GAME WEEK

Ohhhh snap. It's N.C. State football game week!

Man, I really cannot wait. I'm so pumped for this season. In spite of all the drama surrounding the heart-breaking departure of Russell Wilson, I think this could be a solid season. I really do.

And here's the thing about Russell Wilson. I love him. I hope he wins the Heisman, and I'll be a Wisconsin Badgers fan all season because of him. But it was a lose-lose situation.

Tom O'Brien is trying to manage a program for the present and the future. Wilson was drafted in the fourth round of the MLB draft and was given a nice signing bonus -- $250,000, I believe. He was undecided about continuing to play football.

His backup last season, Mike Glennon, was the no. 3-rated quarterback coming out of high school a few years ago. If Wilson came back, Glennon might have transferred elsewhere since he only has two more years of eligibility.

So O'Brien was faced with a scenario where Wilson is the assumed starter, leading to Glennon transferring, and Wilson still could have chosen to play baseball. O'Brien didn't know Wilson definitely was playing football this season, and he wouldn't have known the answer before it was too late. He could have been without a quarterback this season or next season. How many years would that have set back N.C. State?

Rather than risk that scenario, O'Brien decided two years of Glennon was a safer bet than possibly one year of Wilson and who knows what next year. Obviously, now that we know Wilson is playing football this year, this all looks very silly. But remember, we didn't know that then.

Anyway, Wisconsin is on ESPN tomorrow night to open the season. I will gladly watch and cheer for Wilson. If I had a Russell Wilson jersey, I'd most definitely wear it. Let's go Russell!

All that said, it's hard not to be excited about Glennon's potential. For now, I'm choosing to trust in O'Brien and his ability to develop offensive linemen and quarterbacks. No reason not to at the moment.

Now the schedule for this season sets up very nicely early in the season for breaking in a new starting quarterback.

09/03/11	vs. Liberty
09/10/11	at Wake Forest
09/17/11	vs. South Alabama
09/22/11	at Cincinnati
10/01/11	vs. Georgia Tech
10/08/11	vs. Central Michigan
10/22/11	at Virginia
10/29/11	at Florida State
11/05/11	vs. North Carolina
11/12/11	at Boston College
11/19/11	vs. Clemson
11/26/11	vs. Maryland

Looking at the schedule, my most pessimistic prediction is 5-7, and my most optimistic prediction is either 9-3 or 10-2. Nothing between those two extremes would surprise me. I won't bother picking individual games, but looking at the first seven games -- I'm not saying we'll win them all, but that's as manageable a start to the season as you're going to get.

The defense is going to miss Nate Irving something serious. That was one bad, bad man. But I feel good about the potential of Terrell Manning and Audie Cole to fill in for Irving in terms of being the soul of the defense.

I just really can't wait to get back to Raleigh for a few home games and some LEGIT tailgating. I've seen some games at a few places around the ACC, and I have to say, there is absolutely nothing like game day at Carter-Finley. The tailgating, the energy flowing through the crowd, the electricity in the stadium, the team entrance -- dammit I'm getting fired up.

I will leave you with two N.C. State football videos that will undoubtedly fire you up as well. The first is the "Three-Levels Deep" video that's been circulating Facebook and the message boards for a few weeks.



The second is maybe my favorite entrance video we've ever had. Yes, I know "Boom" is not a great song, but it definitely works in this video.



Maaan. If you're not fired up for some State football right now, you have no soul.

Go. State.

-BG