The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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JULY 2018 ■ 45 FOOTBALL PREVIEW 2018 Next In Line Ryan Finley Returns For One More Season At 'Quarterback U' BY MATT CARTER W olfpack sixth-year senior Ryan Finley has proven his intelli- gence. He graduated magna cum laude with a degree in psychol- ogy from Boise State in three years and is currently working on his graduate certificate at NC State after already achieving a mas- ter's in liberal arts. He was selected to the Academic All-ACC team in 2017 with a 3.889 grade point average. Yet one does not have to be a genius to appreciate the quarterback tradition at NC State. It dates back further than the recent suc- cess of having four former quarterbacks starting a game on the same week last season in the NFL — Jacoby Brissett with the Colts, Mike Glennon with the Bears, Philip Rivers with the Chargers and Russell Wilson with the Seahawks. Before them Roman Gabriel was the NFL MVP in 1969 and a four-time Pro Bowler. After two successful seasons as the start- ing quarterback at NC State, Finley has a chance to join the exclusive "Quarterback U" club. His completion percentage of 63.0 at NC State is second in school history only to Rivers. His 555 completions, 881 pass- ing attempts, 6,577 passing yards and 6,865 yards of total offense all rank fifth in school history. If he stays healthy this season and performs similar to his first two years he is likely to finish second in all of these cat- egories, trailing only Rivers. In addition, Finley's 35 touchdown passes ranks seventh. The temptation was there for Finley to consider making that move to the NFL after last season, but the lure of lining up under center one more time for the Wolfpack was too strong. "I had a close person tell me that he would do anything to play in one more college foot- ball game, and that hit me," Finley recalled. "I was excited to get back to work and get back into Carter-Finley and represent this university." There might have been some strategic thinking into his decision as well, which would be natural for someone with a mind like Finley's. The NFL Draft in 2018 fea- tured five quarterbacks that ended up getting selected in the first round, including four among the top 10. The early analysis sug- gests that the 2019 class of signal-callers should be easier for Finley to break through. CBS Sports NFL writers Will Brinson and Chris Trapasso both mocked Finley in the first round of their respective initial projections of next year's draft. ESPN's famed draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. had Finley No. 3 among quarter- backs behind only Missouri's Drew Lock and West Virginia's Will Grier, and noted all three "have at least first-round upside." It's not dissimilar to the decision Bradley Chubb made when he saw a loaded defen- sive end class in the 2017 draft and chose to return for his senior season, elevating his stock from fringe first-round pick, at best, to No. 5 overall pick and the first defensive lineman off the board. "That was definitely cool to watch that whole process unfold in front of our eyes," Finley said. "Obviously, he made a great decision in coming back, and Chubb repre- sented himself with class the whole entire year. "Just watching him and how he acted as a professional last year, I definitely learned a lot." NC State head coach Dave Doeren ap- preciated how Chubb and his family handled their draft decision, and he has equal affinity for the Finleys' approach. "Ryan is very intelligent, and he and his family looked at every piece of evidence that they could get — the pros and cons of both [staying and going to the draft]," he said. "Ultimately, he felt like coming back will allow him to be the best quarterback in col- lege football. That is his goal." Finley confirmed that personal ambition. "I would expect nothing less than to be the best quarterback in college football," Finley said. Individual goals aside, Finley's time to lead NC State has arrived. Doeren called this year's squad "Finley's team." "That's exciting for me," Finley noted. "I'm blessed to be in this leadership role, and I am going to take advantage of that ev- ery single day and help this team play to its potential and be as good as it can be." It will be the closing season to the Finley chapter at "Quarterback U," an opportunity not lost on him. "That's important to me," he said. "I think the tradition here at quarterback is so strong. I am honored to be in the mix with those guys." ■ Sixth-year senior quarterback Ryan Finley is on pace to finish his career second on NC State's all-time lists for attempts, comple- tions, passing yards, completion percentage and yards of total offense. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN PASSING YARDS 1. Philip Rivers (2000-03) — 13,484 2. Jamie Barnette (1996-99) — 9,461 3. Russell Wilson (2008-10) — 8,545 4. Mike Glennon (2009-12) — 7,411 5. Ryan Finley (2016-present) — 6,577 COMPLETIONS 1. Rivers — 1,087 2. Wilson — 682 3. Glennon — 646 4. Barnette — 637 5. Finley — 555 ATTEMPTS 1. Rivers — 1,710 2. Barnette — 1,243 3. Wilson — 1,180 4. Glennon — 1,069 5. Finley — 881 TOUCHDOWN PASSES 1. Rivers — 95 2. Wilson — 76 3. Glennon — 63 4. Barnette — 59 5. Jacoby Brissett (2014-15) — 43 6. Terry Harvey (1991, 93-95) — 38 7. Finley — 35 COMPLETION PERCENTAGE 1. Rivers — .636 2. Finley — .630 YARDS OF TOTAL OFFENSE 1. Rivers — 13,583 2. Barnette — 9,638 3. Wilson — 9,628 4. Glennon — 7,131 5. Finley — 6,865 Ryan Finley In The NC State Career Record Books "I think the tradition here at quarterback is so strong. I am honored to be in the mix with those guys." ■ Finley