The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/846301
168 ■ THE WOLFPACKER ■ PACK PAST death in the family," he said. "It's the only thing that comes close." The following week, the Wolfpack went to Clemson, still with the opportunity to win the ACC title and earn an invitation to the Orange Bowl. The Tigers came out for the game wearing orange shoes against a deflated Wolfpack and took advantage of a stiff wind for a 14-6 victory that was sealed by a fourth-quarter interception. "We could have been playing Broughton High School that week and we would have still lost," Amato said. "We were just so disap- pointed about what happened at Penn State." For the next two weeks, Edwards and his team weren't sure they even would be invited to a postseason game. Eventually, the Pack got a call for a trip to the Liberty Bowl, which had been moved to Memphis, Tennessee. With its team leading 14-7 against Georgia, the White Shoes Defense twice stopped the Bulldogs inside the 10-yard line to claim the first bowl victory in NC State history. Members of the team still haven't gotten over the losses at the end of the regular sea- son, only because of what they had a chance to do had they been able to win those games. Still, they are proud not only of the first bowl victory but the fact that NC State reached the program's pinnacle in the national rankings. "It was an exhilarating feeling getting in that position, a chance to be the No. 1 team in the country," Donnan explained. "Unfor- tunately, that didn't happen. What we will always have, though, is that it was a quality group of guys who did something that had never been done before at NC State." ■ 2016 Winner Your local family owned & operated hardware store • Serving Wake Forest and Surrounding Communities since 1949 • 232 South White St. In Historic Downtown Wake Forest 919-556-3562 Monday - Saturday: 8am - 6pm • Closed Sunday @BWhardware www.wakeforesthardware.com North Carolina's ONLY Platinum Level Traeger Dealer Tim Peeler is a regular contributor to The Wolfpacker. You may contact him at tmpeeler@ncsu.edu. Jim Donnan (pictured) threw a touchdown to Harry Martell to get NC State on the board in the second quarter of the Liberty Bowl; he finished with 121 passing yards en route to game MVP honors. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS