Nov 22 2008
NC State Boo-Yah’s UNC
I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived and was able to let down the guard I had mistakenly put up. Shame on me for assuming the worst! My crew, (my husband, my oldest son and his girlfriend), were four blobs of red in a sea of baby blue. You can understand my inclination to be guarded. The UNC fans surrounding us were friendly, polite and even made a point to say some really nice things about our team. I’m not sayin’ they wanted to invite us over for dinner or anything, I’m just sayin’ both sides acted like they had proper home training!
I like to believe it’s karma, what goes around, comes around. Since the arrival of Tom O’Brien, the Wolfpack have been on an upward spiral. Our boys had their heads on straight today, and boy did it show!
The Pack scored two touchdowns in a 14-second span in the third quarter. We were a bit worried in the beginning when Owen Spencer dropped two potential touchdowns. He redeemed himself when he caught a 21-yard pass from Russell Wilson. The momentum was there and it didn’t stop.
“We just played phenomenal, hellacious defense,” said defensive end Willie Young, “We played with such tenacity. We kept coming back at them and coming back at them. We were the best team today. That just comes from playing team ball. We are a new team.”
Final Score: NC STATE 41 ~ UNC 10
NC State spokesperson Tim Peeler has this to say:
It’s the third straight win for the Wolfpack (5-6 overall, 3-4 ACC), all over Big Four rivals. It’s the first time State has beaten UNC, Duke and Wake Forest in the same season since 1986 and the first time since it has beaten the state’s other four Division I-A schools since that same season.
In NC State coach Tom O’Brien’s two seasons as head coach, the Wolfpack is 6-1 against the other Division I-A schools in the state.
The victory, for the second year in a row, set up the possibility for the Wolfpack to become bowl eligible by winning its season finale, which will be next Saturday against Miami at Carter-Finley Stadium. Last year, however, State lost to Maryland 37-0 to finish O’Brien’s inaugural season at 5-7 overall. Game-time for the contest against the Hurricanes will be announced Sunday.
Kenan Stadium emptied, for all but the pockets of red that filled the stadium with chants of “Wolf” and “Pack.”
Oh, and a BOO-YAH!
