The Wolfpacker

September 2017

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

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40 ■ THE WOLFPACKER a Wolfpack uniform at Riddick Stadium, and the two-time ACC Player of the Year did not disappoint in his last appearance. Gabriel completed 17 of 22 passes for 215 yards, ran for an additional 40 yards and was responsible for four touchdowns while leading his team to 27 unanswered points after it fell behind early 14-7. Gabriel was taken as a first-round pick of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams (No. 2 overall selection in the draft) and the AFL's Oakland Raiders (No. 1 overall) following the season. Oct. 2, 1965 South Carolina won this meeting on the field, fair and square, a 13-7 victory in Co- lumbia that featured a 74-yard touchdown run by Gamecock back Ben Garanto, deal- ing the Wolfpack one of four losses they suffered in the season's first five games. However, head coach Earle Edwards and his team reeled off five straight wins to close out the regular season, then claimed a share of the ACC title with Clemson when South Carolina admitted to paying extra meal and textbook benefits to two players. ACC commissioner Jim Weaver forced South Carolina to forfeit all six of its league games, giving the Wolfpack and Tigers identical 5-2 conference marks. Duke, which beat South Carolina and gained no benefit from the forfeit, finished with a 4-2 record in the unbalanced league schedule and lost its claim to the confer- ence title. (To this day, neither NC State nor Clemson claim the forfeited wins in their all-time results.) Oct. 8, 1966 A crowd of 35,000 spectators were on hand for Carter Stadium Dedication Day to see the Wolfpack host the Gamecocks in the first game played at NC State's new off-campus stadium. Named in honor of brothers Nick and Harry Carter, graduates of NC State's School of Textiles, the state-of-the-art steel and concrete stadium was a long-awaited dream for Edwards. Sadly for the gathered crowd, South Caro- lina won the game 31-21 for its only victory of the season, thanks to a 98-yard touchdown scamper by Bobby Bryant that still ranks as the longest punt return in ACC history. Oct. 11, 1969 South Carolina scored two quick touch- downs in the opening six minutes of the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium and held on for a 21-16 win over the defending ACC champion Wolfpack. Under the direction of Paul Dietzel, the Gamecocks finished with an unblemished 6-0 league mark for their only football champion- ship during its two-decade stay in the ACC. Oct. 3, 1973 In one of three instances when the Wolfpack scored on South Carolina after time ran out, a Dave Buckey pass thrown in the final seconds bounced off the hands of Pat Hovance and into the arms of John Gargano after time expired, giving the Wolfpack a 56-35 victory over the Gamecocks in Williams-Brice Stadium. South Carolina, battered and bruised from a close loss the previous week at LSU, called timeout with four seconds to play, despite a two-touchdown deficit. The Wolfpack used the timeout to set up one final scoring play that even head coach Lou Holtz said was unnecessary, to record the most points by either team in the series history. In his four games (all wins) against South Carolina — a team he would later coach — Holtz led the Pack to a 168-107 advantage on the scoreboard. Nov. 3, 1979 South Carolina junior tailback George Rogers continued what turned out to be a 21-game streak of rushing for more than 100 yards by rumbling for 217 yards on 30 carries for the Gamecocks in a 30-28 South Carolina victory at Carter-Finley Stadium. The following season, when Rogers topped the 100-yard mark in every game and became the only Gamecock player to win the Heisman Trophy, he ran for 140 yards in the first half and finished with 193 yards in a 30-10 victory at Williams-Brice Stadium. Nov. 1, 1986 With no time remaining on the clock, the Wolfpack had one last-ditch opportunity to beat visiting South Carolina, thanks to an offsides penalty on the Gamecocks. Using a play literally drawn up in the dirt on the sidelines by first-year head coach Dick Sheridan — a South Carolina alum- nus — future NFL quarterback Erik Kramer found dual-sport star Danny Peebles in the back of the south end zone for a 35-yard Hail Mary touchdown and a 23-22 victory. It's still regarded as the most exciting finish in the 50-year history of Carter-Finley Stadium. Sept. 4, 1999 Holtz made a drenched return to Carter- Finley as head coach of former ACC foe South Carolina, thanks to a game-time del- uge brought by Hurricane Dennis. Holtz's career got off to a miserable start with his team losing four of eight fumbles in the downpour. The Gamecocks went on to lose all 11 games in his inaugural season in Columbia. The Wolfpack scored the 10-0 game's only touchdown on a blocked punt. Aug. 28, 2008 Future Super Bowl champion quarter- back Russell Wilson made his first career collegiate start against the Gamecocks in Williams-Brice Stadium — but he didn't last long. The young player suffered a severe Grade III concussion and had to be carted off the field early in the second quarter. The Wolfpack lost the season-opening game, 34-0, but Wilson came back and had a record-setting first season for second- year head coach Tom O'Brien, becoming the first freshman to be named first-team All-ACC at quarterback. ■ The Wolfpack and Gamecocks played perhaps the most memorable game in the history of the series in 1986. The Pack won 23‑22 after connecting on a Hail Mary with no time remaining on the clock. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS

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