Under the rain and the lights of a sold-out Carter-Finley Stadium Saturday afternoon, N.C. State came back from a 14-point deficit to earn a victory over previously undefeated Pittsburgh, 38-31. The Pack was plagued with penalties and missed tackles throughout the game, but it was still able to walk away with the victory.
With the team compiling three straight victories and heading into conference play, many would assume the Wolfpack a good team, but the team is not playing well enough for coach Tom O’Brien. In the locker room after the comeback victory, O’Brien didn’t mask his disappointment.
“We are a bad football team, and I am a bad coach,” O’Brien said.
Although State racked up another win, the team had 12 penalties, several coming before the snap. O’Brien said he credits himself for the team’s struggles.
“Just too many mistakes — you got to face up to some facts,” O’Brien said. “We were lucky to escape with a victory, but we’re going into the ACC now and I don’t think that performance will get it done. We have a lot of work to do this week.”
O’Brien’s attitude towards the win was not unexpected for his players, according to redshirt junior wide receiver Darrell Davis.
“We all understood what coach was saying,” Davis said. “We made a lot of mistakes and missed a lot of tackles, but as long as we can sure up those things we can be a great team.”
Entering the game, State’s defense led the ACC and ranked second nationally in total defense. That defense did not show up early Saturday, giving up 31 points and missing key tackles. Prior to that, the defense had only given up 28 points in all three games, the fewest since 1991.
Tom O’Brien’s addresses the media after a sloppy 38-31 win over Pittsburgh
Redshirt freshman safety Earl Wolff said the defense just didn’t come together until the second half.
“We were lined up wrong,” Wolff said. “We got together, as a defense, in the second half and played our heart out.”
According to O’Brien, the only reason the Pack walked away with a win was due to its hard work and determination.
“The only reason they won was because they now know how to play hard for 60 minutes,” O’Brien said. “We have learned how to do that. Now if I can coach them any better, we can win some football games and go on.”
Despite several mistakes in the game, the Pack did manage to do a few things well. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Russell Wilson continued his streak and went another game without an interception. Last week, Wilson set the all-time NCAA record for consecutive pass attempts without interception.
With Wilson’s fourth touchdown pass of the night to George Bryan, he tied the game 31-31 with two and a half minutes into the fourth quarter. That pass marked Wilson’s 12th touchdown pass in the previous three games, breaking Philip Rivers’ record of 11 touchdowns in three games.
“I do whatever it takes to win,” Wilson said. “The offensive line did a great job tonight and wide receivers and running backs — they all stepped up and made big time plays at crucial times.”
Next week State hits the road for the first time, traveling to Wake Forest for its first conference match-up. According to redshirt senior halfback Toney Baker, the team needs to buckle down this week and work hard to fix the mistakes that devastated the team Saturday.
“We are excited about getting into conference,” Baker said. “It’s always a dog fight when you go to Wake Forest — it’s pretty intense. We need to practice and really get prepared.”
