Does this guy look ready to lead?

[Brad]

N.C. State's latest QB

Friday, September 26

(updated 8:20 am)

By Rob Daniels

Staff Writer

About Harrison Beck:

Position: Quarterback

Height/weight: 6-2/220 lbs.

Hometown: Clearwater, Fla.

Total touchdowns: 4

Total yards: 1,256

Total interceptions: 12

RALEIGH - Listen to Harrison Beck discuss his life in football and you swear Johnny Cash is laying down the soundtrack.

He's been everywhere. He's been to Lakeland, Lincoln, N.C. State and Nebraska. Been through West Coast Offense and Bible's Book. Starting chance, virtually no chance. All that's missing is some tall tale about Texas.

"He's more of the wild man, the gunslinger," wide receiver T.J. Graham said.

"He can wing it around," as coach Tom O'Brien put it this week.

Motion and excitement are more than liner notes here.

"I'm going to throw it where I'm going to throw it," Beck said this week as his team prepared to face 13th-ranked South Florida on Saturday night. "If it gets picked off, then the next play comes and I'll throw it again."

Beck, who competed for the starting job in August, lost out and wondered if he'd play, is happy he stuck around. Russell Wilson has suffered a second injury and Beck, who looked good in a win over William & Mary on Sept. 6, is the starter. The Wolfpack (2-2) is facing another top-15 team after dispatching similarly acclaimed East Carolina last week, and the trigger man takes on a group with ties to his past.

"I know a few people on the team," he said of the Bulls. "I'll be familiar. It's 20 minutes from my house."

Beck's house is in Clearwater, Fla., a prime breeding ground for football players. Beck attended the same camps as Matt Grothe, a kid from Lakeland who runs USF's offense, but never seriously considered playing for the Bulls.

He was intrigued by coach Bill Callahan's pass-happy concepts at Nebraska. As a true freshman, Beck was the backup to another well-traveled QB, former Wake Forest Demon Deacon Zac Taylor. In the season's 10th game, he was thrust into the lineup.

"Zac Taylor goes in on '200 Jet Lion' and decides to tuck it and run," Beck said, recalling the nomenclature of the Huskers' play book. "He might be the slowest white guy on Earth. He gets destroyed by a linebacker from Kansas State and gets knocked out.

"Coach leans to me to go in. I had just turned 18. There are 88,000 people there. Coach Callahan calls 'Trey Right 72 Special' and X on a go route. He says, 'I don't care if he's open; I want you to throw it as far as you can.' And I did that. But I don't think it went on the field. I think it went into the stands."

Beck played the rest of the way and completed only one pass, but that one set up the winning field goal in the final seconds. It would be his only real individual excitement at Nebraska, from which he transferred after the season.

Again, connections were relevant.

Among N.C. State's seniors in 2005 was Jay Davis, whose father, John, had coached Beck in high school. Beck was on the move and had found a new home.

"I have a good foundation here," he said. "I want to keep building on that. Years from now is when it will be really important."

That's why he didn't seriously consider bagging football when Wilson won the job and Daniel Evans was named the backup. Beck played in four games of 2007 for the Wolfpack before getting hurt, but his nine interceptions in 160 attempts were somewhat troublesome.

There was no denying Beck's propensity to evade rushers, his ability to throw the ball to Cary or an unflappable personality. It also was nice to work with the same offensive coordinator, Dana Bible, for a second year.

Beck got his first chance this season when Wilson went down with a concussion in the first week and Evans was ineffective against William & Mary. Beck's 17-for-25, 246-yard relief effort didn't unseat a healthy Wilson for the next game, but it elevated him on the depth chart. And in a season of ridiculous injury-related misfortune for State, that meant something.

"It has definitely been an interesting couple of weeks," Beck said. "Russell has been a great leader for us. I have no ill wishes against him. For me, it does feel good to play this week."

East Carolina intercepted Beck's only pass last week and returned it for a touchdown. He didn't lose any sleep over it.

"You can't do that," he said. "If you do that, then you start to get jittery. You start gripping the ball tighter. And the next thing you know, you're going to throw it straight into the ground.

"I've played quarterback. It's a position. You're going to get picked off. You're going to fumble. You go to the next play."

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels@news-record.com

Link

[Cubanbull]

I think its all BS and we wil see their other QB play

[usfbullcpa]

I think he is trying to pick up Smazza with that look and tongue waggle.

[HOTMello2005]

I think he is trying to pick up Smazza with that look and tongue waggle.

cheap shot...but funny :ROFLMAO

[Brad]

Beck gets a chance

Coach Tom O'Brien is cautious, though, remembering Harrison Beck's two interceptions returned for touchdowns this season

Ken Tysiac, Staff Writer

RALEIGH - It took a while for N.C. State quarterback Harrison Beck to list his connections to the South Florida football team.

