Carolina 93, State 76; Tempers Flare At The End

Stats by StatSheet.com

Stats by StatSheet.com

This post from Bryanth1a from the PackPride boards pretty much sums up my thoughts:

How can anyone really be pissed about the outcome of this game? The team played reasonably hard the entire game. We got burned consistently on the defensive end by not being able to match their speed and athletic ability.

This game was not a result of bad coaching or stupid TOs. Even in our best years we could have lost this game.

We biatch and moan about the team for good reasons, but today they performed to their ability. We just have to accept the Holes have a lot of Studs in the stable while we're trying to build a stable.

Hear hear. By all accounts, this was a game that State would've needed to play perfect wire-to-wire to win. The Pack's not a good enough team offensively to play sub-par defensively for any length of time, and when the Pack let the Heels double a six-point lead to 12 over the final 2:38 of the first half, that essentially killed off any hope of the upset.

(Continues)

The game was not without drama in the final seconds, though. The Heels' infrequently used role player Mike Copeland came off the bench and in the closing moments tried to notch a couple of points on a breakaway. Ben McCauley would have none of it, fouling Copeland hard, sending the big man to the floor. Copeland took exception to the foul; he popped off the floor and charged McCauley:

Copeland had to be restrained and was sent to the locker room early by Roy Williams. To Roy's credit I think he handled the situation with class, taking the time to talk with Sidney and Ben to smooth over any hard feelings.

I imagine Copeland's got an interesting week of practice ahead of him.

As a fan, I always enter games against Carolina -- especially in the RBC Center -- believing an upset can happen. Sidney's first game coaching against the Heels and the game in 1998 over in Chapel Hill prove it can be done, no matter the odds. But like the poster above said, we just don't have the horses yet. Not many teams do.

I thought we played pretty well, avoiding a lot of the bugaboos that have done us in against lesser opponents. We only had nine turnovers -- a tremendous feat considering how poorly we protected the ball just weeks ago. We shot 54% from the field, and only suffered one minor, five-minute scoring drought in the first half. Courtney Fells had another good game, leading all Pack scorers with 22. Playing that well in most games will get you a victory.

But Carolina's just too good offensively to play lax transition defense. The Heels got plenty of easy baskets, shooting 63% for the game. When the Heels are playing that well, it's darn near impossible to beat them.

View the complete entry of "Carolina 93, State 76; Tempers Flare At The End"

ACC Now Podcast: State versus Carolina

A nice examination of State, its role in the history of the conference and why it deserves a return to glory.

View the complete entry of "ACC Now Podcast: State versus Carolina"

A look at UNC

Stats by StatSheet.com

Steven's preview at Section Six

State enters this game after an overtime win; Carolina, after narrowly avoiding a road loss on a last-second shot by Ty Lawson. It's tough to know if either outcome will have any bearing on this game, but likely neither result means a whole hill of beans in this series.

(Continues)

This is State's big rivalry game, after all, and as 2006 showed us, one team valuing the game's importance more can play a big role in who comes out as the victor. State won that year's contest and Roy Williams rightly ripped his squad for not understanding the rivalry aspect.

Somehow I doubt we'll see a mental collapse like that from the Heels again. Roy will have them focused, for sure.

The question is, if the Heels launch out to a big lead in the first or second half, can they maintain it? They've shown at times that they lack the killer instinct, letting teams like FSU on Wednesday get back up off the mat when they've had them down big.

State, of course, has shown the same propensity, perhaps to an even larger degree. The Wolfpack's M.O. this year seems to be:

1) Get up big early
2) Go on a scoring drought
3) Pray for mercy from the basketball gods.

Florida State rallied late in their game (noticing a pattern with the Noles?) against State to eventually take the lead and win. Miami came from 19 down in the second half to tie it and send it to Lowe-vertime (where, of course, State is money).

I think if you're Sidney Lowe, you've got some big decisions to make defensively. It's never fun picking one poison over another, but Carolina can beat you inside with Tyler Hansbrough, outside with Danny Green or Wayne Ellington, or down the lane with Ty Lawson.

If Sidney plays his Big Lineup (Costner, McCauley, Smith, Fells and Degand), I imagine they'll try to force Carolina to beat them from outside and pray for an unkind rim. Ellington can run hot or cold (unless your team's name is Clemson, in which case he scores 90), and Green can disappear at times as well. Expect Fells to guard Carolina's best three-point threat in much the same way he did against Miami's Jack McClinton. You just have to hope that his ankle holds up for extended minutes of action.

