O'Brien says Wolfpack needs to stay focused

Gardner-Webb, 2-0, will play at N.C. State on Saturday

By: By Bill Cole | JOURNAL REPORTER
Published: September 15, 2009

RALEIGH --

Another lower-division opponent will play in Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday, but Coach Tom O'Brien is confident that N.C. State's concentration and focus will be in the right places again.

Gardner-Webb will be the second consecutive team on the schedule from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision.

O'Brien, whose team will carry a 1-1 record into the game, wants his players to treat the game as the third opportunity this month to make progress and prepare for the ACC season, which will begin on Oct. 3 and carry on for eight weeks.

"It's what football is all about; getting better each and every week and getting better fundamentals," O'Brien said. "We talk all the time that it doesn't matter what it says on the jersey or the helmet, but you have to respect the game and play the game."

N.C. State blasted Murray State 65-7 last Saturday after scoring on its first 10 possessions, nine ending in touchdowns.

Gardner-Webb, from the Big South Conference, is 2-0. A year ago, Gardner-Webb held Georgia Tech and tailback Jonathan Dwyer, the ACC player of the year, to 79 yards rushing in a 10-7 loss in Atlanta.

O'Brien said that Gardner Webb is a better team than Murray State because Coach Steve Patton is in his 13th season in shaping the program. Gardner-Webb is 79-54 under Patton.

Almost everything N.C. State did against Murray State worked easily, but the coaching staff will guard in practice this week against the players becoming overconfident.

"It's our job as coaches to keep them and their minds on business," O'Brien said. "One of the things we've done as coaches, because our staff has been together, is we treat it all the same. We don't get too high or too low ourselves. We prepare each and every week like it's the same.

O'Brien thought his team made significant progress last week and did not ease up in a rout. He said that the defense showed some of the biggest improvement last week.

"That's one thing we concentrated on last week in practice, pursuit and our tackling," O'Brien said. "We coached them last week to run to the ball and they did a little better."

bcole@wsjournal.com.