RALEIGH -- Opening football games can be deceptive, and especially so when opponents are as mismatched as N.C. State and Western Carolina.
Nonetheless, the Wolfpack's already potent offense could become downright lethal if turns out that junior wide receiver T.J. Graham wasn't just a really fast flash in the pan Saturday night in Carter-Finley Stadium.
A track sprinter by design and already one of the best kick-return men in the ACC, Graham surprisingly emerged as quarterback Russell Wilson's top target from the start in the 48-7 win.
Graham scored on touchdown passes of 26 and 25 yards to completely rearrange the momentum after Western Carolina took a 7-0 lead. He finished with six catches for 96 yards despite fairly limited playing time in the second half.
"It felt good," the 6-foot, 180-pound former Wakefield High star said. "I'm happy to finally break out and show what I can do as a receiver. The coaches had been on me, saying I wasn't doing enough with the ball after the catch."
That wasn't the case against the Catamounts. He turned singles into homers against bewildered linebackers and defensive backs who didn't have prayer-one of dealing with his speed.
In the seven games he played before sustaining a leg injury last season, Graham had only 12 catches for 125 yards.
As a freshman in 2008, he had 16 catches in 13 games for 251 yards - hardly the production you might expect from a former state 100- and 200-meter dash champ.
"It's part of the evolution," N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien said. "We knew from the start T.J. could catch the ball, but it took him some time to make the most of the catches. It started to show in the spring."
In the spring - that is - when Graham put aside his devotion to track in order to concentrate on football.
"I missed it. I love to run," he said. "I hope to get back out there next spring. But right now, football's my priority."
It's also probably his meal ticket.
On a team already blessed with standout receivers Owen Spencer and Jarvis Williams, the explosiveness of Graham could serve as gas to fire for Wilson and the offense. It's not out of the question that all three receivers could someday play in the NFL.
"I've been in their shadows, but hopefully I can measure up to them," Graham said.
Of course, it's one thing to splinter Western Carolina's defense. Central Florida on Saturday in Orlando will be a tougher challenge, followed almost immediately by Cincinnati and then a trip to Georgia Tech.
But Graham could be a critical game-changer and field-flipper for an offense that still faces questions in its running attack and offensive line.
Until it's proven otherwise, the Wolfpack is going to deal with the reality of being an aces-and-spaces team that will produce extreme and abrupt performance swings.
But given enough aces - Wilson, Spencer, Williams, tight end George Bryan, Graham, fourth wideout Darrell Davis - N.C. State should be capable of hiding many of its liabilities against some teams on a demanding schedule.
Time will tell on that count, of course. But the show Graham put on in the opener had neither the look nor feel of a one-night stand.