On offense, State has to do just about everything perfect. Rebound, take care of the ball, shoot high percentage shots when they're available and hit your threes when they present themselves. Avoiding a 5-8 minute drought is imperative...the droughts are what have allowed teams to get back in it against State of late. If the Pack can put points on the board nearly every trip down the court (sounds easy, right?), that would help maintain the team's confidence and put the Pack in position to make a run of their own if the Heels suffer another late-game swoon.

I have no idea what the line is, and I really don't think it matters. This game could easily be a 30-point blowout or a 10-point State win, with any possible result in between.

View the complete entry of "A look at UNC"

Beat UNC wallpaper; The Daily Tar Hell

A couple of items to pay homage to my Technician roots:

Marko has his latest artwork up at Wolfpackcartoons.com featuring Tuffy gettin' nasty on Ramses:



Second, the annual tradition of spoofing the Daily Tar Heel the day before the State/Carolina game lives on in this year's edition.

View the complete entry of "Beat UNC wallpaper; The Daily Tar Hell"

Trading paint for paint: Retaliation hits the UNC Campus

Courtesy reader Shawn, who sent me this:



Now it's getting a little spicy! I like it. Beats the hell out of playing trumpets through the streets of UNC's campus (no offense to the band, though; a valiant effort but not this cool).

View the complete entry of "Trading paint for paint: Retaliation hits the UNC Campus"

Cool State/UNC cartoon from wolfpackcartoons.com

My boy Marko does great work with these wallpapers cartoons every week, and this week's entry is no different:

You can check out all of his entries for the year at www.wolfpackcartoons.com

View the complete entry of "Cool State/UNC cartoon from wolfpackcartoons.com"

Q&A with "Tar Heel Fan"

I can be a superstitious sort at times.

The previous two weeks I tried to track down bloggers from both the Duke and Wake Forest fanbases and came up empty. Wouldn't you know we went on to win both of those games?

So it's with some measure of trepidation that I start back up the Q&A series heading into the biggest game of the season so far against the Tar Heels. Why buck a good trend, right?

But where the Duke and Wake fanbases offer a sparse blogging landscape, Tar Heel nation is well represented on the Blogging Interwebs. You can't swing a dead internet cat without hitting one. And I think I've lined up the cream of the crop of the Tar Heel bloggers, "Tar Heel Fan." Not only does he turn an objective eye toward both Tar Heel and Wolfpack athletics, he knows on which side of the Triangle lies the state's best BBQ:

(Continues)

Let's address the quarterback issue right off the bat: After Sexton's performance Saturday against Maryland, is there any chance he starts the game against State? If so, how short of a leash will he be given? If Yates starts, do you anticipate Sexton seeing any playing time? Are you concerned at all with Yates being "rusty" if he plays?

At this point only Butch Davis knows. I thought Sexton should have been pulled in the 2nd half versus Maryland just to see if maybe Yates could produced a scoring drive. Since it ended up being 17-15 all it would have taken was one good TD drive to salt the game way. Anyway, I think Yates throws the ball better in terms of velocity and accuracy downfield. Rust could be an issue but honestly it is going to be an issue any time he plays again so I think you have to factor it in and hope it does not affect the outcome of the game. I think it is possible he uses both QBs depending on what State does. Sexton is a tad more mobile than Yates but really the Pack should be wary of the trick play which has one of the backs throwing the ball. Those guys are actually fairly decent at it.

If you were in coach Withers' shoes trying to gameplan Russell Wilson, how would you attack him?

One upside for UNC is they have seen a mobile QB at least twice before against the two Techs. The difference here is Russell Wilson is actually a threat to throw the ball and do so without making mistakes. UNC's defense this season has been an oddity in they give up huge yards but the oppposing team does not score many points. Some of that is the 18 INTs and the other part of it is UNC does stiffen up when teams get to their 30 or so. As for Wilson, the Heels do not pressure the QB in the pocket which could give Wilson all day to throw depending on how well the Pack O-line plays. On the flip side, the Tar Heel linebackers and corners do a fairly decent job of containment it would seem but as I said they appear to do a better job at it when teams approach their red zone.

What's the pulse of the Tar Heel fans regarding this game, in terms of confidence going in? Do most feel it will be a cakewalk? An upset by the Pack? Somewhere in between?

