The Super Bowl is Sunday. I don't like either of the teams, but 100s of people are asking me who I want to win. I suppose I should decide on a team. The majority of the universe is picking the Ravens because of Ray Lewis. Not a fan of eitherm though I do respect what he has meant to the game. A great player deserves to go out on top. But I don't know. He aready has 1 ring. If the 49ers win, the Steelers will no longer be the team with the most wins. They will be tied at 6 each. However, the 49ers will have won 6 and never lost any. The Steelers have been to 8 and lost 2. So I guess I will go for the 9ers.

The #19 Wolfpack (16-4, 5-2), fresh off of a win over the Tarholes, takes on the Virginia Cavaliers (14-5, 4-2) tonight in Charlottesville. NC State leads the series 81-58. The last time the 2 teams met, NC State won 67-64. That was a win in the ACC tourney. The Pack's last regular season win over the Cavs was in 2009. To find the Pack's last win in John Paul Jones Arena, you will have to go all the way back to 2005.

NC State comes in with the highest scoring offense in the ACC at 78.9 ppg, while the Wahoos have the best scoring defense, holding teams to an average of 51.0 ppg. The game is on ESPN2 at 7pm.

I am going to take you back in time for a moment. It is January 22nd, 2003, you are in Raleigh, NC. The North Carolina State Wolfpack has just defeated the Duke Bluedevils 80-71. Move ahead a few days to 1/26/2003, still in Raleigh. The Wolfpack has just beaten the UNC Tarheels 86-77. It was a 3 game win streak that started with a win over the Noles in Tallahassee. Fast forward to 1/12/2013, the Pack has just beaten the #1 ranked Blue Devils. Jump ahead to 1/26/2013, State has just defeated the Heels 91-83. Exactly 10 years to the day of the 2003 win. That is how far back you have to go to find the last time NC State beat both Duke and UNC in the regular season. The Pack beat UNC in the regular season in 2007 and Duke in the ACC tourney.

Local loud mouth and bogus class enrollee, Dexter Strickland, had been quoted back in October as saying "They talk those guys up every single year and we beat them every single year,they are the least of our worries. Beat us one year and then they can talk smack. Until then, you can't put them in the mix."  Dexter backed up his strong words with a stellar 6 point performance on Saturday night. Way to be in the mix Dex! On the Wolfpack side of the ball, 3 players scored double-doubles; Lorenzo Brown had 20 pts and 11 rebounds, Richard Howell had 16 pts and 14 rebounds, and CJ Leslie scored 17 points with 10 rebounds. TJ Warren kicked in 19 points and Scott Wood hit 3 3 pointers and 3 FT's for 12 points. His last 3 was the best as he got fouled and also hit the FT for a 4 pt play. The Pack is 24-3 when Wood hits 3 or more 3 point shots.

Admittedly, the Tarheels have been a roadblock for the Wolfpack for quite some time. Even when the Heels have had down years, they somehow brought their A-game to play against the Pack. The last time the Wolfpack beat Carolina was February 3rd, 2007. It was Sidney Lowe's first year as head coach and the debut of the red blazer. But this is a new Wolfpack team. The Pack is finally back to it's level of play when Valvano was coaching. This team has the ability to make a serious run at the NCAA Championship. Focus, playing with the same intesnsity in both halves of the game, and staying out of foul trouble are keys to another Sweet 16 and beyond this season.

I have been away from the blog for a while. I was really busy enjoying some fine sporting events. I will start off with the Carolina Hurricanes breaking into the win column on Thursday night at home against the Buffalo Sabres. The Canes won 6-3 on a hat trick from Eric Staal, 2 goals from Jeff Skinner, and a tally by Justin Faulk. The Sabres starting goalie (Ryan Miller) was not in the net, so the Sabres fans congratulated us on beating their back-up (Jhonas Enroth). Moving on to Friday night, the game moves up to Buffalo's home ice. The home at home series contract must have had a visiting team plays the back-up goalie clause. The Hurricanes had Dan Ellis between the pipes, giving Cam Ward the night off. Ryan Miller was in net for the Sabres. However, he couldn't stop Alexander Semin from scoring his first goal as a Hurricane, or Jay Harrison from putting one in the back of the net. Jeff Skinner also scored, but it was an empty netter. So I would like to congratulate the Sabres on NOT beating our back-up. Ellis did have a stellar night, with 40 saves on 41 shots, giving up a power play goal to Thomas Vanek 1:56 into the 3rd. The Canes responded by scoring 3 goals of their own in the 3rd. The Canes are now 2-2. Tonight's game features the 3-1 Boston Bruins at the PNC Arena. The Puck drops at 7pm.

