The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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52 ■ THE WOLFPACKER WHEREARETHEYNOW? light on the program, nobody was above the law or above the rules," Worthen said. "That wasn't how it was where I grew up. You handled your own business and moved on, but that's not how things work in other places. I had to learn that. "I shouldn't have been in that situation and fighting. They jumped in on me, yes, but you can't touch other people." Worthen's response to his suspension was one of the more remarkable achievements of the Sheridan era. To some, it would be understandable to become bitter about missing an entire year after having gone through due process before the season and facing the possibility of having all charges removed after a year of probation. Worthen, always affable and easy-going, sat out the season without any backlash. "My mom and dad made it clear to me that you can't run from the rules," Worthen said. "You knew what they were. I had to sit there and think about it. I was wrong. Even though I had a great year in 1986, the program was bigger than me. "We still had to recruit, and we still had to go deal with players. What happened to me wasn't as important as those things, and that's why I have always admired that man [Sheridan] and have appreciated him going forward from that day. I was wrong to be in the incident." To this day, Sheridan recognizes that Worthen's reaction helped his program much more than not having him for a full season hurt it. "Naz, the way he reacted, set an example for the rest of the team," Sheridan said. "He worked hard in his offseason. He did ev- erything he was asked and didn't complain. "He could have made it about him, but he accepted it and responded in a positive manner. He could have turned it around and gone the other direction and caused a big problem within our team. "He accepted his penalty, and he worked that much harder to be an even better player. What happened with Naz didn't slow the program down. It was an example of how to respond to the discipline we expected from all our players." Worthen returned to the Wolfpack in 1988 and had another outstanding season, helping Sheridan's third edition go 8-3- 1, like they had done two years before. The Pack finished off the season with the coach's first bowl victory, a 28-23 decision over Iowa in a return trip to the Peach Bowl. He set school records with 10 receptions against South Carolina and 55 catches and 856 receiving yards on the year. He fin- ished his career as the owner of nearly ev- ery school receiving record: receptions in a game (10), receptions in a season (55), receptions in a career (131), receiving yards in a game (187), receiving yards in a sea- son (856) and receiving yards in a career (2,247). All of those marks have since been sur- passed by the likes of Eddie Goines, Torry Holt and Jerricho Cotchery, but that doesn't diminish Worthen's place among the best receivers in school history. Sometimes, a legacy isn't just defined by the numbers someone leaves behind. ■ Tim Peeler is a regular contributor to The Wolfpacker and can be reached at tmpeeler@ncsu.edu. Worthern now lives in Jacksonville, Fla., where he grew up, with his wife Monique, in a house that he used his NFL signing bonus to purchase. PHOTO COURTESY NASRALLAH WORTHEN "My mom and dad made it clear to me that you can't run from the rules. You knew what they were. I had to sit there and think about it. I was wrong. Even though I had a great year in 1986, the program was bigger than me." ■ Worthen