We are going to use this entry to make some random comments during today’s game, but we won’t be doing a full-out “Live Blog”.
Our friends at Section Six are running a Live Blog for the State-Maryland game. You can click here for a direct link to his comments. Don’t forget to check into our Maryland preview just below this entry on the front page.
3:55 to go in 1Q
* This is one of the first games all season where it seems our offense is actually staying on the field long enough in the early part of the game to potentially have an impact later in the game.
* ANOTHER wasted timeout. I don’t know why we even discuss it since we know it is just a part of the way that Coach Amato’s teams are managed on game day.
* Pretty unimpressed with Maryland’s crowd. Lots of empty seats
* Lots of running plays being called. No complaints. It is just interesting how different each game is called on offense. 7 run plays and 2 pass plays to this point in the game.
Approx 2:00 to go in 1Q
* We aren’t dominating field position, but the field is working to our advantage…scratch that. Maryland just ate us up on a screen
* I HATE the new rules regarding receiving punts and returns. Opponents now intentionally get up in the face of our returners before they can catch the ball with no concern for penalties now that there is no halo rule.
* Nice to see the ACC Officials FINALLY are calling obvious holds. Where was this crew LAST WEEK?
End 1Q / Beg 2Q: UMd FG Drive
* Gotta love Lincoln Financial coverage. On one play, they couldn’t follow the ball with the camera and we missed a Maryland pass completion. Before Maryland ran a 3rd down play, they showed us NC State’s statistics for 3rd down conversions.
* Maryland wanted a pass interference call in the end zone on the Pack’s 3rd down defense. Fascinatingly, the Maryland scoreboard actually showed their ticket-buying fans the replay of the controversial play on the video scoreboard. Sure would be nice if NC State fans got that kind of treatment in Carter-Finley.
10:30 in 2Q
* What in the hell is so difficult about calling a pass play every now and then today? Obviously we *think* that we can run the ball on the Terps. But, we may want to start looking at 2nd and 16 as needing 2 downs as opposed to running up the middle and putting ourselves in 3rd and long.
* Let’s just say it – John Deraney’s punting has gotten worse and worse since the middle of last year.
* Hint to NC State defense — Maryland is going to run screens today similar to Wake’s reverses last week.
4Q: Blackman’s jump into the end zone
I have had it. I have had it. I have had it.
How f’ing stupid can our players CONTINUE to be for SEVEN YEARS of ridiculous celebration penalties? Seriously?
Don’t get me wrong…I KNOW that our players are called for the same stupid shit that other teams are NOT flagged for. I know that it happens because I watch college football every weekend and I see other teams’ players do the exact same things that our players do and not get flags. But that doesn’t mean that our players do not know that they must do things better and smarter than other teams.
Darrell Blackman’s AWESOME punt return that ended with an uncalled for dive into the end zone. It was stupid. It was uncalled for. And it was 100% consistent with the behavior of NC State players for the last 7 years. (Most recently, Brian Clark was called for an identical “jumping into the end zone” penalty against Georgia Tech last year. Wasn’t Blackman on last year’s squad?)