The Carolina Hurricanes take on the Buffalo Sabres tonight in PNC Arena. This is game 1 of a 2 game Home-at-Home series and back to back games with the Sabres. Tomorrow night the 2 teams play in Buffalo's First Niagra Center.

The Canes are 0-2, losing 5-1 in Florida and dropping the home opener against Tampa bay 4-1. The Sabres have looked solid,  beating the Flyers at home 4-2 and going on the road to top the Maple leafs 2-1.

The Hurricanes' 2 big-name additions, Jordan Staal and Alexander Semin, are a combined -2 in Carolina's ist 2 games.  Carolina's only 2 goals have been scored by Patrick Dwyer and Jeff Skinner. Cam ward has given up 9 goals in 2 games.

Lebron James Plays for the 2nd Best Basketball team in Miami.

The 25th ranked Hurricanes could be for real. They are 5-0 in the ACC. Last night ,down in Coral gables, they KILLED the #1 team in the country, the Duke Bluedevils. The Canes won 90-63, the 3rd worst beating a #1 team has taken of all time. It was Dukes worst loss in 5 years.(1951 St. Johns lost to Kentucky by 41 and in 1968 Houston lost to UCLA by 32.) Miami is the first team to beat a No. 1 team by 20 or more points in the 21st century. I remember the 1990 NCAA Championship game and the steam rolling Duke took from Larry Johnson and the UNLV Runnin' Rebels. The Rebels beat the Devils 103-73 for the worst beating in the championship ever. So Duke doesn't lose often, but when they lose, they do it up right. However, they defeated the Rebels in the Final 4 in '91 and beat Kansas in the Championship, then beat Michigan and the Fab 5 in '92 for the repeat championship. They tend to bounce back is all I am saying.

Anyway, this marks the first time Miami's basketball program has ever beaten a #1 team. The Canes played well. They were down 14-13 and went on a 26-5 run during the last 10 minutes of the 1st half. They had a 34 point lead with about 4 minutes left in the game. Miami shot a scorching 56.9% from the floor on 33-58 shooting. They were 9-19 behind the arc and 15-27from the line. They averaged 1.17 pts per possession, scoring 90 points over the 77 times they touched the ball.

Duke Shot 29.7% from the floor. You read that right, no need to clean your glasses or adjust the resloution on your screen. The vaunted Bluedevil offense shot 29.7% for the entire game. 22-74 (Yeah, I know) shooting, 4-23 from 3 point land (Whaaaaat? Odds are if you shoot 23 you would hit at least 6!)and 15-23 from the charity stripe. They managed to pull down 41 rebounds,16 in the 1st and 25 in the 2nd.  Plumlees had accounted for14 of those, Mason had 11. Duke averaged 0.87 pts per possession scoring 63 points after holding the ball 77 times.

The Canes move to 14-3 overall and 5-0 in the ACC. Duke is now 16-2 overall and 3-2 in the conference. They are 0-2 on the road in the ACC losing at NC State and Miami. Miami hosts the Seminoles on Sunday. The canes are on a 5 game home winning streak in the ACC at Bank United Center.  Duke welcomes the Maryland Terrapins to Cameron Indoor Stadium where they are currently 3-0 in the ACC.

Were they looking ahead to Saturday?

