Football Notebook: Senior Class Goes Out In Style

The football team's 14-10 victory over NC State at Alumni Stadium was a statement game for the graduating class. On Senior Day, the Eagles seemed to bring a new energy that Superfans have not seen in weeks. Head coach Frank Spaziani understands the emotional aspect of this day; however, he is telling his players to remain focused on finishing the otherwise disappointing season.

"It's always emotional, I think, for the seniors on their last home game," he said. "But, like I told the seniors, ‘This isn't your last game. It's your last game at Alumni Stadium, so it's a nice memory to have, but we have a couple more chapters to write this season.'"

The disruptive Wildcat

One important aspect of Saturday's game was the further implementation of the Wildcat offense. The main two figures of this scheme are redshirt freshman quarterback Josh Bordner and sophomore wide receiver Alex Amidon. While it is refreshing to see Spaziani get creative with the playbook, the team is still adjusting to these new plays.

The Eagles overused the end-around option play to Amidon, as he was hit for losses of eight and three yards on his final two carries. Regardless, Amidon is excited by this play-calling, saying, "I really enjoy carrying the ball. It's really fun, but it's good to have an offense like that, where one series you can come out with just a regular offense and the next series come out with the Wildcat. It's a good thing to be able to change it up like that."

There were also concerns over the rhythm of the offense, due to the altering of two quarterbacks. Starting quarterback Chase Rettig looked fairly strong in the first half, especially on a 17-yard touchdown to Colin Larmond, Jr., but he looked out of sync throughout the second half when Spaziani substituted Bordner regularly into the offense.

"Josh showed us some of what he could do in the Florida State game, and we wanted to utilize some of the stuff that he can do," the coach said of the alternation. "But, at the same time, we had a rhythm that we wanted to get into with it, and we wanted to use it and need to expand it a little bit. It's a good weapon to have but you still want to keep your identity."

Rettig indicated that the Wildcat was positive for the unit, but the team needs to stay focused for the whole game.

"Offensively, we came out quick and scored a touchdown," he said. "We moved the ball in the first half. The Wildcat keeps them guessing a little bit. In the second half, it came down to our third-down conversions. We were running the ball on the first couple of downs, so it came down to third-and-six or third-and-seven. [NC State] did a good job adjusting in the second half and playing the safeties a little further down because we were really trying to work the ball inside, so they did a good job keeping us out of the middle of the field."

Kuechly keeps going

Junior linebacker Luke Kuechly has been a force for the Eagles throughout his career. He certainly proved to any doubters that he has the capability to make big plays down the stretch. In the final quarter of Saturday's game, NC State looked poised to take the lead on its final drive of the game.

Kuechly stepped up for nine tackles in the final 13 minutes, picking up BC when it needed him most.

"I started to realize what was going on with where they were trying to tackle us and what they were trying to do," he said. "They come out in sets and you figure out, ‘This is where I have to go,' and then you start figuring out how you can beat blocks and get to the ball. It took a little while for me to get there, but I was able to get there and figure it out."