Lights Cameron Action

Cam Newton put on a show in his NFL debut.  Much to the dismay of all the naysayers out there.  Throwing for 422 yards and 2 touchdowns including a rushing TD.  The two touchdowns going to the reawakened Steve Smith.  Unfortunately it was in a defeat of the Phoenix Cardinals who were debuting a new look at the quarterback position as well, with Kevin Kolb taking the helm and guiding the Cardinals to their first win of the season.

The only thing that would have been sweeter would have been a win, but I'll take it. As a Cam Newton fan for more than a year now, I think the Panthers are pretty Lucky that a certain quarterback stayed in school.

Cam's next test is going to be a fierce one when the Super Champion Packers come to Charlotte for the Panthers home opener.  At least Cam will have a few more believers in the stands.

I Heart Russell Wilson....even as a Badger

Russell put on quite a show for everyone tonight against New Mexico.  He threw for 255 yards and 2 touchdowns including a 40 yard scamper for touchdown.  For NC State fans it was bittersweet, what might have been had he stayed in Raleigh for his senior season.  Now he has a new following in the Wisconsin faithful.  I respect Tom O'Brien's decision to move on with the program but certain players deserve special accommodations especially if they have earned it and Russell definitely did.  Needless to say, I'm happy for him but he will always be a member of the Pack.

Best of Luck Russell, go win the effing Heisman and a National Title.  I know I'll be watching.

Cam must make faster reads

Cam Newton says he knows where to go with the football.

He just needs to get it there faster.

Newton will make his second consecutive preseason start Thursday at Cincinnati and is considered the favorite to be the starting quarterback when the Panthers open Sept. 11 at Arizona.

In his first two preseason games, Newton has done a good job getting the ball to his tight ends. But he's only completed two passes to wideouts – both to Armanti Edwards – and has yet to convert a third down.

Newton, the No. 1 overall pick, said reading defenses is his biggest area for improvement.

“You've got to get in the reads faster and quicker. I'm getting to the right places, but this is the NFL,” Newton said today. “Even though you're in the right place, the longer you're stuck on your reads, meaning the longer you take on making that throw, the longer the defense has to catch up.

“If defensive backs are beat, they have time to get back. Some of them may bat it down. The great ones may pick it.”

Newton has not been intercepted in the two exhibitions. But he's looked uncomfortable in the pocket at times, and has struggled with his accuracy – particularly on deep outs.

But he should be helped this week with the return of veteran wideoutSteve Smith, who missed the first two preseason games. Smith and Newton worked out privately during the lockout, and stayed late after Monday's practice for a throwing session that receiver Legedu Naanee also attended.

In other news …

--Right tackle Jeff Otah (knee) sat out after participating in a limited basis Monday. Otah has been dealing with swelling in his surgically repaired left knee.

--Middle linebacker Jon Beason (Achilles tendinitis) remains out. Panthers coach Ron Rivera gave no timetable on his return.

--Rivera said the team is waiting to see how offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz's hip responds to an injection he received within the past week.

--Joseph Person

Don't buy into Randy Moss' retirement

I might believe that Randy Moss(notes) is retiring, except I know this is the move of someone behaving like a petulant child.

Over the past five days, Moss has been told by not one, but two teams that they preferred someone else over him. In both cases, it was someone Moss thought he was better than. When the New England Patriots traded for Chad Ochocinco(notes) and the New York Jets signed Plaxico Burress(notes), Moss decided to take his Hall-of-Fame talent and go home.

Never mind that plenty of teams around the league think Moss has something left in the tank and could be helpful to their cause, they weren’t the right teams for Moss. He either wanted to go back to the Patriots – a proposition that one source close to Moss said was still alive last week – or go to New York, where he could play for coach Rex Ryan and make a last push for some post-career marketing dollars. A Patriots deal has always seemed like a creation of Moss’ imagination, as if his dissing of the owner and his laconic play were suddenly going to be forgiven.

The rumor of Moss to the Jets, however, seemed to have legs, fed by Ryan’s willingness to embrace rogue characters. For the first few days of free agency, Moss sat quietly as the Jets signed wideout Santonio Holmes(notes) and flirted with star cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha(notes). Sure, those guys were big-ticket items, but when the Jets signed Burress, Moss went into serious malfunction. Yeah, he may not have played well last year, but Burress hadn’t played at all in two years. You couldn’t even justify age as a difference. Moss is only six months older than Burress.

