Q&A with D-Black

Ten questions with senior wide receiver Darrell Blackman from the Fay Observer:

1. What teammate do you think will surprise people this season?
Jamelle Eugene (sophomore running back). He’s really worked hard and that guy can fly.

2. Do you have a nickname?
My teammates here at N.C. State call me D-Black, but they call me Real Deal back home (Williamsports, Pa).

3. What’s one of the biggest differences you’ve seen between how Coach O’Brien runs things and Coach (Chuck) Amato?
With the military background Coach O’Brien has, he expects you to be on time. If something is supposed to start at 3, then he expects you to be there by 2:45 so you can get seated and be ready to listen. He expects that out of the players and the coaches.

4. What about your hometown do you miss most when you’re in Raleigh?
Philly cheesesteaks. I love them and you can’t get them down there like the ones at home.

5. What has been the biggest thrill of your football career so far?
Last year when I was named to the All-ACC team as a returner. This year my goal is to make it as a receiver.

6. How much difference in there in your position with the change in coaching staffs?
There’s not much difference. Under Coach Amato I was playing sort of like a halfback position where I was a running back and a receiver. Now I’m more of a pure receiver. I’ll be running a lot more deeper routes in this offense.

7. How much more comfortable do you feel as a receiver after moving there last year from running back?
I feel a lot more comfortable as a receiver now that I’m getting down a lot of the concepts of the position. I’m getting my hand work down, I’m learning how to get off the ball. It was pretty difficult making a position change like that after playing running back all my life. But it’s worked out for the best.

8. What person in history would you most like to meet?
Martin Luther King, Jr.

9. If you weren’t playing football in college, what sport would you play?
Basketball. I was a pretty good guard in high school. I averaged about 20 points a game and was an all-state play my junior and senior years.

10. Who is your funniest teammate?
Willie Young (defensive end). He really cracks me up.

Pack Baseball loses key Player

NC State first baseman/designated hitter Mike Roskopf is transferring to Southern California to play under Chad Kreuter. Roskopf hit .316 with 13 homers with 42 RBI. He will be an instant addition to the Trojans squad hopefully leading them to the Pac-10 Championship in 2008.

Thanks to Brian at College Baseball Blog for giving me the scoop.

Strange B-Rack development

From Mike DeCourcy, Sporting News:

Former N.C. State PF Andrew Brackman, also a pitcher, had extra leverage in negotiations for a contract with the Yankees. Brackman, the team’s first-round pick, considered transferring home to Cincinnati to play basketball for the Bearcats while his injured elbow healed. He got a $3.35 million signing bonus from the Yankees. If that doesn’t work out, he still might have NBA-level ability. 

Ballin with the Bearcats?? NBA??

What the…??

PLEASE READ THE POST THAT FOLLOWS THIS ONE!

Here’s yet another poll on ESPN, and we are “winning”? I know it doesn’t mean anything, but it is definitely intriguing. Someone, with more readers than I, must be sending folk there. [CLICK HERE TO VOTE]

Current Results:

1) Which team will win the ACC?
33.7%	North Carolina State
27.8%	Virginia Tech
11.4%	Florida State
9.3%	Boston College
5.2%	Miami (FL)
3.0%	Georgia Tech
2.9%	Clemson
2.0%	Wake Forest
1.5%	Maryland
1.4%	Duke
1.3%	Virginia
0.6%	North Carolina

Total Votes: 28,109

Cast Your Vote! (updated 8.28 night)

Go to ESPN Sportsnation and support the Pack! Current results as of 11:12 EST, Monday night:

7) Which player will be a household name by October 1st?
20.6%	DeMarco Murray, RB, Oklahoma
15.3%	Kelland Williams, RB, LSU
15.3%	Beanie Wells, RB, Ohio State
12.8%	Vidal Hazelton, WR, USC
11.3%	Justin Forsett, RB, Cal
6.6%	Evan Royster, RB, Penn State
6.2%	Tommy Blake, DE, TCU
5.9%	Kenny Britt, WR, Rutgers
3.3%	Andre Brown, RB, NC State
2.9%	Ian Campbell, DE, Kansas State
8 ) Which program is most on the rise?
31.5%	Alabama
29.3%	USF
12.6%	Miami
8.7%	Arizona State
8.2%	Iowa
5.1%	Virginia
4.5%	NC State
10) Which new coach will have the most success this season?
38.2%	Steve Kragthorpe, Louisville
29.8%	Nick Saban, Alabama
15.7%	Randy Shannon, Miami
10.5%	Dennis Erickson, Arizona State
5.9%	Tom O’Brien, NC State
Total Votes: 10,902

Updated Tuesday night at 7:27pm, check this out!

Will Manny Lawson have coming out party this year?

Second-year pro Manny Lawson is positioning himself to be an all-around player for the team this season at the strong outside linebacker spot. Manny says, “I want to be well-rounded – rushes, drops, all in one. I was blessed with this athletic talent. I’m in position now where I can showcase it. Oh, man, I can’t wait.”

Says Scot McCloughan, the 49ers’ vice president of player personnel: “He’s a quality individual. When we interviewed him, it was always ‘Yes, sir,’ ‘No, sir.’ You could tell he was raised right. He understands the chain of command. A lot of kids these days don’t.”

On the football side of things, McCloughan saw a 6-foot-5, 240-pound player with skills that would translate to an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense, which the 49ers planned to install in 2007. The 49ers primarily ran a 4-3 last season.

“He wasn’t big enough to be a defensive end,” McCloughan said. “First and foremost, it was his play speed. His intangibles are phenomenal – work ethic, passion, intelligence. He’s the type of player with the skills to be really, really good. If they don’t pan out, with his intangibles, he’s still going to be a solid player. He has a very unique physical ability, which is his play speed.”

An example of that came in the second preseason game against the Raiders. One of Lawson’s two solo tackles Saturday night came on a 1st-and-10 play at the Oakland 42-yard line in the first quarter. He read run immediately and nailed running back Dominic Rhodes for a 6-yard loss. A player with less explosive speed would not make that play, at least not for that big a loss.

Lawson started 11 games as a rookie and had 42 solo tackles, 21/2 sacks, two fumble recoveries, a blocked punt and the one interception.

Somewhat plagerized from this article. Go read the whole thing if you want!