Beck remembers his Big Red moment

Earlier this week, N.C. State quarterback Harrison Beck reminisced about his "Welcome to College Football" moment.

It happened at Nebraska, where Beck played before transferring to N.C. State. Starting quarterback Zac Taylor couldn't find anybody open and decided to tuck it an run. Taylor was not the fastest quarterback Nebraska's ever had.

"He gets destroyed by a linebacker from Kansas State, and he's knocked out," Beck said.

Enter Beck, an 18-year-old freshman.

"This is Nebraska now, and 88,000 people are screaming," Beck said. "It's a different situation from now. Everybody wanted to see me play. I was a freshman and I was actually going to play."

Coach Bill Callahan called a play called Trey Right 72, a go route. Callahan said he didn't care if the receiver was open. He just wanted Beck to throw it as far as he could.

"I think it went into the stands," Beck said.

Now a junior, Beck will be asked to throw more accurately Saturday as N.C. State's starter against South Florida. One thing that hasn't changed much is that the fans still would like to see the freshman. Only this time it's Russell Wilson, who led the Wolfpack to a win over East Carolina last week but is listed as doubtful with an injury.

Beck also is playing for a coach, Tom O'Brien, who probably isn't his best friend forever.

"I think it’s fine," O'Brien said Thursday when asked to describe their relationship. "It’s professional, I would say. I would guess. . . .It’s a player-coach relationship. We have talks. We have discussions. I talk. And he listens."

In fairness, O'Brien was looking out for Beck's best interests by offering to help him transfer when he was one of the odd men out of the quarterback race during the preseason.

But it's not often you see a quarterback start for a team that offered him a chance to leave.

"I have a good foundation here in Raleigh," he said. "I’m fixing to be engaged soon (to an N.C. State student). I’m about to graduate. I have good relationships with (teammates) Dan and Andrew Evans, and I want to continue to keep building, more importantly, for years down the road. That’s what’s going to be important. Not whatever happened here."

– Ken Tysiac