I don't think fans feel it will be a cakewalk. I am looking at it to be a fairly even game in which UNC opens up a wider lead late and maybe wins by two scores. Call it 10-14 points. The line is 12.5 I think and that feels about right to me. Because it is rival game and NCSU has played well enough you can really assume nothing. Not to use a tired cliched but anything could happen given the history between the two programs on the field.

How do you stop Hakeem Nicks?

I think the best way to stop Nicks is to take away the 10-15 yard receptions. UNC's bread and butter in the passing game has been getting the ball to Nicks and previously Tate in space and allowing those guys to pick up a ton of yards after the catch. On occassion they would go for the long bomb just to stretch the defense and it seemed like for awhile UNC could get at least one long TD per game. Now that threat is diminished since Tate went out with a knee injury. That has probably been the biggest key to stopping Nicks the fact there is no viable threat at the other WR position and we are still waiting for Greg Little to show up and do something positive.

Carolina is one of the best teams in the country intercepting the ball (18 for the year, tied for second overall), and Wilson has passed 175 straight times without a pick. Which gives way: the immovable object or the irresistible force?

175 in a row? I would think he is due to throw one then. Of course the Heels could not break Chris Turner's streak last week which is also over 100 passes without an INT. My suspiscion is UNC gets one, maybe even two picks. They did not have any last week and it is hard to imagine them going another game without getting some turnovers from the secondary. The tough part here is Wilson does make good decisions something that has not been seen in a Wolfpack QB since Philip Rivers.

What's your prediction for the game?

UNC 34 NCSU 20

What are your thoughts on naming this game every year and having a trophy of some sorts to vie for?

Sounds like a good idea. This is a rivalry even though some UNC fans want to say otherwise. At least in football the hate flows pretty evenly. I liked the suggestion it be tied to BBQ in some way though you could get into playing for some kind of state symbol I supposed since these are the two biggest schools in the UNC system and represent the state in general as well as most of the population in NC pulls for one of these two teams.

Otherwise we could put all the in-state commits for the current recruiting year into a pool and the winner takes all. I wonder if the NCAA would be okay with that?

Bonus question I ask all my Q&A participants: Between Eastern NC style BBQ and Lexington Style BBQ which do you prefer, and why? Have you ever eaten at Allen and Sons'? How would you rate the 'cue?

When Lucifer was thrown out of heaven along with 1/3 of the angelic hosts, Lexington style BBQ went with him. I mean really, who wants chopped pork with no flavor unless you drown it in some sauce? Seems kinda a weak to me. Eastern NC BBQ is superior in every way because it can stand on it's own and the vinegar base sauce gives it some serious kick. Never eaten at Allen and Sons, I was raised on three BBQ places in Johnston County: Smithfield's, White Swan and Holt Lake.

There you go! That's what I'm talking about! I was starting to lose faith in the blogosphere in the area with respect to the barbecue this fine state produces.

So Tar Heel Fan has the Heels winning by 14. It can certainly happen, given the Heels are playing at home where they've been winning all year long (except for the VT game). I disagree with his prediction on the outcome because I think the Pack will keep it close, win or lose, but I'll certainly share his assessment that in this rivalry game, anything can--and often does--happen.

View the complete entry of "Q&A with "Tar Heel Fan""

Remember folks...we are NOT their rivals.

Operation Legal Vandalism from Daily Tar Heel on Vimeo

Well played, Heels...Well played. Damn shame we have an area of free expression and you don't. It's a little too easy, honestly.

The obvious response would be a painting of the Old Well, which occurred last year, but the Heels stepped up and organized a protection squad/rally to keep it from getting painted again this year (taken from the monkey boards):

Found this on IC:

"Last year, NC State students defiled our iconic Old Well by splattering it with that wretched red color. This year, that won't happen again.

Carolina Fever is sponsoring the 1st Annual Old Well Watch the night before the UNC vs. NC State football game and is OPEN TO ALL STUDENTS.


PLEASE INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS!!

