THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 1, 1994 TAG: 9408280210
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: R11 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Football Preview: College Football '94
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 117 lines
North Carolina State's Mike O'Cain understands why some Wolfpack fans still are not sure what kind of job he did in his first season as head coach.
N.C. State was 7-5 and went to its sixth consecutive bowl, but most of the victories were nail-biters and in its last two games State was outscored, 104-12 - 62-5 by Florida State, and 42-7 by Michigan in the Hall-of-Fame Bowl.
O'Cain, who moved up from quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator to replace Dick Sheridan, also had trouble at first putting a finger on his rookie season.
``But, once I was able to put everything in perspective, I could tell it was a good season,'' he said. ``I know we were five plays away from being 3-8, but we were two plays away from being 9-2, too.''
In his second season, O'Cain is more familiar with his team and hopes he won't have to scramble week-to-week to patch up an injury-riddled defense.
``Last year, we lost both starting tackles before the first game. Two games into the season we had lost five defensive linemen and really had to start scrambling,'' O'Cain said.
``Everyone is going to have some injuries. You just hope they are scattered. You can't afford to have them all at one position, especially on the defensive line.
``In the ACC, if you cannot stop the run and rush the passer, you are not going to win consistently. That's why I think our team did a pretty good job to win seven games last year.''
If the defense stays healthy this year, O'Cain expects improvement despite the departure of respected defensive coordinator Buddy Green, now head coach at UT-Chattanooga.
``Our front seven could be as good as we've had since I've been here,'' O'Cain says. ``If we stay healthy, we could win the league title. If we have key injuries, we could finish in the second division.''
Elsewhere in the ACC:
Clemson: Quarterback Patrick Sapp plans on making the most of last year's coaching change that saw Tommy West replacing Ken Hatfield at the end of the season.
``I finally have the opportunity to show my talents,'' said the strong-armed Sapp, who can heave the football some 75 yards.
West, who took over in time to lead Clemson to a Peach Bowl victory over Kentucky, promises to open up the Tigers' offensive attack, and Sapp couldn't be happier.
``My strength is as a drop-back passer, and coach Hatfield liked to run the option,'' says Sapp. ``I don't think I've really had a chance to prove myself on the college level yet.''
West admits he likes a strong running game, such as Clemson had during the 1980s when he was an assistant for eight years under Danny Ford.
But the Tigers open the season with an inexperienced offensive line and four true freshmen at the tailback position.
``We have to be more balanced,'' West said.
Georgia Tech: If you think coach Bill Lewis is feeling pressure, you could be right.
Two years after leaving East Carolina to take over a national-championship program, Lewis is still looking for his first winning season at Georgia Tech. His teams have finished 5-6 in each of his two years and have yet to beat rival Georgia.
Lewis shook things up in the winter season by bringing in a new defensive coordinator, George O'Leary, and a new co-offensive coordinator, Gary Crowton.
O'Leary was in charge of Tech's defense in '90 when it won the national championship. He left with coach Bobby Ross for the NFL San Diego Chargers in '91.
Crowton arrived from Boston College, where he was in charge of one of the nation's top offenses.
Duke: New coach Fred Goldsmith said he wants to win right away, but the odds are he'll have to wait until he recruits better players.
The Blue Devils were too slow and too thin in four losing years under former coach Barry Wilson, and those problems are still around.
Quarterback Spence Fischer threw for 2,653 yards and 12 touchdowns last year, but his two leading receivers are gone.
North Carolina: Tar Heels coach Mack Brown cut back on hitting drills in preseason in hopes of avoiding injuries. It didn't work.
UNC lost four starters - cornerback Jimmy Hitchcock (broken arm), wide receiver Gray Bovender (knee), cornerback Tim Smith (knee) and offensive guard Scott Overbeck (leg) - in preseason.
Ironically, Brown's biggest concerns were about the offensive line, receivers, and defensive backs.
``These setbacks are going to be difficult to overcome,'' said Brown, ``because we are depending more on younger players.
The Tar Heels hope to rally around an experienced backfield and one of the best defensive lines in the league.
Maryland: Another coach still trying to put together the pieces is the Terps' Mark Duffner.
One of the winningest coaches nationally at Holy Cross, Duffner is 5-17 in two years at Maryland.
Actually, Duffner is trying to put only one piece together - defense. The Terps smashed 50 school offensive records the last two seasons, but most opponents still managed to score more than they did.
Duffner also has employed a new defensive coordinator, Kevin Coyle, who spent the last three years at Syracuse. Prior to that, he was with Duffner at Holy Cross.
``Our great teams at Holy Cross played great defense and the offense fed off it,'' Duffner says. ``We haven't done that yet at Maryland, but we are getting closer.''
Wake Forest: Jim Caldwell is in charge of another rebuilding task that is going to take some time with the Deacons.
Caldwell, a former top assistant at Penn State, took over a team that had beaten Oregon in the Independence Bowl under Bill Dooley and finished 2-9 last year.
In fairness, it wasn't exactly the same team. Most of the talent from the bowl team left with Dooley.
Caldwell is demanding that his players be more physical this season and thinks that will translate into more victories.
It doesn't help, though, that the Deacons lost their four top running backs, including All-ACC John Leach, and quarterback Rusty LaRue is coming off wrist surgery. by CNB