Coach O'Brien had some good news after practice on Thursday night, announcing that running back Toney Baker had been granted a 6th year of eligibility by the NCAA. O'Brien said that he hadn't talked in detail with Baker about his future, and that they would do so after the season. This is great news for both Baker and the football program. Baker has worked extremely hard to get back to where he is, and has reminded everyone of how special of a player he can be.
Jerricho Cotchery caught his first touchdown since Week 3, catching a 7-yard touchdwon pass in the first quarter of the Jets 22-24 loss to the Jaguars. He finished the game with 6 receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown.
NC State head football coach Tom O'Brien has been informed by Doug Rhoads, head of ACC football officials, that the play that the Wolfpack coaching staff challenged in the third quarter of last Saturday's game versus Clemson was a fumble and should have been overturned, giving NC State the football. The score was 24-14 Clemson at the time of the play.
David Amerson (S) - Dudley (11-1) had no trouble putting points on the board in their first round match-up against Smith, beating their rival 47-20. With the seconds ticking off the clock at the end of the first half, NC State commit David Amerson ran back a kickoff 78 yards for a touchdown to put the Panthers up 21-14 at the half. Dudley will play High Point Central this Friday in the second round.
• Russell Wilson has 26 touchdown throws this season, the second-highest total in school history for a single year, trailing Philip Rivers’ record of 34 in 2003. Wilson has also accounted for 30 touchdowns on the season (four rushing), tying for second all-time and it is the most since Philip Rivers was responsible for 30 in 2002. Wilson ranks fourth in career responsibility with 51, and needs one more to tie for third place.
The Wolfpack couldn't keep up with the Tigers on Saturday, as they were defeated 43-23. The Wolfpack put up a fight early on, but they were no match for the electricity and game changing ability of CJ Spiller. Spiller was everywhere against NC State, becoming the first player in Clemson history to throw, catch, and run for a touchdown in the same game. 
Kickoff: 12 Noon
-Coach O'Brien was really impressed with the offensive line and the running back's ability to block this past Saturday against Maryland. Maryland came into the game as the ACC leader in sacks, with 21. The Pack only allowed one sack on Saturday. O'Brien said that he has never had 2 running backs that picked up blitzes the way that Baker and Eugene do.
"It gets to the point where everything has already been said and you know, we lost a couple games in a row. I'd speak my mind, Willie (Young) would speak his mind, and the coaches would always be talking, trying to get everybody on the same page, but there comes a point where enough talking has been done and it's time to just go out there and put it all together. It just got to the point where we had a meeting on Friday and it lasted only two seconds. It was like "Enough's been said, let's go win" and that's how we broke it down and got the job done." he said.
"The whole focus was different. Guys were just like "Enough is enough." We're way too talented of a team to be on a four game losing streak, so we were like "It's time to get it together." I think it really showed on Saturday. Guys were really focused throughout the game."
"Maryland was throwing everything they had at us, zig zagging, stunting, and the way the line, the running backs and the quarterback cooperated, was just a good thing. Offensive linemen blocked, running backs blocked and the quarterback made the right read and we came out on top...it's a good day for the good guys" said McCuller.
"I think everyone is just believing in one another. I like the direction that practice's are going right now. I feel that there's a lot of competition, guys are flying around and it just speaks volumes of the character of this team because we've been through so much, and guys are still in it like we're undefeated."
Depth Chart Notables
Dontae Johnson (S) - The Pennington School's (6-3) 5-game winning streak was snapped in their final game of the regular season this past Friday night, in a 44-58 loss to King Low Heywood Thomas. Despite the loss, Dontae Johnson had a big-time performance, returning an interception 36 yards for a touchdown and reeling in 5 catches for 54 yards and a touchdown.
Safety David Amerson has listed the Wolfpack as his leader for a majority of his recruitment. As of late, some people thought that Amerson's recent visit to Notre Dame might have changed the Safety's mind. Amerson proved that his heart was always with the Wolfpack, committing to NC State tonight. 
With their backs against the wall, and needing a victory to keep their post-season hopes alive, Tom O'Brien's Wolfpack finally caught a few breaks and took out Maryland 38-31 for their first ACC victory of the season. "We made some really big catches, especially on the boundary and on the deep balls. One advantage we have is size. We are really happy to come away with a win and you have to give maryland credit for hanging in the re throughout the game." said O'Brien
"It was a big change in the game because the difference between the quarterbacks is night and day. It was a whole new style of offense once Robinson came in the game, so everything was seen in there today. We tackled better this week but there is still more to work on before net weeks against Clemson." said NC State coach Tom O'Brien
"It was certainly a difficult loss for our football team down in Tallahassee. We've come back this week with a renewed spirit and look forward to get back, and play Maryland this Saturday afternoon, because it seems like forever since we've had a home football game.
The original plan was to redshirt true freshman Jarvis Byrd. After starter Rashard Smith went down with a knee injury in the Boston College game, the coaching staff had to do some serious thinking about taking the redshirt off of Byrd. He had been playing exceptionally well on the scout team all season long, acting as the opposing teams best defensive back every week. In fact, Byrd was the scout team defensive player of the week before the Murray St. game, after he picked-off the first team offense 4 or 5 times that week."Playing on the scout team each week really helped me get better because I was working against guys like Owen Spencer and Jarvis Williams everyday," Byrd said. "During the bye week the coaches went back and watched film from practice and saw how well I was doing against the 1st team.
"At first I thought about holding on to my redshirt, but then I realized that the experience would really help out next year," Byrd said. "I feel like it was a good thing because I am playing nothing but the top teams left in the ACC."
"I grew up a FSU fan, so I was real energized to step into that stadium for the first time," Byrd said. "It was homecoming for FSU and it was kind of like a homecoming for me too, because I haven't been home since I came to Raleigh. Getting to play my first game with my mom and dad in the stands was really special."
-Coach O'Brien emphasized that Dwayne Maddox and Jarvis Byrd did a good job helping fill in for Ray Michel and Rashard Smith. Maddox adjusted well, considering the fact that playing middle linebacker is much different than outside. Byrd did a great job in his first game. 
Russell Wilson had a career-high five touchdown throws, tying the school record set three times byPhilip Rivers and once by Terry Harvey. The last time a Wolfpack QB had that many TD throws was 2003 in the Tangerine Bowl against Kansas when Rivers had five in his final game. Wilson's previous high was four (Gardner-Webb, Murray St. and Pitt, all this season).
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