Pack tries to patch defense

It shouldn't take long for N.C. State's defensive players to find out whether last week's extra practice was productive.

Fresh off a bye week, the Wolfpack (3-4, 0-3) must travel this weekend to Florida State (3-4, 1-3 ACC), which leads the ACC in total offense at 427.7 yards per game. While trying to regroup from a three-game losing streak, N.C. State watched Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder pass for 395 yards and three touchdowns Thursday night at North Carolina against a Tar Heels defense much more heralded than N.C. State's.

Nonetheless, junior cornerback DeAndre Morgan said State's defense is ready for a challenge.

"They want to throw the ball, and by me being a defensive back, that's what I want," Morgan said Monday. "... We feel like this last week helped us come together as a group."

Heading into the bye week, though, the Wolfpack defense was coming apart.

In three consecutive ACC losses, the Wolfpack gave up 30, 49 and 52 points, respectively.

N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien didn't announce any major roster shakeups after the open date. But redshirt freshman C.J. Wilson will replace injured freshman Rashard Smith at boundary cornerback, as the Wolfpack introduces its seventh starting group of defensive backs in eight games.

Otherwise, the starting lineup is scheduled to be the same as it was for a 52-20 loss at Boston College on Oct. 17. One reserve, freshman third-team running back James Washington, is out for the season after suffering a knee injury Thursday during practice.

O'Brien said veterans worked on fundamentals during the open date. The freshmen and scout team players who ordinarily aren't in the playing rotation were given a larger role in practice.

But nobody on the team made any promises that N.C. State would make a sudden turnaround the way it did the past two seasons after open dates.

In O'Brien's first two seasons, N.C. State was a combined 3-9 before its open date and 8-5 afterward.

"I don't think anybody's looking back at what we've done," center Ted Larsen said. "It's nice to have done that, but I haven't thought about it."

O'Brien said he decided against moving defensive end Willie Young around to try freeing him for more pass-rushing opportunities. Young had seven sacks in his first five games but has been held without a sack the last two games, in part because he has been double-teamed.

Last season, opponents who slid their protection to Young would leave an open lane for speedy linebacker Nate Irving to get to the quarterback from the other side. N.C. State doesn't have another defender as accomplished as Irving -- who is out for the season because of injuries suffered in a car wreck this summer -- to complement Young on the pass rush, but O'Brien said other players have to take advantage of their chances.

O'Brien's midseason self-analysis of his team wasn't all doom and gloom. He said senior tailback Toney Baker has added a lot to the team after missing almost two full seasons with a knee injury.

Baker leads the team with 401 yards and six touchdowns rushing and has 17 catches for 227 more yards and three scores.

On defense, O'Brien said, N.C. State's players are trying hard, even though they're not always getting the results he wants.

"They're giving it all they've got," O'Brien said. "We've just got to help them get to the spots they've got to get to."

If they don't, Florida State has demonstrated it's more than capable of moving the ball even more efficiently than Wake Forest, Duke and Boston College did against N.C. State before the Wolfpack's open date.

Latest Comment View all comments

Related Content

• Link:
  Pack schedule, depth charts, pics, video and more