Pack Stomps Defending Champs in Season Opener

RALEIGH – The defending 1-AA National Champions were no match for the defending Meineke Car Care Bowl champions Monday night in the 2006 season-opener.  The Wolfpack dismissed the Mountaineers 70-0 in front of a sellout crowd at Carter-Finley Stadium, most of who were much too drunk and sweaty to notice, or even care.

With Appalachian State returning 17 starters from their 2005 championship team, many Wolfpack fans had worried this would be a close game.  But Darrell Blackman and Andre Brown, along with the penetrating NC State defense, put those worries to rest early in the first quarter.

“They were knocking the hell out of me,” said ASU junior Trey Elder, who split time at quarterback with All-Everything Richie Williams last season.  “This definitely wasn’t Western Carolina’s defense.”

Elder was sacked for six and eight yard losses, respectively, on the first two plays, and then hurriedly threw an interception to Garland Heath.  The Mountaineers’ first first-down was at the 0:03 mark of the first quarter when A.J. Davis inexplicably “dove” in the open field while sliding over to cover the pass. 

“I don’t know what happened on that play,” Davis joked after the game.  “It was like someone else was controlling my movements out there at times.”

Elder was sacked a total of 10 times and hurried 14 times.  The Appalachian State offense managed just 95 total yards for the game, almost all of it coming in the second half after State coach Quack Amato substituted both his second-string offense and defense into the game. 

Meanwhile, NC State was cruising.  Andre Brown got the Pack on the board first at the 2:44 mark with an eight-yard scoring run.  After a three-and-out for the Mountaineers, Brown followed on the first play of the second drive with a 43-yard touchdown run, untouched.  State’s D held again, and Darrell Blackman returned the ensuing punt 58 yards for his first touchdown to end the first quarter, untouched.   

Brown added touchdown runs of 90 yards and four yards in the second quarter, and Blackman returned his second punt 54 yards for another touchdown.  Marcus Stone was an impressive 4-for-5 for 71 yards, completing two passes each to John Dunlap and Lamart Barrett, who both complained after the game about not getting enough touches.  State led 42-0 at the half. 

Amato took the entire first string offense and defense out to give the backups some reps, but the dominance continued.  The Wolfpack began the second half with a 78-yard, 3:45 drive, all rushing plays, ending with a 2-yard touchdown run by Toney Baker. 

Blackman returned two more punts for touchdowns in the second half, and Baker added another rushing touchdown to push the score to 70-0.

“They stomped us,” Jerry Moore said after the game.  There had been upset hopes for this team; the Mountaineers went to Baton Rouge to open the 2005 season and left with a moral victory, losing 20-0 and playing LSU as hard as anyone in the SEC did all season.  But there were no moral victories to be had in this game.

The Wolfpack totaled 604 yards altogether, but only ran 26 offensive plays.  Brown rushed for 179 yards on nine carries and had four touchdowns; Baker rushed for 113 yards on 13 carries and added two touchdowns.  Darrell Blackman perhaps began a Heisman campaign with 223 punt return yards and four touchdowns.

“I was like Forrest Gump out there tonight,” Blackman added.  “I even fair-caught two just so the offense could get on the field and burn clock.  Then I found out this game wasn’t even televised; I wasted all that effort for jack shit.”

On defense, the Pack dominated the Appalachian O-line and controlled the tempo of the game, never allowing Elder any comfort to pass.  DeMario Pressley and Willie Young each had three sacks, Littleton Wright added two, and DeMarcus Tyler and Garland Heath added one each. 

Young, starting as a redshirt freshman after spending a year improving his academics at Hargrave Military Academy, also had five tackles for loss.  “That’s how we roll in the WP, bitches,” he added, apparently referring to his hometown of West Palm Beach, FL.

ASU’s A.D., Charlie Cobb, who played for Dick Sheridan and spent time as the Assistant A.D. at State, had mixed emotions.  “We got pounded, sure.  But that $200,000 check they gave us is my moral victory.”