Here is the schedule of events:

9:30pm-10:00pm: Doors Open

10:00pm-12:00am: UNC Basketball vs. UCSB
• Pizza served at halftime, provided by Butch Davis
• Live look-in by ESPNU, WRAL, ABC 11, and possibly Raycom Sports (still working on this)

12:00am-12:30am: Past UNC football speaker

12:30am-1:30am: Performances (Tentatively)
• Clef Hangers, Loreleis, Achordants, Cadence, Walk-Ons, Psalm 100, etc
• CHiPs
• Kamikaze

1:30am-3:30am: Late night movie, “Space Jam”

3:30am-4:00am: Light breakfast
• Pastries, muffins, bagels, etc. provided by Carolina Dining Services and Panera Bread

--> Students will go in one hour shifts to the Old Well beginning at midnight
• Hot chocolate, hot cider, and coffee provided
• Games: board games, trivia, capture the flag, flag football
• Carolina Blue and White glow sticks given out
• Water balloons to "guard" the well

I did have to chuckle, though, at their movie choice during the night to keep folks entertained: Space Jam.

Really? Space Jam? I mean, I know it features M.J. and all, but you do realize it's Space Jam that you'll be watching, right?

Hell, nerd it up a little and watch all three extended versions of the LOTR trilogy or something to take you through the night. Maybe mix in some Empire Strikes Back for some old school viewing enjoyment. But Space Jam? Damn.

And good luck playing flag football in 20-degree weather. What's losing a couple of fingers or toes to frostbite when you're playing flag football whilst protecting the Well?

To the current State students out there: The gauntlet has once again been thrown down. Step your game up.

View the complete entry of "Remember folks...we are NOT their rivals."

"The BBQ Bowl"...make it happen, Wendell!

Over at 850 The Buzz, they're talking about football rivalry games and what constitute great rivalries.

Here are Adam Gold's criteria:

1. You have to play the game every year.
   
2. The game is played on or about the same time on the schedule.
3. There is usually something very serious at stake.
4. The two teams, or their fans, genuinely hate each other.
5. There is a trophy up for grabs or a great name for the game.

Other than #3, the State/Carolina game falls squarely into all of the first four categories (#2 is iffy...the date of the game seems to shift throughout the year).

Number five, however, is lacking and while I don't tend to agree with Adam much, I agree with him here: This rivalry needs some sort of trophy to vie for in order to put it on the map.

(Continues)

The reason is simple. Visibility. Without a trophy trading hands, a meaningless game (in the scope of BCS and conference championship implications) between two conference opponents means even less to folks not within 100 miles of the Triangle. Not that having a named game or a trophy would suddenly elevate the game into the Michigan/Ohio State tier of importance, but it would at least recognize a very real and tangible rivalry that exists in this series.

I've seen and heard a lot of good suggestions for the game--The Tobacco Bowl (maybe, if weren't for that whole "cancer" thing) or the The Old North State game (the name's a little unwieldy) are some.

But here's my suggestion: The BBQ Bowl.

I think it fits for a variety of reasons and could actually do some good for the state's economy.

1. The name is short, sweet and to the point. It rolls off the tongue easily
   
2. It opens the door for a couple of trophy/prize options, which I'll explain later
3. It would bring some national exposure to one of the state's most prized cultural treasures: BBQ
   

The name thing is pretty self-explanatory, so I won't delve into that too much.

Items two and three are the biggies and why I think the idea has merit.

I think there are two options for the "prize." Option one would be the winning team is supplied plates of "Victory 'Cue" from a notable BBQ establishment from the winning school's town. Chapel Hill's most notable establishment is Allen and Son, regarded by UNC-TV's Bob Garner as one of the best BBQ restaurants in the state. State would have The Pit, Ole Time BBQ or perhaps another venue to choose from. I envision the winning team at the final moments walking over to where the BBQ is kept, grabbing plates of Victory Cue to all take a bite from as they celebrate in front of their fans.

The second trophy option would be a large charcoal pig cooker that the winning team gets to paint at the conclusion of the game. Logistically, it would be a simpler prize than the BBQ plates (you'd have to have both restaurants prepare BBQ prior to the game, then keep it warm on the sidelines until the game ends, etc.). Just slap it on a truck with a hitch, wheel it to the game and whoever wins gets to paint it or parade it around the stadium. The downside of this is that Carolina already has a painted trophy that trade hands, so perhaps there wouldn't be much support from the folks in Chapel Hill for having two such trophies to vie for each year.

The third item in the above list is where I think naming this game The BBQ Bowl could have a positive impact on the economy and that's in the increased awareness of BBQ as a state treasure. Getting highlights on ESPN of the painted cooker before the game, or the trays of barbecue stored in heated storage ready to be dispersed, would help draw attention to a waning industry in the Old North State. There have been several grassroots movements to preserve the heritage and history of N.C. BBQ, but having a game named The BBQ Bowl between the two flagship universities in the state would really hammer home the point that BBQ in North Carolina is alive and well. Name exposure and brand visibility for the state's culinary treasure would be boosted.