The Pack dropped a tough one in Winston-Salem last night. After blowing a 16 pt 1st half lead, and climbing out of a 10 pt hole in the 2nd half, the Pack couldn't hit the free throws and shots within 10 ft of the basket to take the win. State lost 86-84 after cutting Wake's 10 pt lead down to 1 with under 2 minutes to play. Were the Pack looking past the weaker Deacons (who played a good game) thinking about Saturday's match-up with the hated Tarheels? Maybe. Early foul trouble had CJ Leslie AND Scott Wood on the bench with 12 minutes left in the first half. The subs responded and the Pack seemingly had the game in hand. So much that Mark Gottfried never put his 2 stars and best shooters back in during the 1st half. A 16 pt lead was cut to 12 by the half. The Pack lead 47-35. the announcers were praising State for scoring 50 in the half with about 2 minutes left. They missed a few shots and let Wake draw a little closer instead of scoring 50. Turnovers, poor shooting and lack-luster rebounding plagued the Wolfpack through much of the 2nd half. Fouls also played a part as players with 3 and 4 fouls played timid defense as though they were afraid to pick up the foul. The Deacons aggresively went right at Leslie and he basically stepped aside to avoid fouling, he was called for goal tending twice. The play that really seemed to turn the game around was after Wake made a shot to cut the lead to 10, State's in-bounds pass was stolen and by Wake and they scored an easy 2. There were several things that went the Pack's way in the last minute that should have lead to a win. A turn over by Wake, offensive rebounds, Scott Wood WIDE OPEN for a 3, he missed. CJ Leslie scored and the clock had .07 seconds showing. The refs put 1.2 on the clock, Wake threw a long inbounds pass which was stolen by TJ Warren, but his half court shot never had a chance.


But that one is behind us. Now we have to get ready to play the Tarheels on Saturday. If motivation was a factor in last night's game, it will not be a problem Saturday. The Heels have beaten the pack for 6 years straight. And the seniors on this team don't want to finish their careers at State having never beaten those jerks! (I did say that I would TRY to keep this blog positive. I never promised I would.) To return to the positive tone I try to set, Richard Howell and Lorenzo Brown became the 47th and 48th players in NC State history to score 1000 points. They both recorded double-double last night as well.

Well Super Bowl 47 is set. The Ravens and 49ers will face off in New Orleans. Brothers Jim and John Harbaugh (John is the elder brother by 15 months) will coach against each other. I wonder who their mom will pull for? I am nott a fan of either team, but I wanted them to beat the Falcons and Patriots because I can't stand those 2 teams.

The Wolfpack held off the Clemson Tigers 66-62 on Sunday. The Pack gears up to face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons for the 236th time tonight in Winston-Salem. The Deacs are the Pack's oldest rivals, and tied with Duke for the most games vs NC State. Tip off at Lawrence Joel Veteran Memorial Colesium will be at 7pm. The Wolfpack is 15-3 overall and 4-1 in the ACC. The Deacons are 9-8 overall and 2-3 in the conference. They are 7-2 at home and the pack is 1-2 on the road. (The Pack has actually won more game away from PNC arena, but they were neutral site wins against UConn in NYC and Penn State and UMass in Puerto Rico. NC State lost in Ann Arbor to the Michigan Wolverines and in Maryland to the Terps. The one non-nutral site win was in Chestnut Hill against Boston College. They are 3-1 in neutral site games, losing to Oklahoma State in Puerto Rico.The Pack is 11-0 at home.)  NC State rebounded from it's first ACC loss to beat Clemson 66-62 while the Deacons are coming off of 2 road losses to the Clemson Tigers 60-44 on the 15th of January and a 66-65 loss to the Virginia Tech Hokies in Blacksburg on the 19th.

The Pack leads the all-time series 136-99. The Pack has won 5 straight over Wake, with the last being a 87-76 home win for State. Television coverage will be handled by the Raycom Sports Network and ESPN3. As always, you can listen live via the NC State Radio Network or watch the CBS Gametracker at www.gopack.com

The big game is coming up on Saturday when the Tarheels come to PNC Arena. It has been 6 years since NC State beat UNC in a basketball game. February 3rd, 2007 the Pack beat the Heels in Raleigh 83-79.It was Sidney Lowe's first year and the debut of the red blazer.  The Wolfpack football team had a similar streak against the Tarheels, winning 5 games in a row, that was broken this past season. It is time for the Pack to end the drought against Carolina.

The Hurricanes also have their home opener tonightt at PNC Arena vs the Tampa bay Lightning. I hold a strong dislike for the Tampa Bay Lightning. The puck drops at 7, the same time the Wolfpack tips off at Wake. Looks like I will have to bring out the TV from the Man Cave to watch both games.

There are a couple of NFL games today. I hate the Falcons and Patriots both so much, I don't want either of them to win. But I care nothing about the Ravens and 49ers. The REAL game today won't be on TV. The NC State Wolfpack welcomes the Clemson Tigers to town. The 146th meeting of these 2 teams will tip off at 6pm in the PNC Arena. The Pack leads the series 97-48. The last meeting was a 72-69 OT win for the Tigers, who have won 2 of the last 3 meetings between the teams. The Pack is coming off of a tough road loss to Maryland . Clemson is riding a 2 game home win streak, beating The Virginia Cavaliers 59-44 and the Wake Forest Deamon Deacons 60-44.

It's over! The NHL returns today with a full slate of games. None more important than tonights' match-up between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers. The puck drops at 7:30 at the BB&T Center. The Southeastern Conference rivals will meet 4 times during this shortened season. The canes gave up 2.89 goals per game last year and finishhed last in the Southeast. They have added Jordan Staal and Alexander Semin to the line-up to boost our already solid forward lines. The addition of Marc-Andre Gragnani and the return of Joe Corvo will hopefully lift the Canes' D. The Hurricanes have misssed the playoffs in 5 of the last 6 seasons. A new season, shortened though it is, and a new chance to get back to the finals. Let's Go Canes!

Notre Dame LB Manti Te'o has disclosed that his girlfriend (Lennay Kekua) that died of Luekemia in September never actually existed. Te'o had a rough week prior to ND playing the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing Michigan. He lost his grandmother (which IS true) and his girlfriend on the same day. He used their memories to fuel his desire to play well in that game. He had 12 tackles, a sack, and recovered a fumble. The Irish won 20-3 to move to 3-0 on the season.

Well it turns out the gf never existed. I think. Apparently, the entire relationship played out on line, via Twitter, and through phone calls. Although Te'o has mentioned seeing her in the past and his father talked about her visiting Hawaii. There was also talk of the flowers that were sent to her funeral. After the Michigan State game, Te'o talked about losing 2 women who meant so much to him and he knew he would see them AGAIN. Again as in he has seen the girl before. Which is confusing because now he says it was all internet and phone calls.

Notre Dame has hired private investigators and computer forensic specialists to find out who Te'o had been communicatiing with. Some sources say that Te'o was involved in an eloaborate hoax for publicity and to garner sympathy among Heisman voters. The University states that this is clearly a scam and that Te'o is the victim. They also state that their investigation has revealed the identity of the person who was behind all of it. The Fighting Irish think that the responible parties did it just for fun, and maybe to get Te'o to commit an NCAA violation of some kind.

Here is where it gets weird. Or weirder. In December, he got a call from a number that he thought belonged to the gf. He answered it and spoke to a female he belived to be Lennay Kekua. Who, if you recall, had died in September. The pictures of Lennay that Te'o had were actually facebook pics of another woman, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo. Kekua was supposed to be a student at Stanford, but the University has no record of her being enrolled. Some media sources claimed Tuiasosopo created Lennay Kekua.

Now here is where it gets REALLY odd. Arizona Cardinals fulback, Reagan Mauia, says he knows Kekua and is close with her family.  He says he met her in June of 2011. He and Steelers CB and Head & Shoulders pitchman Troy Polamalu went to American Samoa to do charity work with some other Polynesians.

SO...either some sick person decided to play a trick on this kid and humiliate him. Or...he was involved in the hoax as a publicity stunt. Or...I am not really sure. There seem to be LOTS of grey areas in Manti's story. He says they met at Stanford in 2009, and had a relationship for 3 years.Remmeber that Stanford has no records confirming her as a Cardinal.  His father says they met when the 2 where at home in Hawaii. Te'o says that every time they were supposed to meet, she came up with an excuse on why she couldn't.  Real or not, this girlfriend ran over Te'o like the Alabama running backs did in the BCS Title game.

Maybe there are 2 Lennay Kekuas? That is possible. There are 2 guys named Steve Smith in the NFL. (Although we ALL know there is only 1 Steve Smith and he plays for the Panthers.) I have not heard either way if Polomalu met Lennay or not.  All I know is this is a very bizzare story.