Beck grew up in Clearwater, Fla., about 20 minutes from the South Florida campus. Bulls coach Jim Leavitt is a friend of John Davis, who coached Beck at Countryside High.

As a highly rated prospect, Beck attended an elite recruiting camp in Miami along with Matt Grothe, who's now South Florida's quarterback.

Bulls starting defensive end Jarriett Buie, who will target Beck in Saturday's game at Carter-Finley Stadium, played three times against Beck in the state playoffs.

The sequence of events that led Beck to the starting spot against these familiar faces is nothing short of amazing.

"It's definitely been an interesting past couple of weeks," Beck said.

When Beck was one of the first two players left out in a five-player preseason race for the starting job, N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien offered to help him transfer. The other player, Justin Burke, did leave for Louisville.

But Beck, a junior, didn't want to be a college football vagabond. He already had transferred from Nebraska to N.C. State. He had established roots in Raleigh with a girlfriend he plans to marry and an anticipated graduation after the spring with a degree in public and interpersonal communications.

This week, he has completed a climb from rock bottom on the depth chart to a spot as a temporary starter. Freshman Mike Glennon is redshirting. Starter Russell Wilson has a shoulder injury.

Daniel Evans, who was Wilson's backup, struggled when Wilson couldn't play against William & Mary because of a concussion.

Beck relieved Evans and threw for 246 yards and two touchdowns in a little over two quarters in that game.

Even after that, O'Brien is cautious with his endorsement of Beck. In limited action this season, Beck has thrown two interceptions that have been returned for touchdowns. In his career at N.C. State, Beck has four touchdown passes and 12 interceptions.

On Monday, O'Brien said Beck can "wing it around" but joked that N.C. State will have to make sure he knows that the Wolfpack is wearing the red jerseys.

O'Brien said Beck did a great job against William & Mary and was one of the major factors in the win that day. But O'Brien cautioned that the competition will be stronger when Beck lines up against 13th-ranked South Florida (4-0).

Asked whether O'Brien's "red jerseys" comment frustrated him, Beck took a step backward and frowned. Beck said O'Brien's comments weren't a big deal.

"I'm going to throw it where I'm going to throw it," Beck said. "I don't really think about that kind of stuff. If he catches it, he catches it. If it gets picked off, then the next play comes up and I'm going to throw the ball again."

Regardless of how he does, Beck is likely headed to the bench when Wilson returns. Wilson threw for 210 yards and three touchdowns in beating East Carolina Saturday.

Nonetheless, this is a special game on the schedule for Beck. He is glad he's starting, regardless of the strange way he got on the field.

"Russell had a great game, and he's been a great leader for us," Beck said. "I don't have any ill wishes against him, but for me personally it does feel good to get to play this week."

Link

[Bull Martin]

"I've played quarterback. It's a position. You're going to get picked off. You're going to fumble. You go to the next play."

I hope he humbly turns the ball over a few times this week.

On Monday, O'Brien said Beck can "wing it around" but joked that N.C. State will have to make sure he knows that the Wolfpack is wearing the red jerseys.

:ROFLMAO

[Bullshutter]

I think its all BS and we wil see their other QB play

i think you're right cuban.... their coach wont say what the injury is (havent heard it at least) and it seems like its all a ploy to catch us off guard or something

[Brad]

Courtesy GoPack.com - N.C. State Official Site:

RALEIGH, N.C. - NC State quarterback Russell Wilson and safety Clem Johnson have both been upgraded for Saturday's game against No. 15 South Florida. The game will air on ESPNU and ESPNU HD at 7:30 pm. Wilson is doubtful for the contest, while Johnson is probable for this game after breaking his jaw in the preseason and missing the first four games of the season.

PROBABLE: Clem Johnson, S

DOUBTFUL: Russell Wilson, QB

OUT: Alan-Michael Cash, DT - Knee surgery; Curtis Crouch, OG - Foot injury; Anthony Hill, TE - Pectoralis strain; Nate Irving, LB - Ankle injury; Geron James, WR - Ankle injury;

Excerpt from different story on Official Site:

"Because Russell Wilson was injured during an otherwise stellar performance in NC State’s 30-24 overtime win over East Carolina last Saturday, Beck will be asked to make his fifth career start for the Pack. A start that will come against a fast improving USF program that was just starting to turn the corner when he left the Sunshine State for Lincoln, Nebraska."

OUT FOR THE SEASON: Toney Baker, HB - Knee surgery; Donald Bowens, WR - Lower back stress fractures; Matt Kushner, TE - Knee injury; Javon Walker, S - Knee surgery

[mutt]

Johnson is probable for this game after breaking his jaw in the preseason

Yikes,  They should try mouth gaurds...

[Bullpride08]

Nate Irving is a big loss for NCST.  He is the heart and soul, and talented playmaker of that defensive front seven.  I know we lose Mompremier, but for them it's like us losing McKenzie, and the replacements are less than desirable.  I hope that helps our running game.