N.C. State Clipboard

INSIDE THE GAME

When you're 2-6 with a four-game losing streak going into an open date, you have to find creative ways to motivate your team.

N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien apparently did that. He has the Wolfpack talking about finishing with a four-game winning streak to become bowl eligible after winning 27-17 on Saturday at Duke.

He also has N.C. State talking about winning the mythical state championship. The Pack is 2-0 against in-state opponents with wins over East Carolina and Duke and plays Wake Forest and North Carolina in the next two weeks.

The coach even played a movie clip from "The Blues Brothers" to inspire his team in a tongue-in-cheek way. Every button he pushed seemed to work as N.C. State turned in its best performance of the season.

GREAT CALL

For the second time this season, special-teams coach Jerry Petercuskie used a trick play on a kickoff return. O'Brien said opponents' focus on stopping record-breaking returner T.J. Graham leaves them vulnerable to tricks. Graham received a kickoff on the 7-yard line, handed to J.C. Neal at the 11 and watched Neal sprint to the end zone without being touched for the game's first touchdown.

GAME BALLS

DE WILLIE YOUNG: Played a key role in N.C. State's first two fourth-down stops with a tackle at the line of scrimmage and pressure on quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. Young also had a tackle for loss and broke up a pass on third down, looking more like the dominating upperclassman N.C. State's coaches expect him to be.

QB RUSSELL WILSON: There may not be a better quarterback in the ACC. The redshirt freshman was 13-for-25 for 218 yards with two TD passes. He has thrown 142 passes without an interception; only Jamie Barnette with 179 in a row in 1998 has done better in N.C. State history. Wilson has 10 TD passes with one interception.

LOOKING AHEAD

After losing three of four, Wake Forest has posted consecutive wins over Duke and Virginia and will have plenty of motivation Saturday in Raleigh. The Deacons (6-3, 4-2 ACC) share the ACC Atlantic Division lead with Florida State and have their eyes on a second trip to the ACC championship game in three years. The key matchup will be a Wake defense that thrives on forcing turnovers against Wilson, who has been fantastic protecting the ball.