The year that could have been.

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Do you remember when State started the season with a ranking in the top 10? How about when they were supposed to win the ACC? CJ Leslie as POY? It seems like so long ago that the media was crowning this as the team that was going to bring glory back to Raleigh. Mark Gottfried was the savior for Wolfpack basketball. He was breaking the Wolfpack from the chains of the blues down the road. Is some of that true? Yes. As much as we all wanted? Absolutely not.

Most RATIONAL fans knew that the season wasn’t going to be as pretty as it was being predicted. Unfortunately, the media didn’t, and fed the rest of the country NC State steroids. This was portrayed as a team that wasn’t on the rise, but was already there. After hearing it on ESPN, hearing it on the radio, and reading it in print and online – a good portion of us really started believing it. That’s why we sit here now, the week of the ACC tournament, feeling as if we have to have a good showing to save the season. 

This team is easily the most talented that’s been in Raleigh in years. There’s no denying it. CJ Leslie is arguably the most talented player in the league. Richard Howell turned into an absolute beast that was well deserving of his 1st team honors. Lorenzo Brown (while healthy) was everything that he was supposed to be. Scott Wood continued to be a threat from outside and the trio of freshmen generally lived up to their hype. This was it. This was the year. Unfortunately, it’s in danger of turning into the year that could have been.

From terrible fouls, to terrible decisions, to sometimes what seemed to be bad luck – this team didn’t come close to their ceiling. 3 or 4 years ago we would have all been happy with a 11-7 record in the ACC and a 22-9 record overall. To be honest, we should be now. This program has taken great strides. Looking back on it, though, this team could have easily been 14-4 and 25-6. A smarter play here, a few less silly turnovers there, and we’re not playing until Friday this week. We also wouldn’t be staring at a dreaded 8/9 game in the NCAA tournament. 

For some reason it just never came together. Things just always fell the wrong way. Lorenzo Brown suffered his ankle injury during the worst part of our schedule. B1G member Maryland blew a 17 point lead against UVA in a game that could have given us a bye in the ACC tournament. Nothing ever worked out. The season that was supposed to put us back on top had us finishing 5th in the conference. 

Does all that matter? Yes and no. We should have been better during the regular season. There’s no denying that. This team should have never lost against Wake Forest. They should have finished strong against Florida State and not depended on Maryland to help them out. That never happened though. Does that make for a lost season? It depends on what happens from here on out.

If this team loses to Virginia Tech on Thursday then I feel sorry for anyone with access to the internet. The sky will fall, Gottfried will be the equivalent of Sidney Lowe, there may even be a Teen Mom marathon on every station. Life will suck. If the team has a strong showing and makes a run to Sunday everyone will forget the Len buzzer beater. If they make a deep run in the NCAA tournament then the Wake Forest game never happened. 

If you grew up watching and loving ACC basketball then you know one very important fact – the regular season means nothing. Growing up in North Carolina meant living for tournament week. It was like Christmas and your birthday rolled into one. You got to watch the early game at school and you raced home from the bus trying to catch the end of the second game. You had your team and there was nothing else. Residents of the state of North Carolina learn to talk trash from kids watching the ACC tournament at school.

As an adult, the same still applies. It doesn’t matter who won which game over who in the regular season because the regular season is just a warmup for the tournament. It doesn’t matter. It’s all practice for the games that really matter. 

Rest easy State fans. This isn’t the year that could have been quite yet. This year is just getting started. 

Go Pack.
–DH

State fans – best and worst in the country.

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NC State has some of the most loyal fans in the country. There’s no denying it. They also have some of the most stubborn, ignorant, and irrational fans in the country. NC State lost another game after beating UNC or Duke and the world has came to an end. Twitter has died and I feel like I’m getting dumber by looking at posts and listening to national media. 

Virginia is one of the best defensive teams in the conference. To beat a good defense, it’s vital that you have your point guard to run the offense. NCSU is spoiled by having a point guard like Lorenzo Brown who runs the offense, dishes the ball, and drives to the hoop and scores. Remember the pullback fadeaway Brown had early in the 1st half? The one that had Bruce Pearl gushing about the NBA talent? Yeah, we didn’t have that for the bulk of the game. Instead we had 2 guys going back and forth at the point who just aren’t there yet at the position. 

To summarize, we went against the best defense in the ACC without arguably the ACC’s best player. We lost by 3. Cue the narratives about losing again after Carolina or Duke, but if you are majorly upset about this loss then you really just don’t know much about the game of basketball. I may lose readers and I may anger some people, but if you’re whining about this loss and about our lack of consistency because of THIS game, you need to just be quiet. 

Considering everything going against the team they should be extremely proud of themselves. They also shouldn’t have a fanbase breathing down their neck because they lost a tough road game. I understand it’s the 3rd conference road game they’ve lost. I also understand basketball and what it does to a team to lose a player like Zo against a defense like that. 

It’d be nice if a team had fans that supported them and understood that they aren’t perfect. Things happen and they are either overcome or they aren’t. Either way, it doesn’t give fans an excuse to lash out at players. 

Grow Up and Go Pack.
– DH 

There’s goes the undefeated record in the ACC.

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Hi. My name is Dustin and I was one of those fans that was sure we would break the curse of a Duke or UNC win. I actually thought we would handle Maryland as I believed that we were (and still are) the superior team. Road wins are hard to come by in the ACC, however, and our quest for ACC perfection came to an end with a 51-50 loss. 

If I had known before the game that Maryland would score only 51 I would have expected an absolute blowout. I really thought we’d come out with a 10-12 point win beforehand, but knowing that total I would have expected a win by around 25. Apparently, though, wins don’t happen when you don’t score. The ball has to go in the basket to score points. I don’t think anyone expected Scott Wood to shoot 3 of 11 from behind the arc. That’s right – 3 of 11. As badly as we played, if he had hit on 4 of those 11 shots we would have won. 

Anyone realistic knew there was no chance of us going undefeated in conference play. They also had to know that we weren’t going to make it through conference without having a terrible game at some point. Without a doubt that game was tonight. We scored 50 points. The kicker though? We played that badly and lost by 1 on a last second shot. Would it have been nice to come out with a win? Absolutely. Is it better that we didn’t? Possibly.

As Mark Gottfried has said numerous times, the guys can’t drink the Kool-Aid. All they’ve heard is how they had a winning streak and were #1 in the conference. I’m sure there was a bit of cockiness creeping up in their minds. They need to be confident, but a team that isn’t used to the spotlight is going to have trouble treading the line in between the two. Games like this tend to fix that problem. If they had came out with a win they could have left with the attitude that no matter what they’re always going to find a way to win. That’s not the case. If we had played the way we had tonight against a better team we would have been destroyed and wouldn’t have had a chance to lose at the last second. 

State is a much better team than showed up tonight. There was a good bit of terrible officiating and a few extremely sketchy calls, but they should never have put the game in a position to be able to use that as an excuse. The fact is every once in a while there are going to be games where the ball doesn’t go in the hoop. Great teams have nights like that. The difference is making sure that those misses are coming off good shots. That wasn’t always the case tonight. 

Hopefully this will be a wakeup call and a learning experience. You can’t expect to pull games out that you don’t deserve to win. That’s what this would have been. A mediocre or good team would take this loss as just a bad night. A great team would take this loss as a bad night that can never happen again. It’s got to be something that’s recognized as a turning point. It’s got to turn the killer instinct on. Now it’s time to find out what kind of team this really is. We know they can be good, where they go from here will determine if they have what it takes to be great.

Go Pack.
– DH 

Gottfried gets his signature win.

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NC State started the season with big-time expectations. For the first time this season they truly lived up to them. The #1 team in the country came to town and left with a loss. The fact that it was a triangle rival only makes the win sweeter. Duke came to the PNC without a loss and the top ranking in the country. They had proven their strength with the toughest schedule in the country and expected to continue their dominance. The consensus was that without Ryan Kelly, State would have no excuse if they didn’t pull out a win. This was their time to shine. If they wanted to play big-boy basketball then they had to take advantage of the situation while playing at home. They did.

