The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/73006
2012 FOOTBALL PREVIEW N BY JACEY ZEMBAL C State head coach Tom O'Brien once remarked that he was going to have an NFL-sized offensive line brimming with talent in the future. The future has finally arrived, with the Wolfpack returning four starters from last year's offensive line, plus a fifth former starter who is fully back from a serious knee injury. |||||||||||| OFFENSIVE LINEMEN The returning trio of fifth-year senior left tackle R.J. Mattes, fifth-year senior right guard Zach Allen and senior center Camden Wentz has gone through the battles, and all three are multi-year starters. Fifth-year senior Andrew Wallace and red- shirt junior Duran Christophe started at left guard in 2010 and 2011, respectively. The newcomer to the starting lineup, junior right tackle Robert Crisp, is the most celebrated recruit signed by O'Brien while in Raleigh. The six linemen give second-year offen- sive line coach Jim Bridge a talented group to work with. The Wolfpack has 15 scholarship linemen entering fall camp. "Offensive line play is a lot about seeing it and recognizing it, and being able to do it and block it," Bridge said. "It's like solving problems. It's like anything else in life, the more experience you have, the better you are at solving problems. I think we have the experience to solve problems. "I don't think NC State has had [15 schol- arship linemen] before in quite some time." Mattes underwent offseason foot surgery, stemming from when he got hurt against North Carolina on Nov. 5, but played through the pain and never missed a game. The rest of the linemen were intact during the spring, and Mattes eventually rejoined them in time for the Kay Yow Spring Game. "They did well," Bridge said. "Our vet- erans did a good job. It takes thousands and thousands and thousands of reps to be good at something. They have those thousands of reps." Having four seniors, three of whom came in together in the same recruiting class — Mattes, Wallace and Allen — also pays off in providing leadership for the nine freshmen and sophomores. "They've done a good job with that," Bridge said. "They show the young guys where to be, when to be there and how to do things. It's nice having several extra coaches out there who can help." The offensive linemen — combined with Senior center Camden Wentz didn't allow a sack last year and has surrendered just one in 1,930 career plays over 31 games. PHOTO BY ERIC LUSK quarterback Mike Glennon, tight end Ma- rio Carter, running back James Washington and wide receiver Tobais Palmer, all seniors — give NC State invaluable leadership on offense. "Leadership is an important component of any upper-class group," Bridge said. "When your offensive line has veterans that are good leaders, you are in a pretty good spot for a lot of reasons. Number one, they are usually the biggest guys on the team, and they can lead with a physical intimidation as well as a big, booming voice. "They can lead from a toughness stand- point and they can lead generally speaking that the offensive linemen are the hardest workers on a lot of teams." mastered other components and able to take on a little bit more." NC State could feature a rotation of three solid running backs with Washington and redshirt sophomores Mustafa Greene and Tony Creecy. Having a running back (or two) reach 1,000 rushing yards in a season is al- ways a goal, along with cracking at least 100 yards in a game. NC State averaged 104.8 rushing yards per contest last season. Bridge doesn't worry about statistics, but more about producing when needed in the run game. "That [104.8 rushing yards] is just a num- TIME IS NOW Senior-Laden Line Will Help Lead Wolfpack Offense The anonymous nature of playing on the line helps lead to a different kind of leadership. "They are used to not getting credit," Bridge said. "It isn't a 'look at me' type of role. They are leaders without recognition a lot of times. It's easy to see the guy that scores all the touchdowns. That doesn't al- ways mean he's a great leader, the guy scor- ing all the touchdowns." The experience from the group also pays off in trying to add new layers to the offense. "You always like to build, but we are going to do what we do," Bridge said. "At the same time, there are situations where they have 72 Zach Allen 71 Alex Barr run the football efficiently and not to run just for numbers. We don't run the football as an offense with that number being good or bad. What we need to keep improving on is running efficiency. For a passing offense, running for over 100 yards per game is pretty good." A good, tough left tackle is usually the cor- nerstone of a good offensive line, and Mattes has done anything and everything asked of him during his NC State career. He started off at right guard as a redshirt freshman, then moved to right tackle his second year and then left tackle last year. He blew out his ACL in the eighth game of his redshirt freshman ||||||| 2012 OFFENSIVE LINEMEN No. Name 65 Joseph Buccola 50 Cameron Fordham OG 6-3 286 R-So. Duluth, Ga. (LSU) 60 Eddie Gordon Jr. 66 Taylor Griswold OG 6-1 320 So. C 6-3 293 OL 6-2 305 Fr. 64 Andrew Wallace OG 6-5 293 5th-Sr. Charlotte, N.C. (Olympic) 53 Camden Wentz 67 Quincy McKinney OG 6-4 304 68 Dwayne O'Rear OL 6-3 265 54 Joe Thuney 59 John Tu'uta C 6-3 301 Fr. Sr. OT 6-6 313 5th-Sr. Concord, N.C. (Robinson) Fr. Jr. Fr. 74 Tyson Chandler OT 6-6 340 R-So. North Plainfield, N.J. (Fork Union Military) 62 Duran Christophe OG 6-6 302 R-Jr. New Orleans, La. (Woodstock [Ga.]) 78 Robert Crisp OT 6-7 312 61 Evan Bumgardner OT 6-4 340 R-Fr. Lenoir, N.C. (South Caldwell) 59 Brandon Byers Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown (Last School) OG 6-3 328 5th-Sr. Tifton, Ga. (Tift County) OT 6-7 332 R-Fr. Fayetteville, Ga. (Star's Mill) OL 6-2 275 R-So. OL 6-2 255 Sr. Raleigh (Athens Drive) 73 Andy Jomantas OT 6-7 289 R-So. Dayton, Ohio (Chaminade-Julienne) 56 Bryce Kennedy 79 R.J. Mattes C 6-5 265 R-Fr. Centreville, Ohio (Archbishop Alter) OL 6-2 325 Charlotte, N.C. (Hickory Ridge) Boiling Springs, S.C. (Boiling Springs) Zebulon, N.C. (East Wake) Southern Pines, N.C. (Pinecrest) Columbus, Ga. (Fork Union Military) Fredericksburg, Va. (Fork Union Military) Marietta, Ga. (Lassiter) JULY 2012 ■ 59 Raleigh, N.C. (Leesville Road) Garner, N.C. (Garner) ber," Bridge said. "What does it really mean? It is just a number. We are going to throw the football. To me, you have to be able to