NC State Wolfpack

By Tony Haynes

All right, so maybe NC State's National Championship aspirations have gone down the tubes, and those dreams of a miraculous unbeaten season have been shattered. But if I would have told you before the season that the Pack would be 4-1 through five games, many of you would have questioned my mental health.

Following last weekend's 34-27 loss to a Clemson team that truly is a national title contender, Wolfpack coach Chuck Amato and his disgruntled squad filed slowly through a narrow tunnel and into their cramped locker room at Memorial Stadium. Each of them, to a man, knew that indeed they had belonged on the same field with the powerful Tigers.

Not only did the Pack compete, it had a realistic chance of winning. A three-touchdown underdog coming in, NC State went to Death Valley and went toe-to-toe with one of the ACC's neighborhood bullies, and didn't give an inch.

And for the fifth straight week, freshman quarterback Philip Rivers proved that he truly was worthy of a feature piece in Sports Illustrated. Every time the 18-year old from Athens, Alabama broke the huddle and brought his team to the line of scrimmage, the noise cascading down from the massive double-deck stadium was equivalent to the sound of ten freight trains. The noise, coupled with Clemson's relentless blitzing pressure, would have been enough to unnerve a test pilot. But Rivers never wavered.

By days end, he had thrown for 370-yards and three touchdowns.

"We were hoping that he wouldn't continue to play like he had been, but he did and I think he's for real," said Tigers coach Tommy Bowden. "That's impressive because I think we have a pretty good defense."

And just as impressively, Rivers is putting up big numbers without the compliment of an effective running game. At Clemson, the Wolfpack could muster only 32 yards on the ground. NC State's fancy formations and intricate passing plays are highly entertaining, but if he had his preference, offensive coordinator Norm Chow would like to have the option of lining up and knocking some people off the ball every now and then.

With six games remaining, the season that NC State and its fans had hoped for is well within reach. Other than its October 28th meeting with Florida State, the Wolfpack will be given a legitimate shot of winning its remaining games. But first things first. There is this nasty little losing streak that folks will be talking about this week. It's been seven long years since the Pack walked off the field with a victory in hand against the boys in baby blue.

Carolina is desperate for a league win and certainly can't afford another conference loss at Kenan Stadium. In addition to the motivational factors, a bye week has given the Heels extra time to prepare for this game, and you can bet they'll give the Pack some new looks. And as it showed in its last outing against Georgia Tech, UNC's offense, under the tutelage of former State head coach Mike O'Cain, is a lot better than it had been in the previous two years.

The O'Cain connection and the seven game Carolina winning streak will certainly add a little spice to this Saturday's clash in Chapel Hill. But above all else, this one is important because the winner will have every opportunity to achieve an upper division finish in the ACC.

It's just too bad we all have to wait until Saturday.