12/21/2018 football Edit

Quarterback Ryan Finley focused on task at hand

Jacey Zembal • TheWolfpackCentral

Writer

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NC State sixth-year senior quarterback Ryan Finley needs 211 passing yards in the Gator Bowl on Dec. 31 to reach 4,000 on the season. (Ken Martin/TheWolfpacker.com)

NC State sixth-year senior quarterback Ryan Finley has a lot on his mind this month, but it doesn’t appear to be affecting his preparation for Texas A&M in the Gator Bowl on Dec. 31.

Finley long run with NCSU offensive coordinator Eli Drinkwitz has come to an end, when the latter was hired as head coach at Appalachian State. Finley played for Drinkwitz at Boise State. and then became a graduate transfer and followed his coach to NC State with three year of eligibility remaining.

Finley has one last game to his college career and then it’s on to play in the Senior Bowl on Jan. 26, 2019, in Mobile, Ala. Sorting through NFL agents and preparing for a likely spot in the NFL Combine and various team workouts will overtake his post-NCSU career.

“This is one last time, and I’m really putting an emphasis on enjoying it and having a lot of fun,” Finley said. “At same time, it’s about being prepared. Our goal is to go out there and beat Texas A&M.

“There was never a thought about not playing. It’s a football game, and I’m excited about it.”

Going through the process last year of considering entry into the NFL Draft will help Finley’s preparation for his future.

“It’s a lot easier [than last year],” Finley said. “You just have more time as a senior. As a junior, it was tough because you go from not thinking about it and then all of a sudden making some decisions.

“It is just part of the process for me. I can’t turn a blind eye to it. I have to be prepared, and know what to focus on and be on the moment when we start to play ball.”

Finley will work with NC State co-offensive coordinators Des Kitchings and George McDonald leading up to the bowl game in Jacksonville, Fla. The duo were permanently hired to replace Drinkwitz, and Finley doesn’t expect any issues this month.

“Who we are is going to stay the same, and that is so cool about what we do,” Finley said. “I think you saw that in Coach Doeren promoting Coach McDonald and Coach Kitchings, who already have done a great job. I’m confident we aren’t going to miss a beat at all. It’s exciting when coaches get opportunities like that.”

The 9-3 Wolfpack hope to become the second 10-win squad in school history, but that isn’t something that Finley is using as motivation. He simply wants to have fun and win the bowl game. The 6-4, 212-pound drop-back passer has gone 307-of-452 passing for 3,789 yards, 24 touchdowns and nine interceptions this season. He is only 211 yards shy of 4,000 for the year.

“Getting 10 wins would mean a lot, but we want to win the game to win the game,” Finley said.

Drinkwitz isn’t the only missing piece in Finley’s successful senior-year puzzle. He’ll be playing without star junior wide receiver Kelvin Harmon, who hauled in 81 catches for 1,186 yards and seven touchdowns this season. Harmon has entered the NFL Draft and elected to skip the Wolfpack’s bowl game to ensure he doesn’t suffer a serious injury.

Finley has confidence that the younger receivers will showcase their various talents.

“The good thing is that they’ve all played a ton of football,” Finley said. “Kelvin obviously is a dynamic player, and I’m not going to say we aren’t going to miss him because we are. We have guys ready to step up.

“C.J. Riley is going to step up. I think we’ll see Devin Carter step up and obviously Emeka [Emezie] is going to be Emeka. Then you have Jakobi Meyers and Thayer Thomas. We have plenty of guys to rotate in there.”