Russell Wilson: ''The Epitome of a Leader"

Last season Russell Wilson took the ACC by storm. As a redshirt freshmen Wilson led the ACC in Passing Efficiency and led the nation in touchdown to interception ratio with 17 touchdowns and only 1 interception. He also became the first freshmen in ACC history to earn 1st Team All-ACC honors. Many young men would let the glory go to their head, but not Wilson, who just might be one of the most driven and disciplined players the NCAA has to offer. Although only a sophomore, there is no doubting the fact that Wilson is the leader of the NC State offense. He understands the simple principle that leadership is more than just opening your mouth. It's living a life that backs up the words that come out of your mouth. Wilson gets that. He understands that the small things in life matter.

"I think a lot of it starts with off the field stuff," Wilson said when asked about his leadership. "Doing well in school, trying to stay as organized as possible. Making sure your on time to meetings. All that little stuff really does matter when it comes to winning games and playing hard on the practice field. I always push others and I always push myself. The first thing you always have to do is push yourself first, if your going to push other people. I always try to be the best I can be."

A leader is also someone who sees the bigger picture. They see more than a box score and accolades. A leader takes his eyes off of himself and puts the success of the team ahead of personal goals. At the end of the day, a true leader sees wins and losses, not touchdowns and passing yards.

"The main goal for me is to win every time I step on the field," Wilson said. "As a quarterback that's what you want to do. It's all that matters to be honest with you."

You assume when you ask a player what their favorite highlight was from the previous season, that they are going to talk about some remarkable play they made. You would expect a quarterback to talk about a perfect fade thrown to the corner of the end zone or making the whole linebacker corps miss on a quarterback scramble. That would be normal. Russell Wilson is not normal. When he was asked the same question, he responded with team highlight rather than an individual highlight.

"Throwing my first touchdown against ECU, that was definitely exciting. But at the same time, coming back from where we were at one point during the season, when we weren't winning games. We were so close. You know that feeling where your so close, but you lose? That's a tough feeling to have. Especially when you know you have a good team and the rest of the guys are working hard," Wilson said. "But then coming over that hump, coming over that adversity, with Coach O'Brien helping us, pushing us and continuing to believe in us. That's probably the most exciting thing for me, not specifically one moment, or one game, but I guess just a period of time where we overcame obstacles."

Russell Wilson is the epitome of a leader. He possesses a selfless nature and exudes character and integrity. He puts his players ahead of himself. It is this type of individual that people will follow. NC State fans can look forward to watching the Wolfpack offense follow this young man up and down the field all season long.

By: Wolfpack Pigskin Staff