Well the Wolfpack lost to Maryland 51-50 tonight. The Terrapins led for most of the game, being up by 10 a couple of times. The pack chipped away at the lead getting within 1 on the first run and 2 in the second. State finally took the lead late in the game and were up 50-49 with 12 seconds left. Maryland put a rebound in with .9 on the clock to go up by1. Scott Wood heaved a down court pass to Richard Howell but the shot didn't fall. The Pack goes to 13-3 and 3-1 in the ACC.  Lorenzo Brown had 17 pts 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Richard Howell had 8 pts and 13 rebounds. Scott Wood hit 3 three pointers, but  the Wolfpack didn't pull of the win. They are now 21-3 when he hits at least 3 from behind the arc. On Sunday, the Pack takes on the Clemson Tigers in Raleigh.

Chip Kelly has left Oregon to be the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. You willl be able to say one thing about the 2013-14 Eagles. They will have some interesting uniforms. Kelly apparently had a change of heart, after declining the position a couple of weeks back.  He didn't say what made hime change his mind about taking the job.  I would have to assume it was a dump truck full of money and not the friendly Eagles fans.

Jeff Lurie, the Eagles' owner, said he felt Kelly would be an excellent coach who has a brilliant football mind. He spoke of Kelly's ability to motivate players and how kelly would bring a "fresh, energetic approach" to the Eagles.  They certainly need it.

Is this a good hire? Lot's of people thought Steve Spurrier and Nick Saban would lead mediocre NFL franchises to a Super Bowl. I think we all know how that worked out. (They are both coaching in the college ranks again. And very well I might add.) But there are exceptions. Like Jim Harbaugh who left Stanford for the 49'ers and former Miami Hurricanes to Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson. There are concerns that the Oregon-style offense will leave Vick open to vicious hits, which he is not a big fan of anyway.  This is basically what happened with RG3. Vick is a few years older than Griffin. RG3 may be able to comeback after missing a few games and maybe even an entire season. Vick has already missed time (while doing time) on the field, and staying out of football for an extended period of time can only expedite his retirement.  kelly will also have to live without the funding of his good friend, oregon alum, and Nike CEO Phil Knight. He poured cash into the Ducks' athletic program and came up with all of those  spiffy uniforms. Can Kelly recruit for Philly like he did in Eugene? Will his presense make top-notch free agents take a look at the Eagles? Time will tell as it always does. Good luck to him.

The Ducks will most likely promote OC Mark Helfrich to the head coaching position.

The NC State Wolfpack (#14) looks to go 4-0 to start the ACC season tonight as they make the trip to College Park, MD. They tip off at 7pm in the Comcast Center vs the Maryland Terrapins. The Pack has not been 4-0 in conference play since 1973.

NC state comes in at 14-2 overall and 3-0 in the ACC, the Terps stand at 13-3 overall and 1-2 in the ACC. State is coming off of a huge win over the former #1 team Duke in front of the home crowd. Maryland's last game was 54-47 road loss to Miami in Coral Gables. State is on a 9 game win streak and Maryland has lost it's last 2. Maryland leads the series 76-73 all-time. The Pack's 79-74 win on 1/8/12 at PNC Arena snapped a 9 game losing streak to the Terps.

The Wolfpack leads the Nation in FG% at 53. Maryland leads the ACC and is ranked 3rd in the nation in FG% defense, allowing teams to shoot only 35.3%. In the last 3 ACC games, Maryland has not allowed their opponents to shoot over 38%. The Terps went 1-2 in that time with a win vs Virginai Tech, a home loss to the Seminoles and a road loss to the Hurricanes. The Pack will need big numbers on the boards from Richard Howell, as the Terrapins have out-rebounded all 16 teams they have faced so far. Howell just had a stellar performance pulling down 18 rebounds against a tough Duke team and Mason Plumlee.

The Wolfpack is 21-2 when Scott Wood hits 3 or more 3 point shots. CJ Leslie, who scored 25 against Duke, will need another high scoring game tonight. Lorenzo Brown and  Rodney Purvis will have to show up big tonight as well. Maryland is a tough, physical team. Second chance baskets will have to be minimized on the defensive end by Howell's rebounding. Quick transitions setting up Leslie, Wood and Brown for open looks at the basket and solid defense are keys to a Wolfpack victory.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2 and broadcast on the Wolfpack radio network as well. Let's Go Pack!
 

