Mario Williams on Cover of ESPN the Magazine

Want to talk about making an impact in the BIG TIME? I hope that someone from the football program is taking note of this since our embarrassment of a Sports Information Director would never get this.

NC State’s Mario Williams was featured on the cover of ESPN’s Magazine 2008 NFL Preview Issue. That stands alone as a great accomplishment. However, take a quick click to this link from November of 2006 and look who graced the cover of ESPN’s Magazine.

This means that NC State has placed two alums currently starring in the NFL on the front cover of ESPN the Magazine in under two years. How many other schools can claim such stature with their NFL alums?

http://admin.houstontexans.com/assets/fanzone/mario_espn_cover.bmp

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24 Responses to Mario Williams on Cover of ESPN the Magazine

  1. Pack92 09/04/2008 at 9:46 AM #

    Funny, I read an article the other day saying this will be the year that New Orleans finally figures out how to utilize Reggie Bush. Sounds alot like Kordell Stewart and Michael Vick to me if it takes that long to figure out how to “utilize” a football player. Go Mario. Keep it coming PR- this could be the year for you and the Chargers!

  2. primacyone 09/04/2008 at 12:32 PM #

    It just hit me. We could lose on Saturday. Really, we could lose.

  3. PackerInRussia 09/04/2008 at 12:34 PM #

    Maybe they should try using the Contra code to get proper utilization from Reggie Bush.

    BTW, I wonder whose glass body Mario is busting through.

  4. Scooter 09/04/2008 at 12:52 PM #

    Funny that two of the most talented players in ACC history come through NCSU and during that time, the best conference finish we managed during that time was 4th. This is Lee FOULer’s fault.

  5. howlie 09/04/2008 at 1:02 PM #

    There’s a little university in my area, and the chancellor has hired a man whose title is, ‘Director of Wow!’
    Seriously.
    His job is to find ways to add ‘sizzle’ to every part of the university and get the name of every program in every publication at every chance… and simply, for people to be amazed at what they are doing.

    After our second BB championship in ’83, the university system sought to dismantle the athletic program; and tried to make sure that all the hires for the next decade were “maintenance mode.”
    We continue that legacy… somewhere between ‘maintenance’ and ‘dismantled.’

    Leadership inspires people and institutions to become great; to dare to dream; and facilitates people to bring about those goals.
    Our administration… is just happy to pick up their paycheck and ‘maintain.’

  6. kool k 09/04/2008 at 1:35 PM #

    Contra reference about Super Mario!

    Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left Right, B,A

  7. Dr. BadgerPack 09/04/2008 at 2:10 PM #

    Properly utilizing Reggie Meggett is returning kicks and occasionally catching a pass. And probably paying him 30 million or so less.

    So far on performance alone, Mario has outshone Bush. When you look at the dollars attached to the two, Mario is outright highway robbery in comparison.

  8. Ismael 09/04/2008 at 2:38 PM #

    i think there is a myriad of metaphors the picture represents: obviously as the title suggests, breaking expectations; breaking glass has a very violent/aggressive connotation, especially someone like mario coming thru the glass; the glass people he are breaking are like he’s breaking thru defenders like glass; there’s also the bull in the china shop kind of feel to it.

  9. ChuckAllYall 09/04/2008 at 3:59 PM #

    He’s more machine now than man.

  10. redfred2 09/04/2008 at 4:14 PM #

    “…there’s also the bull in the china shop kind of feel to it”

    and lastly there’s the “Man! Do you see that damn flat screen right there, I’m gonna bust threw dis glass and get that moma sucker.”

  11. DAMangum 09/04/2008 at 4:48 PM #

    Kinda late on this one, the magazine came out last week.

  12. Ismael 09/04/2008 at 5:29 PM #

    i wish he had full pads on and cleats..ive always thought football players looked super-sissy in just their uniforms: big baggy shirt and tight pants, yuck. that was the thing that drove me crazy about the meet-the-pack day photos.

  13. Primewolf 09/04/2008 at 9:01 PM #

    Howlie, right on. It is worse than that though. The entire school is led, managed, and mismanaged by folks with no vision or leadership. The academics(from rankings of the engr school) have fallen in these same decades.

