is a skinny minute.

  11. Wolfpack4ever 10/17/2006 at 8:26 PM #

    class of 74 Says: “^I’d take Casey over Fowler is a skinny minute.”

    Asking in a serious way, did you know Willis Casey? Vulgar, no personal ethics, chewed his coaches out publicly in the Case Athletic Center lobby.

    I realize that Fowler has a bad rep here, but check out hte coaches who left under Casey. I’m not certain because I wasn’t paying a lot of attention then but I thing quite a few left. I wouldn’t have worked for that SOB on a bet.

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