The problem is that Moss is no longer the guy who can toss napalm around a locker room and still play on Sunday. His talent doesn’t outweigh the drama anymore. Both the Patriots and Minnesota Vikings told Moss that last season. He ended up playing out the string with Tennessee, reduced to a footnote as Vince Young’s(notes) career imploded.

This offseason, agent Joel Segal tried to spread the gospel that Moss was working out harder than ever to prove he still had plenty left in the tank. Yet, less than a week into free agency, Moss “has weighed his options and considered the offers and has decided to retire,” as Segal said Monday.

Sure, and I have weighed my options and decided that I should be in People’s 50 Most Beautiful this year.

In three weeks, when Moss gets bored and annoyed that nobody is all that broken up about his retirement, he’ll return. That’s my bet, although I hope I’m wrong. I hope Moss really tells the NFL to shove it and disappears from public view, not even coming up for air when he gets voted into the Hall of Fame.

I say that not because I find Moss annoying. Quite the contrary, for when Moss is playing well he is one of the greatest shows in the history of the game, a legacy worth preserving. Here’s a stat few people pay much attention to: In 11 of Moss’ first 12 seasons, he had at least one catch of 60 yards or longer. In the one season (2006) he didn’t, he had a 51-yard long. Jerry Rice did that in nine of his first 10 years. Bob Hayes, the original deep threat, did it in six of his first seven. Don Hutson did that six times in 11 years. Lance Alworth did it in each of his first nine seasons, then never again.

Ochocinco? Five times in 10 years. Burress? Three times in nine.

The point: Moss is the greatest deep threat in the history of the game and it’s not even close. Longtime NFL cornerback Al Harris(notes) once laughed about what kind of routes Moss used to run.

“Randy doesn’t run any routes, he either runs deep or he runs a crossing pattern,” Harris said. “What Randy does is try to lull you to sleep. He’ll run at different speeds sometimes to make you think he’s part of the play or not part of the play. Then, when he thinks he has you, he just runs past you.”

Of course, a lot of people missed that fact, believing that Moss was a malingerer. That’s a misinterpretation. Sure, Moss was difficult to deal with at times. He quit on the Oakland Raiders when he got tired of coach Norv Turner’s weakness in the face of Al Davis. He was a jerk in two spots last year and basically ended up wasting a year of his career.

But for most of his 13 seasons, Moss was one of those rare guys who was simply better than everybody else. He was a freak, a physical marvel. If not for a miracle catch by David Tyree(notes) in Super Bowl XLII, Moss would have helped New England go undefeated. Instead of railing against him as a malcontent, we would be talking about who’s going into the Hall with him.

Instead, Moss is now a caricature, a guy who isn’t worth the annoyance at this point. As much as he’d like you to believe he’s going out on his own terms, he’s not. Furthermore, he’s probably not going out at all.

Just give it a few weeks.

Report by Jason Cole

NC State Recruit Tyler Lewis headed to Oak Hill

N.C. State basketball recruit Tyler Lewis is taking a step up in competition. Lewis, one of the top point guard prospects in the country, will finish his prep career at Oak Hill Academy.

Lewis, who will be a high school senior, averaged 27.2 points and 7.4 assists last season for Forsyth Country Day in Lewisville.

Lewis, who started as an eighth-grader at Forsyth Country Day, dominated the private-school league and leaves as the school's career leading scorer with 1,927 points.

He joins the perennial prep power in Mouth of Wilson, Va., which counts ACC guards Nolan Smith (Duke), Ty Lawson (UNC), Steve Blake (Maryland) among its litany of stars in the past 25 years.

"You want to play against the best competition," Lewis said. "I think it's the best thing for me to get ready for N.C. State."

ESPN's Dave Telep rates Lewis, a 5-11 point guard, as the 73rd-best prospect in the class of 2012. He joins top prospects Jarnell Stokes (ranked No. 18 by ESPN), D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (32) and A.J. Hammons (63) in the Oak Hill lineup.

