The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1249704
MAY/JUNE 2020 ■ 35 told me, and I'll never forget this, 'Elliott, I had a quarterback in the NFL at Oakland [Rich Gannon], and he could throw on the run as well as anybody. Russell has got that same knack. He throws on the run as accu- rately as anyone as I've ever seen.'" Dunlap: "They come in all shapes and sizes, and I've learned that. At West Virginia we didn't always get the No. 1 recruit. We looked for the diamond in the rough. It's not where you start, it's where you finish. We did that for years and years with Coach [Don] Nehlen. So just because [Wilson] was 5-11, that didn't phase me one bit. "We played in the Orlando Bowl against him — and he beat us!" Wilson: "As I really reflect back on it now, back then it was, 'Let me just stay committed to what I want to do.' I loved NC State. It was a great place to play football and baseball, two things I wanted to do. When I look back on it now, it was kind of the grace of God. "As soon as I was about to leave to col- lege, my dad got extremely ill from diabetes. His legs were swollen up, and they had to amputate them. It was pretty heavy for me. "People don't know that I used to drive up there to Richmond to go see him. I would go up on Thursday night, just pick up and drive and go see him while he was in the hospital. … I would leave late Thursday night, come back Friday morning and play the game on Saturday. "God kept me close — NC State was only two hours and 30 minutes away from home and away from the hospital. It was something where I could go back and forth. "… I remember my dad and I were in a Dick's Sporting Goods in Virginia. My mom was there, too. There was a Philip Rivers 17 jersey that they were selling in the store. I said, 'Dad, I want to have my jersey one day retired like Philip. That's where I would love to go.' It's pretty cool just thinking about that out of high school, having that vision." Avent: "Of all the character traits and all the qualities Russell Wilson has — which have become evident to the whole world — the thing I always admired about him the most was the sacrifices he had to make as a person to do both sports, because it wasn't easy. "He took all the burden upon himself, never made excuses and just made it happen." Wilson: "Now that I reflect on it, I wish I got to celebrate it more. I'm on the West Coast, and it's harder for me to get back there with kids and a season and all the other business that is going on. "I love NC State, and it was an amazing experience." ■ " I love NC State. It was an amazing experience. Wilson PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN