O'Brien: 'It Should be a Great Night'

Yesterday, NC State head coach Tom O'Brien discussed spring practice on The Sports Drive, a daily radio show on ESPN Radio 93.1 FM in Columbia, South Carolina. Here is the audio and some quotes from O'Brien's segment.

Yesterday, NC State head coach Tom O'Brien discussed spring practice on The Sports Drive, a daily radio show on ESPN Radio 93.1 FM in Columbia, South Carolina.

The show airs Monday-Friday from 3-6 in the afternoons and can be accessed via the Internet at www.ESPNColumbia.com. Click "The Sports Drive" and listen live. The show is hosted by Rich Taylor and Jonathan Reynolds.

Here is the audio and some quotes from O'Brien's segment which aired live Monday afternoon.

Tom O'Brien on ESPN Radio 93.1 FM "The biggest thing you get out of spring practice is individual improvement."

"We had our second scrimmage last week, and talking to the coaches they think we are making strides in the right direction."

"I think everybody was somewhat embarrassed by the way we played the last game of the year."

"The coaches did a great job. We changed a lot of things around and we changed some people around. As you said, we went on a four-game winning streak and got ourselves back to .500 at 5-5 and had a chance to make ourselves bowl eligible."

"You look five years down the road, I think this conversation will not be taking place anymore because I think the strength of our conference, we will be, I believe, the power conference in the country in five years."

"He's competing right now with Justin Burke and Harrison Beck. Daniel Evans is out with a shoulder injury this week so he's not practicing. We're taking a long look at Russell and giving him a lot of opportunities. As you've said, he has a lot of talent. He's an exciting player. The proof is going to be hopefully [when] we get into a game situation here on Saturday and see how he reacts to that. Quarterback, you can only get better by playing. The more reps we can give him the better he can be. I don't know if our quarterback situation will be solved until right before the game against Carolina because we also have a great freshman coming in from Northern Virginia, [Mike] Glennon, that we signed. He certainly will have his opportunities in preseason also."

"We moved two guys from defense to offense, Ted Larsen and John Bedics, and they've been good moves for us this spring. Those two kids have had a lot to learn, but they are working extremely hard, they are very intense, they are in to it, they want to learn, and they are going to get better. I think that is going to help us on the offensive line. I think that is the most crucial part."

"You look at our quarterback play last year, we threw 14 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. You certainly can't be any good. We were last in the league in turnover ratio. A lot of that has to do with both the quarterback and the offensive line. Those are the two main emphasis points for us as we try to get better as individuals. We have to make those individuals play better up front, and I think with Bedics and Larsen they have helped the returning guys, Crouch, Meares Green, and Williams, those guys that have been around and played for us last year. They are going to make that a little tougher group and a better group hopefully than we were a year ago."

"It's a great opportunity for our football team, especially to come down and play a Steve Spurrier-coached football team."

"It's the national stage. It's Thursday night. All college football fans will be watching, so it should be a great night and a great experience for all of us."

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