So Wendell Murphy, you're a man who's built his empire on the hoofs of swine...I'm looking at you as a man with the name, power and influence to help get this done. Let's give this game a name and a prize and help the BBQ proprietors of the state in the process.

(Psst...If you think this is a good idea and you happen to know Mr. Murphy well enough to have his email address, click the letter icon below to email him this piece. Can't hurt, right?)

View the complete entry of ""The BBQ Bowl"...make it happen, Wendell!"

A look at the Carolina game, relatively speaking

This is the third week I've done one of these pre-game looks at an opponent...we won the first two games, so I'm damn sure not stopping now.

For more info on what these numbers mean, take a look at the Duke entry.

State Offense Versus UNC Defense:

State	Rank	UNC	Rank	Delta
Rushing Offense	102	Rushing Defense	66	-36
Passing Offense	78	Pass Defense	61	-17
Total Offense	104	Total Defense	57	-47
Passing Efficiency	91	Pass Efficiency Defense	18	-73
Scoring Offense	95	Scoring Defense	17	-78

Average Delta in favor of UNC when we have the ball: 50.2. Relative to the rest of all Div. 1A programs, they are 42.2% (50.2/119) better defensively than State offensively.


State Defense Versus UNC Offense:

State	Rank	UNC	Rank	Delta
Rushing Defense	77	Rushing Offense	85	8
Pass Defense	101	Passing Offense	74	-27
Total Defense	97	Total Offense	93	-4
Pass Efficiency Defense	86	Passing Efficiency	32	-54
Scoring Defense	77	Scoring Offense	41	-36

Average Delta in favor of UNC when they have the ball: 11.8. Relative to the rest of all Div. 1A programs, they are 9.9% (11.8/119) better offensively than State is defensively.

(Continues)

Whole lotta blue in those tables there. No doubt about it, Carolina will be one of the toughest teams State faces all year. They're strong on defense where it counts: scoring defense and pass efficiency defense.

A note on the discrepancy between the pass efficiency numbers: One, Russell Wilson's pass efficiency rating is 127.00, good for 52nd nationally and 14 points higher than the team average, no doubt sagging from the games when Wilson was injured. Two, Carolina gives up an above-average number of yards (61st nationally) and is ranked 18th in pass efficiency defense. My guess would be that's bolstered by their amazing 18 interceptions on the year. Fortunately for State, Wilson is one of the nation's best in taking care of the football. So I'm not as scared by that monster 73-slot discrepancy as you might think (even though it is certainly cause for concern).

The one area where State holds an advantage is rush defense, and Carolina's rushing offense can struggle at times. Part of the reason why Carolina's rushing totals are so low is its propensity to toss the ball all over the yard, and when you have Hakeem Nicks, how can you blame them? But with Nate Irving back in the lineup the Pack's rush defense will be plenty stout. If the Pack can make the Heels a one-dimensional ballclub, that should bode well for their chances of escaping for a win.

One thing I'm noticing about these stats is that after the midpoint of the season, it's almost impossible to make a dent in them based on the performance of one game. It's like your GPA in college, in a way: once you hit your junior year, if you had a 2.5 you could pretty much run the table with either As or Ds and not move the needle that much one way or the other. State's played some of its best ball offensively and defensively of late and yet they still haven't cracked the mid-70s in any of these 10 catergories.

Perhaps a more accurate view of teams as the season goes on would be to rank the country's teams over their last three games. A three-game snapshot of all the teams wouldn't be perfect, but it would account for the ebb and flow of teams as they mature, fall apart, face overwhelming injuries, etc.

But for now this is an aggregate look as the season proceeds, and honestly State hasn't changed so much since the return of Wilson and Irving as to totally invalidate these numbers, just as the loss of Yates or Tate hasn't swung the numbers overwhelming in one direction or another for the Heels.

View the complete entry of "A look at the Carolina game, relatively speaking"

State students out-hippie the hippies at UNC-Ch

Wolfpack sweep all three categories in water conservation challenge against the Tar Heels.

All kidding aside, great work by the N.C. State students living on campus. Water conservation is a noble goal and it's great to see everyone on campus step up and do their part.

Between the two schools, over 11 million gallons of water were conserved...not too shabby.

View the complete entry of "State students out-hippie the hippies at UNC-Ch"