Lewis, who committed to State last October, was one of the best players at the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions in Raleigh in May and has seen his stock rise on the recruiting circuit with a strong spring and summer.

"He will go down as arguably the greatest basketball player in [school] history and his efforts on the court will be hard to duplicate," Forsyth coach Craig Dawson said.

-- J.P. Giglio

Read more: http://aboverim.blogspot.com/2011/07/nc-state-basketball-recruit-headed-to.html#ixzz1TEPjacrp

After losing Nate Irving to the NFL, Pack Defense still tough

With Nate Irving, N.C. State's defense made significant improvement last season.

Without Irving, N.C. State doesn't plan to revert to its subpar 2009 form, senior linebacker Audie Cole said.  "I think we'll be all right without him," Cole said Sunday at the ACC Kickoff.

The Wolfpack's revitalized defense created more turnovers and gave up fewer points during 2010, a combination which helped it win nine games. The defense made a significant jump statistically in points allowed (99th in the NCAA to 29th), takeaways (116th to 18th) and sacks (53rd to fourth).

At the heart of the defense, at middle linebacker, was Irving, who led the team in tackles for loss (21.5) and sacks (7.0) and was second in tackles (92). Irving, an All-ACC selection and third-round pick of the Denver Broncos, had missed the previous season because of injuries suffered in a car accident.

N.C. State's defense was young, inexperienced and often out of position during a difficult 5-7 season in 2009.  The group of Cole, linebacker Terrell Manning, safeties Brandan Bishop and Earl Wolff, cornerback C.J. Wilson and defensive tackle J.R. Sweezy learned from its mistakes and grew up last season.  N.C. State's 41 sacks ranked fourth in the country and its 29 takeaways was 18th. The Wolfpack shaved almost 10 points a game off its average down to 21.3.  Irving's return was a catalyst for the improvement but not the only reason.

"Nate was a big playmaker and he always found himself in the right place," Cole said. "He obviously helped us last year, and we probably wouldn't have been as good last year without Nate. But I think this year with our experience, we're going to be just fine." Cole, who third on the team in tackles with 86 last season, is one of eight returning starters on defense. He will slide over from outside linebacker to the middle to replace Irving.

Irving made the same transition last year from the outside slot to the inside. "It's not that big of a change for me," Cole said. "It's not like I had to re-learn everything."  Cole expects his production to improve during his senior season if only because he won't be playing with a cast. He broke his right hand against Florida State last season and then re-broke during the final four games. He had to wear the cast through the bowl win against West Virginia and for more than three months.  Cole now is cast-free and ready to get back to tackling with two good hands.  "It wasn't a fun time," he said.

While not as instinctual as Irving, Cole flourished under linebackers coach Jon Tenuta last season with five sacks. He led the Wolfpack in tackles as a sophomore with 85 during Irving's absence in '09.  "He's going to fill Nate's role perfectly," senior tight end George Bryan said. "I don't think we'll miss a beat."

Report by J.P. Giglio

Read more: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/07/24/2479561/nc-state-feels-it-has-the-tools.html#ixzz1T8bAQBWC

Gottfried: "We've got a long way to go"

So much for optimism, Mark Gottfried addressed the media on Tuesday about the prospects for the NC State Basketball team's chances in the upcoming 2011-2012 season.  I have to give it to him, he is a realist which is refreshing and brutally honest. As a State fan, we try to look for any sense of optimism with our struggling sports programs.  Gottfired did his part to squash any sort of of good feelings in the air.

The Wolfpack return four of their top six scorers from last year. With Sidney's last great class down to Leslie and Brown after Ryan Harrow was dismissed for not showing up to spring workouts.  Richard Howell has made great strides this summer by dropping 20 pounds.  Gottfried and his staff added late recruit freshamn forward Thomas de Thaey and transfer guard Alex Johnson.

With the onset of Gottfried's debut season, there are still many questions to be answered.  Will C.J. Leslie live up to his potential? Will Lorenzo prove to be the point guard we've been looking for more than a decade or more?   Will the newcomers come in and immediately produce?  If all these questions are answered, I think the Wolfpack can get back to the top of the heap in the ACC but only time will tell.