The game opened at a quick pace and an early Duke lead. They were completely dominating the boards and much to the dismay of State fans, Amile Jefferson was proving to be a quality replacement for Kelly. It didn’t look good. The player who we lost in a highly contested recruiting battle was making us realize why we wanted him so badly. Mason Plumlee was rebounding every ball that came his way and we generally weren’t matching the hustle from the guys in blue. Somehow, though, we fought back and took a slim lead going into the half. Despite the lead it was clear that we would have to step up on the boards if we were going to have a chance. 

Ladies and gentleman, Richard Howell. During what was the biggest game in recent memory for the Wolfpack, Howell stepped up and played what Gottfried called “a grown man’s game.” In case you didn’t know, the definition of a grown man’s game is 16 points and 18 rebounds. He did that against the #1 team in the country. He did that in a game that was labeled as one that could legitimize the program. He did it against Plumlee, who is currently favored as the ACC POY. 

He came out in the 2nd half and dominated the game. Every loose ball that came his way was secured. Duke had no answer for him. Even Coach K acknowledged that he was a “beast” and when asked why he was such a good rebounder replied with “God made him that way.” Every rebound secured got his team an extra possession, and the top shooting team in the country didn’t disappoint. Howell capitalized on nearly every 2nd chance, CJ Leslie looked unstoppable as Duke had no answer for him, and Lorenzo Brown executed the UCLA offense to perfection. This team started the season with a preseason #6 ranking and they generally looked the part against the #1 team in the country. 

If this win was needed to legitimize the program then the team didn’t disappoint. They stepped up and won a game they had to win. The PNC Arena is becoming one of the most difficult places to play in the country and they had an undefeated Duke team in the building. They did what they needed to do – win. Mark Gottfried got his first signature win and the nation has to acknowledge the Wolfpack once again. It was the 10th win in a row and a win that made the Pack 3-0 in the ACC. The team takes the court again on Wednesday at Maryland. The State fan in me expects us to come out flat on the road and get our first ACC loss. The basketball fan in me, however, sees a team that might just be a little special. Here’s to going 4-0.

Go Pack.
– DH 

How about Mike Glennon?

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Russell Wilson did amazing things for NC State. There’s no way around it. State fans everywhere should take a ton of pleasure in all the success he’s having. He was drafted, named a starter, and has led his team to what will be a berth in the playoffs. He’s also done so convincingly and has made a case for ROY. The guy is good. 

The problem is, however, there’s another good quarterback getting ready to take the field for the last time for the Red and White. Mike Glennon is an amazing quarterback, yet State fans just don’t seem to care. We have a 5th year quarterback who sat on the bench for all but his last 2 years. He could have transferred and started at a ton of other schools, but he showed his loyalty to NC State and stuck around. 

What did he do when he finally got his chance? In his first year as a starter he threw for over 3,000 yards with 31 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. This year? He’s thrown for 3,648 yards with 30 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. At any other school the guy would be put on a pedestal and bragged about as if he were the best in the country. At NC State, however, his fanbase just considers him second best and never gives him the respect he deserves. 

NC State fans have a sick obsession with Russell Wilson. It’s maddening if you consider how good Glennon is. People will always be upset they didn’t get their last year with Wilson and will always take it out on Glennon. A guy who wouldn’t commit to his team over a failing baseball career gets priority. It’s understandable that the guy had dreams and didn’t know which one to pick, but in the end he didn’t choose State. The guy that showed commitment to the school, though, gets put on the backburner.

Mike Glennon has an excellent shot at being taken in the first round of the NFL draft. He’s a potential franchise quarterback who will do great things in the league. It’s just a shame that State fans don’t care. They’re too enamored with Wilson doing good things with the Seahawks. I’m not saying they shouldn’t care and I agree completely that we should all be excited watching RW on the field. He gave 3 great years on the field for NCSU. The problem, though, is that on Sunday night everyone will be watching NBC to see whether or not Russell Wilson even claims NC State as his alma mater. I hope he shows as much devotion to NC State as the school’s fans and alumni have shown to him.

How about Mike Glennon? He’ll go down in the books as being one of the best quarterbacks NC State has ever had. He’ll also go down as one of the most overlooked by NC State’s fanbase. There’s one more thing you can count on from Mike. He’ll play in the NFL and he’ll eventually have a Sunday night game on NBC. He’ll get a video intro as well, and there’s no doubt he’ll be proud to show his loyalty to NC State. He’s already done it for 5 years.