The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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24 ■ THE WOLFPACKER 50 1966 2016 They watched together when Wolfpack quarterback/punter Jim Donnan boomed the longest punt of his career, clearly aided by the adrenaline of the emotional day. South Carolina's Bobby Bry- ant caught the ball on the 2-yard line and broke free for a 98-yard romp that is still the longest punt return in ACC football history. The Gamecocks withstood a Wolfpack rally for their only win of the sea- son and spoiled Dedication Day for the 35,000 fans attending the first game at newly minted Carter Stadium. It did not, however, dampen the enthusi- asm for the long-awaited off-campus home that Edwards and so many others champi- oned for years. "I've been part of a bunch of ACC cham- pionships in many sports, two national championships in men's basketball and a lot of other amazing moments at NC State," said Bryant, a former basketball assistant coach and the longtime executive secretary of the Wolfpack Club. "But seeing that stadium open, no matter what the outcome of the game was, is still one of the proudest moments I've ever experienced. "I still have the same feeling now, 50 years and a bunch of improvements later, whenever I go to the stadium. It means that much to me and to the school." The story of the new stadium — an erec- tor set of pre-stressed concrete and steel built on the outskirts of West Raleigh ad- jacent to the "new" home of the state fair- grounds, with ample space for parking and tailgating — is part of the transformation of NC State College into a world-class research university, which happened at roughly the same time the steel gates first opened. It's a story with many characters, unique financing and the support of a commu- nity that helped pay for the edifice with $75 contributions from more than 3,000 families, businesses and organizations from across the state. Among the individuals who gave were three governors, two Ra- leigh mayors, UNC President William C. Friday, the NC State basketball team, the NC State cheerleaders, the ACC Sports- writers Association and the Duke football team. Mainly, however, it's the story of how the collective fan base, inspired to give by the Wolfpack Club, that not only got the stadium built in the first place, but financed more than $150 million in expansion and improvements over the last 15 years to make Carter-Finley Stadium one of the great places to be on a col- lege football Saturday, with ameni- ties like the Murphy Center, Vaughn Towers, the Dail Practice Complex and the newly opened Close-King Indoor Practice Facility. "The game-day experience at Carter-Finley is unparalleled in terms of setting, the tailgating and the sta- dium," said director of athletics Debbie Yow. "It is a beautiful complex, something really special." And the fans it serves made that happen. "Our fans and donors have stepped up ev- ery time we needed it," said Bobby Purcell, now the executive director of the Wolfpack Club. "It wouldn't have gotten done without them." REPLACING RIDDICK The new facility was sorely needed in the 1960s, less than a decade after Chancellor Carey Bostian was hell-bent to eliminate the football program. The team was rarely successful, put the athletics department into serious financial arrears and played in a stadium not befitting a legitimate college team. Riddick Stadium, shown here in 1946, was NC State football's former home but hardly befitting of a legitimate college program. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS CARTER-FINLEY MEMORIES CLAYTON WHITE FORMER PLAYER AND CURRENT NC STATE ASSISTANT FOOTBALL COACH Clayton White has a unique perspective on games at Carter-Finley. He played as a Wolfpack linebacker from 1997-2000, starting three years and being team captain as a senior. He's also coached the NC State safe- ties and co-coordinated special teams since 2013. Yet he recalls a time predating his NCSU career. "My most memorable moment was one of my first moments. My Pop Warner football team came up to a game, and I was on the hill. I remember there was a Hail Mary in the end zone that we either broke up or we caught. My memory of the Carter-Finley is as a kid coming to the game. We were on the hill, rolling down it. "Then I had a family in Dunn that would always bring me to games, and we literally sat on the top row at the 50. In my ninth and 10th grade year before I started getting recruited, I would literally sit on the top of Carter-Finley on the 50 on the last row, one of the best seats in the house. "In terms of my playing career, some of the highlights were beating Florida State in 1998, returning an interception against ECU at the end of the game and my last game, senior day, but the kid on the hill is what I think about." PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS