The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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TRACKING THE PACK NUMBERS AND QUOTES Sponsored by Colony Tire & Service www.colonytire.com PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS PHOTO BY LARRY BLANKENSHIP 2 NC State standouts on ESPN's list of the top 100 players in college football this year. Sophomore wide receiver KEVIN "KC" CONCEPCION checked in at No. 48, while senior cornerback Aydan White was No. 98. 5 Medals won by former NC State athletes at the Paris Olympics. The Pack's total was tied with Arkan- sas for 17th place among all colleges. Stanford led the way with 34 medals won. 119 Preseason All-ACC votes for Kevin "KC" Concepcion. Coming off a freshman season in which he caught 71 passes for 839 yards and 10 touchdowns, Concepcion received the second-most votes of any ACC player. Clemson linebacker Bar - rett Carter (129) was the only player to earn more votes from the panel of 170 media members than the Wolfpack sophomore. 4 , 304 The average attendance for the NC State wrestling team's five home dual meets last season, a program record. That average included sellouts against Oklahoma State, North Carolina and Virginia Tech. The Wolfpack ranked sixth nationally in attendance, accord- ing to NationalWrestlingMedia.com. The only teams that fared be tter were Iowa (14,847), Penn State (7,337), Iowa State (6,692), Oklahoma State (5,871) and Oregon State (5,241). If NC State can match the explosive Vols offense score for score, it will be a great sign that the Pack are truly as danger- ous as this unit looks on paper. But almost as significant is the narrative this game will help set. Florida State and Clemson get the benefit of the doubt as blue bloods when it comes to playoff positioning. NC State needs to put some proof into its pudding. A win over Tennessee could be the résumé item needed if the Wolfpack don't win the ACC but are jockeying for an at-large playoff bid." — ESPN writer David Hale, citing the Pack's game against Tennessee on Sept. 7 as its most telling early-season matchup Winning can be a habit. Finding a way to win and letting go of the past, right? Instead of waiting for the other shoe to drop, how about waiting for some- thing great to happen? That's a different mind- set than we've had here before, and I think that's really important." — Athletics director Boo Corrigan, reflecting on the Pack's wide-ranging success in recent years in ESPN's preview of the 2024 football season 18 ■ THE WOLFPACKER