NC State's Richard Howell has been named the ACC player of the week  for Jan. 7 -13th. He was instrumental in NC State's improvement to 3-0 in the ACC for the first time since the 1988-89 season. The Pack recorded 2 home wins beating the FORMER #1 team and PREVIOUSLY undefeated Duke  84-76, on Saturday and winning over Georgia Tech, 83-70, last Wednesday.

For the week, Howell averaged a double-double of 11 points and 15 rebounds. Against the Blue Devils, Howell had the 22nd double-double of his career with 18 rebounds, which tied his career-high in ACC play and was one away from his overall career-high. He scored 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the floor. The senior from Marietta, Ga. pulled down 14 of his game-high 18 rebounds in the second half,  12 defensive and 6 offensive. Against the Yellow Jackets, Howell was the Windex man, cleaning the glass for  a game-high 12 rebounds. Congratulations to Richard Howell!

You may have also heard about CJ Leslie's heroics after the Pack beat PREVIOUSLY undefeated and FORMERLY #1 Duke on Saturday. As the excited Wolfpack fans rushed the floor, a young man in a wheel chair (Will Prevette) toppled over on the floor amid the huge crowd. Not wanting the man to be injured, CJ went over and picked him up and carried him to safety. Will lost his cell phone (that he was using to video the entire thing) and glasses in the fall. The items were found and returned. The video is on you tube. Check it out. CJ and Will also appeared on NBC's Today show this morning. I didn't get to see it because I had already left for work. Here is the link to the video on the Today Show web psge. http://todaynews.today.com/_news/2013/01/15/16524179-college-basketball-star-saves-wheelchair-using-fan-from-crowd?lite

Congrats to Richard Howell, CJ Leslie and all of the Wolfpack on their success. Good luck tomorrow as they head up to College Park, MD to take on the Terrapins in the Comcast Center. The Pack is slated for a 7PM tip-off. Coverage will be on ESPN2 and watchESPN. Check your local listings.

The NC State Wolfpack defeated the #1 Duke Bluedevils in Raleigh on Saturday 84-76. Scott Wood hit 3-3 three pointers and scored 14 points. CJ Leslie scored 25, Lorenzo Brown had 12, TJ Warren scored 10. Rodney purvis had a great game and Richard Howell was strong in the paint outworking Duke's Mason Plumlee for rebounds. It was a great game. The Pack is now 3-0 in ACC play. State is also 21-2 when Scott Wood hits 3 or more 3 point shots. The Pack travels to Maryland to take on the Terrapins on Wednesday.

Saturday the Ravens won a thriller against the Broncos. I am no Ravens fan, but I like to see Mannings (Peyton or Eli) lose. The 49ers and Colin Kaepernick took out the Packers. Kaepernick rushed for 181 yds. Capers, maybe you should have put in the nickel package and had an extra body on him? I don't know man.

Sunday's games were a bitter disappointment. I so strongly dislike the Falcons and Patriots that I never want either of those teams to win anything EVER. The Seahwaks came back from a 27-7 deficit to lead 28-27 with 34 seconds. Atlanta kicked a 49 yd FG to lead 28-30. Matt Bryant lined up to kick and Seattle head coach, Pete Carroll, called time out. Bryant missed. On the 2nd attempt, the ball spilt the uprights almost directly in 2. It was awful. How many times have you seen that? The opposing coach calls time and the kick is no good, then  the 2nd one is a heartbreaker. DO NOT CALL TIME OUT TO ICE THE KICKER! The Seahawks got the ball back with 8 seconds but the Hail Mary was intercepted in the end zone. And the Patriots won too. It was a bad day. I hope so much that the Patriots and Falcons don't both make it to the Super Bowl, I won't be able to watch.

The NC State Wolfpack beat the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 83-70 last night. The win moves the pack to 2-0 in ACC play and 13-2 overall. The Jackets fall to 0-2 in the conference. The game was close for most of the night. The Pack pulled away in the final few minutes building an 18 point lead at one time. Free throws and 3 point shots were the difference down the stretch. When Scott Wood hits 3 or more 3 point shots, the Wolfpack is 20-2. Lorenzo Brown had 21 points, Scott Wood scored 20 hitting 4 3 pointers and 4-5 free throws. CJ Leslie dropped in 19 points for the Pack, along with seven rebounds, and Rodney Purvis added 13. It was the 9th straight win for State. The Wolfpack has a big test on Saturday when the #1 ranked Duke Blue Devils come to PNC Arena at Noon.

