Backing The Pack, a N.C. State Wolfpack community

"We all grew up together," Spencer said. "Playing ball. Going to school together. Family. Cousins. All that goes into a rivalry game. You know when you get old, when you sit down at your house with your family and friends, and other teammates, you’ll say, ‘We beat y’all. Four times.’ "

North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall today launched an investigation into possible improprieties by sports agents in the state.

Spokesman George Jeter said the department hasn't received a complaint but is responding to media reports of possible NCAA violations that may have been caused by improper contact between agents and college athletes.

"That's it, precisely," Jeter said. "The number of media reports coming out and talking about possibly things that might have happened and possibly actions by agents, or people who should be agents if they're not, [sparked the investigation]."

There’s growing concern from University of North Carolina athletic department officials that star defensive tackle Marvin Austin will ultimately be suspended for his entire senior year due to alleged NCAA violations involving extra benefits from agents, middlemen and marketing representatives, according to sources with knowledge of the situation.

No action has been taken at this time by the NCAA as they continue to gather information.

"The next time we will see Marvin Austin is at the NFL scouting combine," our source predicted.

Our source also predicted that Austin might not be the only North Carolina player to face NCAA punishment for alleged rule violations.

4. NC State vs. UNC: It’s the fourth-most played series in ACC history. Carolina leads the all-time series, 63-29-6. Carolina is 1-2 in the last three seasons and has lost two straight, but does hold a 5-2 edge in the last seven games played at Carter-Finley Stadium. The series is the fourth-most played in ACC history. Last year was the first time the rivalry game was the season finale for both teams since 1995 and only the third time ever. UNC’s 28-27 loss to NC State was the closest margin of victory in the series since NC State won 35-34 in Chapel Hill in 1986.

"There is no more 'next week,' and that's the thing that becomes a challenge," said Avent, whose third-seeded team plays College of Charleston in the Myrtle Beach regional today at 7 p.m. "You lose and you go home - and you want to do everything for your team to win. But not at the expense of your players."

One problem, said Will Carroll, sports injury expert for Baseball Prospectus, is there's no agreement among college baseball coaches about how many pitches is too many. "We have no system," he said.

"It’s a question as to whether he’s going to be able to play tomorrow night,’’ Williams said. "If we had played the game yesterday, I would not have played him. We have tried to get him involved in practice a little bit Saturday and a little bit Sunday, and he’s not at the level that he can really push off that ankle, that he can jump off that leg. So it’s very questionable whether he’ll play tomorrow night. It would have to be, in my mind, a very significant improvement to be able to do that."

I honestly would rather play State at the end and Duke in the middle. Buck, I just really don't like N.C. State as a whole. I went 2-2 against State. The State fans, for the most part, are nasty characters that love hating Carolina more than they actually like going to State. I never really understood why they hate UNC so much - they have pretty girls there, too.