Happy opening day of the ACC Tournament, Pack. Come 3:30 the battle for (hopefully) super regional status begins. On to your morning's entertainment.
Some interesting conjecture from PackPride examines the way in which Elliott Avent has structured his pitching rotations in tournaments past and attempts to predict how he should go into the ACC Tournament. It's an interesting analysis of baseball rotations, but turns out to be wrong in its predictions because...
Ethan Ogburn has been named the starter for today's game against Miami. Ogburn is our second best pitcher, so having him go early in the rotation is a bit interesting, since it means saving Rodon for the game against UNC Saturday (thereby leaving a big question mark for Sunday against presumably FSU, should we get that far). Still, you have to win to even get to the point where worrying about Sunday is a problem, so perhaps Avent is breaking with the strategy outlined above which has hurt him in the past in favor of the safer road - win each game one at a time.
Pack baseball has unfinished business according to the N and O. The topic has been covered here on BTP by Akula Wolf already, but the N and O piece points out that it has been 20 years since the last NCSU ACC title, despite our being so close so many times. Probability dictates something's got to give - will it be this year?
Manny Stocker is the subject of a PackInsider interview that highlights his drive and skill set. Stocker has worked his way into the third spot on the QB roster, and has consistently impressed me with his talent. Stocker wears number 16 and possesses the same running abilities that made Wilson so fun to watch - Stocker, however, is taller and heavier. Whether he can match Russell's one of a kind moxie, however, remains to be seen.
Eight Pack Football players have been named to the preseason all-ACC team by Phil Steele. David Amerson tops the list, of course, while Tony Creecy, Mike Glennon, Wil Baumann, Camden Wentz, RJ Mattes, Earl Wolff and Brandan Bishop all make the team as later picks.
Pack Football has offered Zayd Issah from Harrisburg, PA. Issah is a three-star athlete according to YahooSports, but he carries a decent offer list that includes GT, Maryland, Penn State and others.
NC State will win 10 games this fall according to ESPN. Nobody seems to talk about how dependent our defense is on solid linebacker play, of which we have none, but I'll enjoy the hype for now. Here we are "preparing a championship-caliber roster." Good to know - but we'll only have one year to use it. That means no mistakes.
Lastly, your obscure sport is golf. We're currently tied for 14th in the NCAA Championships, out of 24.
Tune in at 3 today for some Pack baseball. I'll check with Akula about setting up a game thread for discussion, as I'll be sitting at work watching baseball and busily not working. It's been too long since our last championship - let's go get another!