The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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loss to Florida State Oct. 29. Most Memorable Moment: Crawford, along with senior wide receiver T.J. Graham and redshirt junior quarterback Mike Glennon, was pivotal in starting a chapter of "Uplifting Athletes" at NC State to raise money for leukemia research. Quote: "Beating Carolina five times, that was great, and just being on the field, making plays with my bud- dies." — Crawford on his favorite NC State memories ■ FB Taylor Gentry Summary: Gentry went from walk-on and former high school wide receiver at Raleigh Leesville Road High, to a 6-2, 250-pound battering ram of a fullback. He made his mark catch- ing passes, delivering wicked blocks and being a special teams demon, and ended up earning a scholarship along the way. The life-long Wolf- pack fan was later joined on the football team by his younger brother, Zach, a walk-on linebacker, and his younger sister, Carolina, will start playing soccer for NCSU next year. Gentry ended up having his senior year cut short with a season-ending foot injury suffered in the Georgia Tech loss Oct. 1. He played defensive tackle for the first time against the Yellow Jackets, but was injured playing fullback. Gentry was named one of the top five senior fullbacks for the NFL Draft by ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. prior to getting injured. Career Highlights: The sure-handed Gentry came through with several clutch receptions out of the back- field, and he delivered his fair share of big hits on special teams. Gentry scored his first career touchdown, a 23-yard catch, in the home win against Pittsburgh in 2009, and added three catches for 20 yards and a touchdown in the victory over Cincinnati last year. Gentry caught a pair of short touchdown passes in the 35-13 win over South Alabama Sept. 17 this season. Most Memorable Moment: Gentry's first memo- rable catch came during his freshman year of 2008, when he snagged an eight-yard pass on fourth-and-one at the UNC 36-yard line. The Wolfpack went on to score on the series to take a 24-10 lead en route to a 41-10 victory. Quote: "Taylor has always been the leader of the spe- cial team grouping. He's always been a good pass catcher. We've asked him to do some different things in the running game blocking-wise this season. He might have a chance to play at the next level." — NC State coach Tom O'Brien on Gentry's role when he was healthy ■ WR/KR T.J. Graham Summary: Graham played as a true freshman in 2008 and made his mark as a kick returner when he set a single-season school record with 1,028 kickoff return yards. Four years later he leaves as the ACC's most prolific kickoff returner ever, with 3,090 career yards. Graham returned two kickoffs and two punts for scores and was named first-team All-ACC as a specialist in 2011. Graham, though, became more than a kick returner. He caught 39 passes for 641 yards and five touchdowns this fall, leading State in receiving yards and scores and 28 ■ THE WOLFPACKER tying for team-high in catches. His 5,044 all-purpose yards are the second most in school history behind former running back Ted Brown. He also became a two- sport star, earning All-Amer- ica honors in the indoor 60-meter dash in 2010. Career Highlights: Graham set a school record with 336 all-purpose yards at Cincinnati, catching seven passes for 176 yards and two scores, and returning seven kickoffs for 160 yards. His 87-yard touchdown re- ception was the fifth longest in school history. He had a 100-yard kickoff return against Boston Col- lege as a freshman that ties for the longest in school history, and he was named honorable mention All-ACC as a specialist after the season. Most Memorable Moment: Graham's 87-yard punt return for a touchdown against North Carolina in 2010 tied for the third-longest punt runback in school history, but more importantly it gave NC State a 24-19 lead. Quote: "It's what we hoped to see out of him when we recruited him. We thought he had that potential. He's certainly has stepped up and shown what he is capable of doing." — Head coach Tom O'Brien ■ WR Steven Howard Summary: Howard proved to be a steady performer for NC State, playing between 23 and 42 snaps a game in the wide receiver rotation this past season. The pos- session receiver ended up playing in 48 games during his career at NC State and also drew praise for how he carried himself off the field. The 6-2, 200-pounder from Charlotte got married dur- ing his time in Raleigh and now has a young daughter. He hopes to one day fur- ther his education in the field of architecture. Career Highlights: Howard showed off his deep- ball ability every now and then. He caught a 41-yard reception against South Florida in 2008, and he had a 26-yard grab on the eventual game-winning drive against Pittsburgh in 2009. Howard had three catches for 48 yards — including a 28-yard reception — against the Yellow Jackets in this season's loss at Carter-Finley Stadium. He followed up with his second career touchdown when he caught a two-yard pass in the win over Central Michigan. He earned his first career start at Virginia and also started against Maryland this season. Most Memorable Moment: Howard seemed to save his best for Georgia Tech. He caught a beautiful 21- yard touchdown reception in last year's win in Atlanta, when he artfully dragged his toes down in the back of the end zone. Quote: "We are all close, even with the freshmen. We are a unit and like brothers and hang out. I just tell the younger guys to keep working hard. When they struggle or line up wrong, we try to help them. We don't haze or anything. When we leave, we feel they can take over our spots." — Howard on the unity of the Wolfpack wide receivers ■ DT Markus Kuhn Summary: Kuhn was one of the most interesting re- cruits to ever sign with NC State. He was not allowed to start playing football until he was 15 in Weinheim, Ger- many. He was discovered by the previous coaching staff at NC State and signed dur- ing the transition period. Kuhn enrolled at State at the age of 20 and was forced to play right away as a true freshman at defensive end, where he started three games his sophomore year. Kuhn then redshirted in 2009 and moved to his true position: defensive tackle. He emerged as a force in the interior of the line as a 25-year old fifth-year senior in 2011, earning a nomination to the All-ACC team. Career Highlights: Kuhn was named an honorable mention freshman All-American in 2007 by Sporting News. He recorded his first career sack in the win at East Carolina that year. He set a career-high with eight tackles at Wake Forest as a senior. Most Memorable Moment: When NC State needed a win over Miami at home in the 2008 regular- season finale, Kuhn had a crucial 10-yard sack in the second half to help State keep the momentum in an eventual 38-28 win. Quote: "It's a growing-up process. Some things you have to experience yourself to grow up. The time ab- solutely flies by. Don't think you have one more year or two more. Come in here, do what you are supposed to do, work hard every single day, and it is going to pay off." — Kuhn ■ LB Dwayne Maddox Summary: Maddox left his mark by always being ready to replace an injured teammate. The first 15 starts of his career essentially came in place of Nate Irving at weakside linebacker in 2008 and 2009. Irving missed three full games and parts of two others with a high ankle sprain in 2008, and then missed the 2009 sea- son following his June car crash. Maddox and recruiting classmate Terrell Manning battled for playing time throughout the 2009 cam- paign, but Manning won the spot in 2010, relegating Mad- dox to just 84 snaps (the linebacking unit stayed healthy). This season, Maddox filled in at both outside line- backer spots, when Manning and sophomore D.J. Green missed time with injuries. He also was the backup middle linebacker if anything happened to starter Audie Cole. NCSU ended up playing a 4-2-5 defense with sopho- more nickel back Dontae Johnson limiting Maddox's snaps over the last two games. Career Highlights: As a freshman, Maddox was able to cause and recover a fumble against Boston College and compile a career-high nine tackles against Florida State. This season, Maddox came off the bench for a season- high eight tackles against South Alabama and posted seven in the win at Virginia.