talkingcanes
08-07-2004, 08:54 AM
this sounds like a potentially great addition to the Pack squad :spin: with the new schools joining the conference, competition is going to be tougher than ever.
RALEIGH -- T.A. McLendon sneaked a peek or two. So did Jay Davis and Marcus Stone.
Everyone, it seemed, wanted a look Friday at N.C. State's newest player -- a player who first made an appearance midway through the Wolfpack's first preseason football practice.
Bobby Washington bounded onto the practice field wearing jersey No. 22 -- a number he quickly was given and one that could change. It ended a blitz of activity over the past few days in which Washington asked for a release from his scholarship at the University of Miami after the school reportedly questioned his ACT board scores. He then flew to Raleigh, toured the NCSU campus, was enrolled and given a scholarship.
Just like that, the Pack added a freshman running back rated the fourth-best in the country by one recruiting service as a senior at Miami's Killian High. Just like that, McLendon and the other State tailbacks had added competition.
"It surprised me because I knew he was going to Miami at first," McLendon said. "Then one of my teammates who went to school with him told me he was coming. I didn't believe it until I saw him the next day.
"It just brings a lot more competition. I like it myself, to know we've got so many different types of running backs. I'm not worried about it. We'll compete, and whoever plays is up to the coaches."
McLendon was first-team All-ACC as a freshman, when he was the league's rookie of the year, and goes into preseason camp healthy again. The Pack still has Josh Brown and Reggie Davis in the backfield, and touted freshman Darrell Blackman, who was at Hargrave Military Academy last year, didn't come in to sit.
But Washington, listed at 6 feet 1 and 200 pounds, slipped on the jersey, taped up his ankles Friday and was placed into the mix. By the end of practice, he had carried the ball a few times.
Washington and the other Wolfpack freshmen weren't allowed to speak to the media after practice. But others talked about him, including Davis and Stone, who are competing for the starting position at QB and the unenviable position of being compared to former star Philip Rivers.
"I mean, he looked like an athlete," Stone said. "You could tell by his body and the shape he's in. You wanted to see what he was about."
Stone said Washington was introduced at the team meeting Thursday, when each of the newcomers stood up and talked a little about themselves.
What Washington could have said is that he rushed for 5,695 yards and 61 touchdowns in his high school career -- 2,132 yards and 23 TDs last season. He was named first-team all-state as a junior and a senior, and was selected a SuperPrep All-America last season.
Washington was headed to the Hurricanes until questions arose about an ACT board score. The Miami Herald reported Wednesday that Washington was told the school was looking into an allegation that someone took the exam using Washington's name, that it wanted time to investigate the matter, and that Washington was being denied admission.
The Herald quoted Washington as saying, "Forget it, I'm leaving. I didn't cheat on any test. I took the test twice -- that's it."
Jon Fagg, NCSU's assistant athletics director for compliance, was at practice Friday and talked briefly with coach Chuck Amato before Washington arrived. Amato said, "We did everything by the book."
NCSU was among the host of schools that recruited Washington, and the Wolfpack program had four former Killian players. Now, it has a fifth.
"We're happy to have him," Amato said Friday. "How good is he? We'll find that out.
"He's pretty good. He's an awfully good back who has a long way to go and got a lot to learn. After he learns it we'll see what his ability is."
With all talk about Washington on Friday, there wasn't as much attention given the Pack's most pressing issue: Who will replace Rivers. For Davis and Stone, that wasn't all bad.
"It helps a little bit," Stone said, smiling. "Of course, people are still going to say who's going to replace Philip Rivers, but it helps."
RALEIGH -- T.A. McLendon sneaked a peek or two. So did Jay Davis and Marcus Stone.
Everyone, it seemed, wanted a look Friday at N.C. State's newest player -- a player who first made an appearance midway through the Wolfpack's first preseason football practice.
Bobby Washington bounded onto the practice field wearing jersey No. 22 -- a number he quickly was given and one that could change. It ended a blitz of activity over the past few days in which Washington asked for a release from his scholarship at the University of Miami after the school reportedly questioned his ACT board scores. He then flew to Raleigh, toured the NCSU campus, was enrolled and given a scholarship.
Just like that, the Pack added a freshman running back rated the fourth-best in the country by one recruiting service as a senior at Miami's Killian High. Just like that, McLendon and the other State tailbacks had added competition.
"It surprised me because I knew he was going to Miami at first," McLendon said. "Then one of my teammates who went to school with him told me he was coming. I didn't believe it until I saw him the next day.
"It just brings a lot more competition. I like it myself, to know we've got so many different types of running backs. I'm not worried about it. We'll compete, and whoever plays is up to the coaches."
McLendon was first-team All-ACC as a freshman, when he was the league's rookie of the year, and goes into preseason camp healthy again. The Pack still has Josh Brown and Reggie Davis in the backfield, and touted freshman Darrell Blackman, who was at Hargrave Military Academy last year, didn't come in to sit.
But Washington, listed at 6 feet 1 and 200 pounds, slipped on the jersey, taped up his ankles Friday and was placed into the mix. By the end of practice, he had carried the ball a few times.
Washington and the other Wolfpack freshmen weren't allowed to speak to the media after practice. But others talked about him, including Davis and Stone, who are competing for the starting position at QB and the unenviable position of being compared to former star Philip Rivers.
"I mean, he looked like an athlete," Stone said. "You could tell by his body and the shape he's in. You wanted to see what he was about."
Stone said Washington was introduced at the team meeting Thursday, when each of the newcomers stood up and talked a little about themselves.
What Washington could have said is that he rushed for 5,695 yards and 61 touchdowns in his high school career -- 2,132 yards and 23 TDs last season. He was named first-team all-state as a junior and a senior, and was selected a SuperPrep All-America last season.
Washington was headed to the Hurricanes until questions arose about an ACT board score. The Miami Herald reported Wednesday that Washington was told the school was looking into an allegation that someone took the exam using Washington's name, that it wanted time to investigate the matter, and that Washington was being denied admission.
The Herald quoted Washington as saying, "Forget it, I'm leaving. I didn't cheat on any test. I took the test twice -- that's it."
Jon Fagg, NCSU's assistant athletics director for compliance, was at practice Friday and talked briefly with coach Chuck Amato before Washington arrived. Amato said, "We did everything by the book."
NCSU was among the host of schools that recruited Washington, and the Wolfpack program had four former Killian players. Now, it has a fifth.
"We're happy to have him," Amato said Friday. "How good is he? We'll find that out.
"He's pretty good. He's an awfully good back who has a long way to go and got a lot to learn. After he learns it we'll see what his ability is."
With all talk about Washington on Friday, there wasn't as much attention given the Pack's most pressing issue: Who will replace Rivers. For Davis and Stone, that wasn't all bad.
"It helps a little bit," Stone said, smiling. "Of course, people are still going to say who's going to replace Philip Rivers, but it helps."