    The BOT has no guts or leadership at all to hold the leaders of the school accountable.

    NCSU has fallen significantly in the past 3 decades. I am afraid we haven’t reached bottom yet.

  14. Greywolf 09/04/2008 at 10:51 PM #

    Scooter
    Sep 4th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
    Funny that two of the most talented players in ACC history come through NCSU and during that time, the best conference finish we managed during that time was 4th. This is Lee FOULer’s fault.

    Actually it’s Lee Fowler’s accountability as well as his responsibiltiy — unless he was playing or coaching during this time.

  15. Ismael 09/05/2008 at 2:40 AM #

    Anybody see the Carolina (south) debacle at Vandy…i haven’t looked at USC’s schedule but they might not win 2 more games all year. Ok, just checked, yep Wofford and UAB, maybe Ole Miss, but i don’t see any more wins

  16. Dr. BadgerPack 09/05/2008 at 5:46 AM #

    South Carolina was more a special teams debacle than anything else… Vandy also had the benefit of not having their QB carted off the field.

  17. lush 09/05/2008 at 7:33 AM #

    if usc doesnt win 2 games, neither will we.

  18. Wulfpack 09/05/2008 at 7:42 AM #

    USC has to play the likes of Georgia, Florida and LSU. We don’t play anybody close to that caliber the rest of the way so any comparison between us and USC in terms of how both finish from here on out is a bit misrepresentative.

  19. Dr. BadgerPack 09/05/2008 at 7:51 AM #

    Also bear in mind, we played at SC; SC played at Vanderbilt. Road SEC games are tough (think ACC hoops…) Last season, as God-awful as Vandy was, their home conference slate included a 24-10 loss to Alabama, 31-17 win over Ole Miss, 20-17 loss to Georgia and a 27-20 loss to Kentucky. Vandy also won 17-6 AT SC last year. I wouldn’t go as far as to say Vandy has SC’s number, but they have enjoyed some recent success.

    I’ll wait and pass judgement on SC after they play a home conference game.

  20. vtpackfan 09/05/2008 at 8:54 AM #

    Think Vandy has a great coach. He has done much better playing in the SEC then Duke has done in their conference, stating the obvious I know. If Duke could have had an equal chance at Johnson vs. Cutcliffe thne I think they missed fired, again. Only time will tell.

    What is this thread about? Mario Williams congrats on your accomplishments and good luck in the future. It’s always nice to hear that Recruits site “NC State has had some great DE recently” as a positive. I have no idea what this means other then “I’m a really talented HS kid and I feel weird with this little weird scout guru up in my face”

    What is it, the turf makes for good rushing DE’s? We have different Coachs, a different system, and seem to be striking out on the CTC HS athletes coming off the edge and changing to NJ, OH, and German guys who don’t line up off sides.

  21. Ismael 09/05/2008 at 9:27 AM #

    vtpackfan – didn’t mean to hijack the thread just didn’t know where to put it.

    and yes, you can’t compare us to SC nor was it just a special teams problem only, didn’t they also throw 2-3 interceptions and have a fumble? Plus it looks like they are still gonna be a horrible run defense. And yes again, SC’s schedule is not like our schedule. We could reasonably win 5 games this year and SC may not get more than 3-4 total.

  22. choppack1 09/05/2008 at 10:38 AM #

    I watched that game. The first half – we actually did better than Vandy. In the second half – after their meltdown they struggled.

    I really think we beat USC w/ Russell Wilson. I think at the time he was hurt, we were having the best drive of any team – and I think if you can get ahead of USC – like NC State w/ Evans – game over.

  23. GoldenChain 09/05/2008 at 1:00 PM #

    What choppack said, my thoughts exactly.

    The difference for Vandy was that while they got tired in the 3rd & 4th, their offense came up with a couple plays that helped them get a second wind.

    BTW, proof positive that the ‘squib kick’ should just be taken out of every coach’s mind! They basically gave SC and extra 30 yards on that last TD instead of making them run clock to get that 30 yards.
    Stupid.

  24. wufpup76 09/05/2008 at 10:22 PM #

    “Maybe they should try using the Contra code to get proper utilization from Reggie Bush”

    Priceless …

    I now have all the stupid ‘Contra’ music floating through my head now … 🙂

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