The Carolina Panthers hired a new GM. The team announced yesterday that Dave Gettleman, formerly the Senior Pro Personnel Analyst for the New York Giants,would be taking over the position. Gettleman has spent time on 6 Super Bowl teams the 90-91 Buffalo Bills, the 97 Denver Broncos, and 2000, 2007 and 2011 Giants. He was involved in winning 3 of those Super Bowls with the Broncos in 97 and the G-men in 2007 and 2011.

 "I was very impressed with Dave's experience and think he will be a very good fit for our organization," Panthers Owner/Founder Jerry Richardson said. "He has an extensive background in personnel and comes from an organization in the New York Giants that I hold in high regard and played an instrumental role in their success." (quoted from www.panthers.com )

So the news is that RG3 tore his lateral collateral ligament. This ligament is on the outside of the knee and controls lateral movement of the joint. Basically it prevents your knee from going sideways too far. Well RG3's knee went sideways a little too far. If you saw the game, you saw what happened. He is supposed to be having surgery on that today, and while they are in his knee, they will check to see if the anterior cruciate ligamnet needs repair as well. The ACL connects the femur to the lower leg bones and flexing backwards (or left and right) too far can injure it. The LCL can be swen back together, the ACL can't. It has to be reconstructed using ligaments from anotherr part of the body or from a cadaver. Reports are that he could miss 8-12 months due to the injury. Doctors also state that when he returns, he may not have the lightning speed and lateral mobility he has had before. lateral mobility is a big deal to a QB that plays like RG3, much more than a traditional drop-back type passer. Of course he could come back and be totally fine. Minnesota Vikings RB Adrian Peterson had reconstructive knee surgery in 2011 and had the best year of his career in 2012. He never missed a game. Carolina Panthers LB Thomas Davis had 3 reconstructive surgeries on the same knee and is still playing at a high level as well. Coming back from multiple ligament repairs is tough. But for a highly conditioned athlete, it should not be impossible. I hope he recovers fully and returns to the Redskins' line-up quickly. Good luck RG3.

The NC State Wolfpack takes on The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Wednesday night at 8PM. The game will be in PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC. It will be broadcast on ESPN3 and the ACC Network, check your local listings. This is the 90^th meeting between NC State and Georgia Tech.  NC State leads the series 52-37. The Wolfpack is 7-3 in its last 10 games versus Georgia Tech. Last year, The Pack split the series with the Jackets, losing at home 81-72 and winning in Atlanta 61-52.  The Pack is currently 13-2 and on an 8 game winning streak, coming off of a road win against Boston College. State is 1-0 in ACC play. The Yellow Jackets are 10-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play, losing their ACC opener at home to Miami 62-49 on Saturday. Prior to the loss, Tech had won 6 in a row.

42-14...Roll Tide. I am no Bama fan, but I know good football teams when I see them. I can't stand ND and got in 1000 arguments over them not deserving the ranking they got all year. last night Golson figured out Bama was a little tougher than Green Sea Floyds! Alabama scored 3 touchdowns very quickly and quieted the Irish fans even faster. The tough Notre Dame D was no match for the high-powered Bama offense. AJ McCarron becamse the 1st QB to repeat as back to back national champion. Chris Weinke tried in 1999-2000 beating Mike Vick and Va Tech then losing to Oklahoma. Miami tried again with Ken Dorsey winning in 01 and losing to Ohio State in 02. Matt Leinart won it with USC in 2005 against Oklahoma (though it was later vacated because of the whole Reggie Bush scandal) and lost the next year to the Texas Longhorns and Vince Young.

Team USA won gold in the World Junior Hockey Championship by defeating Sweden 3-1. Russia beat canada to take the Bronze.

Well the NFL play-offs started this weekend. I picked GB, Houston, Seattle, and B-mo to win. Of course, my favorite team (The Carolina Panthers) didn't make the play-offs. I am pulling for Seattle because Russ Wilson went to NC State. As long as the patriots and falcons don't win, I will be ok.

In college basketball news,The Wolfpack beat the Boston College Eagles and the Tarheels lost to UVA.

And in hockey news... the NHL lockout is over! No word yet on when the season will start or how many games will be played. Stay tuned...