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Weekly NC State offense notebook: Tackles reflect on first career starts

NC State football coach Dave Doeren noted Monday during his weekly press conference that on the first play of last Thursday's win over Syracuse, true freshman Ikem Ekwonu, making his first career start at left tackle, began the contest with a pancake block on a drop-back pass.

Ekwonu confirmed that he was amped up to start the game.

"I try to pump myself up, just take every snap personal, just think, ‘You can’t get to my quarterback.’ I pride myself on finishing blocks," Ekwonu said. "I was glad I was able to get that.”

The 6-4, 298-pounder had a knockdown and two pancakes overall against the Orange, but he also gave up a sack and noted that he learned he has more to work on in pass protection.

“Giving up three sacks for the offensive line is not great. … For me definitely I need to work on the pass rush — refine footwork, stuff like that," Ekwonu said. "It was nice to play the game. It was nice to see what I need to work on, especially against D-ends like Syracuse has.”

Ekwonu was not overwhelmed by making his first career start during a nationally televised home game.

“I don’t really get nervous that much," Ekwonu said. "I think that goes off of when I wrestled in high school. It was just mano-a-mano with everyone looking at you. That just kills the nerves."

Next up for Ekwonu is improving his performance on the road. He noted that he had some lapses in focus last time the Pack played away from home.

"It’s interesting playing with crowd noise, especially at a place like Florida State or West Virginia, where it’s a ton of people," Ekwonu said. "I think I did a better job playing with the crowd noise at West Virginia.

"At Florida State, I had a couple of false starts I have to get off the board because it’s not acceptable.”

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Bryson Speas' Weight Gain Has Him Ready To Start

When redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Bryson Speas arrived at NC State, the 6-foot-4 blocker weighed in at 254 pounds. Now he's about 50 pounds heavier, and last week against Syracuse he made his first career start, getting the nod at right tackle.

He attributed the weight gain, in part, to his diet.

“A lot of carbs, a lot of pasta, peanut butter and jelly, chicken breasts," Speas explained.

The weight is not the only thing different about Speas from his high school days. When he starred at Dudley High in Greensboro, N.C., he was mainly a tackle. This year for the Pack, he has been arguably its most versatile lineman.

“I think it’s pretty good to be able to play all the positions," Speas said. "As far as being the swing guy, it’s just all about knowing what you have to do. For the most part, playing left side and right side, everything is the same — but [when playing] guard and tackle, some of the technique has to change.”

Speas played in 13 games as a redshirt freshman, but he only received 57 snaps. This year he has been a consistent contributor, piling up 124 plays in the first five games before getting 59 against the Orange.

Speas did not change his approach going into the Syracuse game despite knowing he was about to make his first start.

"I just concentrate every game like I am a starter," Speas said.

Freshman Zonovan Knight Learning Valuable Lessons

NC State freshman running back Zonovan Knight entered the season as a known home-run threat, but he has also proven he can mix in some singles and doubles.

The 6-0, 188-pound Knight has experienced a lot in his first six college games. He got off to a hot start, rushing 18 times for 119 yards and two scores against Western Carolina on Sept. 7, and then had 12 carries for 72 yards at West Virginia the next week.

He also suffered a minor hamstring injury against Ball State on Sept. 21, then the sledding has become harder in ACC action. He fumbled against Florida State on Sept. 28, which is always a “no-no” for young NC State running backs — but it also became a teachable moment for the youngster.

“You definitely have to hold onto the ball,” Knight said. “I know if I had fumbled again, I probably wouldn’t have played the rest of the game. I have to do a good job of working on ball security in practice, so it translates over to a game.”

Knight leads NCSU with 69 rushes for 354 yards and three scores, with his longest carry being 26 yards. NC State will gladly accept his 5.1 yards per carry this Saturday at Boston College.

The Eagles are 13th in the ACC in rush defense, allowing 191.8 yards per game (4.5 yards per carry).

“I’ve been watching film, and they give up a lot of explosive runs in the run game,” Knight said. “I think it is important for all the running backs to trust our offensive linemen and follow the blocks.”

NCSU sophomore running back Ricky Person Jr. missed the Syracuse game with an injury. Knight, freshman Jordan Houston and redshirt freshman Trent Pennix are trying to pick up the slack. Houston is good in space, while Pennix is adept at picking up the blitz and caught a touchdown pass from wide receiver Thayer Thomas against the Orange off a trick play.

The running backs can help ease in new starting redshirt sophomore quarterback Bailey Hockman.

“I trust our quarterbacks, and all of them are great quarterbacks,” Knight said. “If we don’t have something going in the run game, I expect them to make big plays in the passing game.”

NC State topped Syracuse 16-10 in a defense-filled contest. The win put the Wolfpack at 4-2 and two victories away from becoming bowl-eligible.

“We are attacking it with the same mindset,” Knight said. “Before Syracuse, we had a angry mindset. You saw that on the field. Everybody went out there and executed very well. We are trying to keep the same mindset going into this week.”

Knight was playing at Bailey (N.C.) Southern Nash a year ago. Now, he has road trips at West Virginia and at Florida State under his belt. Getting a road win at Boston College would do wonders for the program’s confidence. He called the second half at FSU “embarrassing ourselves.”

“It is definitely noisy,” said Knight about road games. “In college, it’s just different. You can barely hear yourself. You have to definitely be locked in.

“In high school, you can just watch the quarterback. Now, you have to watch the line and watch everybody.”

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