From the PackPride.com vault: The early years...

I have had the rare privilege over the last few years of being a contributor to one of the largest--if not most-visited--N.C. State sports sites, www.packpride.com. James Henderson and the folks at Scout, who run and host the site, have been kind enough to let me pitch in my two cents on Wolfpack sports over the years.

What follows is a collection of articles I've written throughout the years. Hard to believe the first one I wrote way-back-when in 2002. Remember that time? Yeah, that's when we were lighting the world on fire in football. Seems hard to believe it's been five and a half years since.

*sigh*

Anyways, enjoy some classics from the year of our Lord, 2002:


The Nature of the Rivalry (10/5/2002)

For most of us, it was not a choice we remember making. We were born into it. Raised up in it. Given no other choice but to devote ourselves to it. It’s the Rivalry: State vs. Carolina.

The ACC anything but predictable (10/22/2002)

The conventional notions of who belongs where in the ACC have been thrown out the window.

The Pack--This Year’s Maryland? Hardly. (10/29/2002)

The successes of Maryland in 2001 and N.C. State in 2002 are strikingly similar. 2003 is where the similarities will end.

Were we ever so young?

More to follow...

View the complete entry of "From the PackPride.com vault: The early years..."

Who's this dashing young man?

Oh yeah, that guy.

Always wondered what he looked like with hair...

And before you guys get all over me for having a picture of Herb on my blog, I can tell you truthfully that I found it looking for some photoshopping material. I'm not one of these, "Herb, come back!" types. Just thought it was a funny picture I'd never seen before. Chillax.

View the complete entry of "Who's this dashing young man?"

The call.

Man, I hate crap like this.

Not because it's a call that went against us. It's just a bad call to make in that scenario, because when you make it, you open the door for conspiracy theorists who clog up the normal flow of a basketball discussion.

Was there contact between Ben and Demarcus? Of course. But was it enough to justify a call in that situation, with State clinging to a one-point lead and Duke in the midst of a comeback? In my opinion, no.

The conspiracy theorists are also bolstered by the fact that Nelson hooks Ben on the way to the basket. The whistle toots at that moment in the play, not when Ben makes the most contact with Nelson.

It feels kind of like the traveling call against Corchiani in '89 against Georgetown in the NCAA tournament...a whistle blown by an official who felt because of the bang-bang nature of the play that something must be called, but unsure of what, exactly. And he has about .5 seconds to make a decision. And just like the Georgetown game, the team coming in with the higher prestige gets the benefit of the doubt.

I hate conspiracy theorists in college sports. I don't believe that there is any real call from on top to boost Duke or Carolina through uneven officiating. But gosh, doesn't it just seem like they get all the breaks like this?

View the complete entry of "The call."

Rifle wins its second straight SEARC championship

http://www.gopack.com/

Suck it, Citadel!

It's worth noting that the only reason I even care about rifle results is that way back when, I once tried out for the N.C. State rifle team.

I grew up plinking tin cans with a .22, and thought I was capable enough with a rifle to make the team. So, I tried. Turns out, genetics were more of an enemy than anything else. The proper technique to shoot a competition air rifle is to prop your support arm (in most cases, your left) on your hip by digging your elbow into your side right above the hip bone.

By virtue of either a longer-than-average torso or a shorter upper arm length, I had to bend my back to an exaggerated extent to get my arm into my hip. Haunched over and unbalanced, I shot a solid pattern but not well enough to make the team. My brief attempt to make a varsity sport at State was over before it even really started.

So to this day I still keep tabs on the rifle team, wondering what life as a rifle team member would've been like. Chicks, booze, shoe contracts--the whole nine.

Oh well...

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So close...

...yet so far away.

(apologies for the Hall 'N Oates reference)







DUKE 87
NC State 86

Man, there's nothing that hurts more than losing a home game to Duke by one point. Especially when you've led most of the game and--after shooting ridiculously well from the free throw line the first 3/4 of the game--you suddenly go cold from the free throw line trying to seal the deal.

Three-for-six down the stretch when Duke was charging like a roided-up bull just didn't get it done. You have to play nearly perfect in all phases of the game to pull off that kind of upset. We did it in 1998 against Carolina in the Dean Dome; we didn't do it today.

Two of those three crucial misses were on Javier Gonzalez, but it's tough to get too down on the guy after his gutty performance today. Ben McCauley's 19 points bested his 18 by one, but he had three assists to only one turnover against a Duke defense known for its tenacious D. He repeatedly brought the ball up the court against tough pressure and didn't fold. Kudos to you, young man...here's hoping you use this game to propel you into a productive offseason.

Tracy Smith and Trevor "Turd" Ferguson had good games again. Smith made the most of his 22 minutes in a starting role, scoring 14 on 4-5 shooting and a perfect 6-6 from the line. Turd chipped in with another nine, giving him 37 over the last three games. These two could be the cornerstone, along with Gonzalez, of the rebuilding project Sidney faces next season if Hickson leaves for the pros.

Speaking of Hickson, he pitched in eight in 18 minutes, along with five rebounds. He just hasn't taken over games over the back half of this season like I thought he would. I'm not sure if it's freshman fatigue or just an increased level of competition, but his resume for an early exit at this point looks pretty sparse. I think he needs to return for another year to get stronger physically and more mature mentally. He still breaks down defensively too much in trying to crush an opponent on his way to the basket. Once he learns how to play a tough defensive game within the overall defensive scheme, the blocks and highlight-reel defensive plays will come to him.

I was encouraged to see State play some matchup zone tonight. It kept Duke from beating our players off the dribble repeatedly, preventing the drive-n-kick threes that break a team's will. And offensively, the team played well enough throughout most of the game to get even ol' coach K to play a little zone to slow down our attack.

But at the end of the day, an "L" is an "L." As good as I felt about certain parts of this game, the inability to close it out, when up as much as 13 in the second half and up eight with under 4:00 to go, makes this a tough loss to swallow. It's indicative of how young and inexperienced our guards are. While Duke was surging late in the game, we turtled up and turned off the killer instinct that earned us the lead for most of the game. It's been shown time and time again--when you play not to lose, you almost invariably do. And the two misses by Gonzalez late in the game were probably a function of some freshmen nerves, as well.

Give Duke a ton of credit. They made every big shot and free throw they needed down the stretch to win it. They are an embodiment of their tough-as-nails coach. Beating them is no small feat.

The question for this team now is, "What do you take from this game?" Will they respond to the almost-coulda-shoulda that came as a result of their much higher effort level? Or, will their spirit--already fragile at this point--crumble in their final games of the season?

We shall see...

View the complete entry of "So close..."