The athletic teams of the
North Carolina State UniversityNorth Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States...
, known as the
Wolfpack, compete in 24 intercollegiate varsity sports. NC State is a founding member of the
Atlantic Coast ConferenceThe Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953, the ACC's twelve member universities compete in twenty sports in the Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
and has won eight national championships: two NCAA championships, two AIAW championships, and four titles under other sanctioning bodies. Most NC State fans and athletes recognize the
rivalry with the North Carolina Tar HeelsThe Carolina – NC State rivalry, also known locally as the Carolina–State rivalry, NCSU-UNC rivalry, or other similar permutations, is an ongoing series of athletic competitions between the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University, both of which are located in the Research...
as their biggest.
The primary logo for NC State athletics is a red block 'S' with an inscribed 'N' and 'C'.
The athletic teams of the
North Carolina State UniversityNorth Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States...
, known as the
Wolfpack, compete in 24 intercollegiate varsity sports. NC State is a founding member of the
Atlantic Coast ConferenceThe Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953, the ACC's twelve member universities compete in twenty sports in the Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
and has won eight national championships: two NCAA championships, two AIAW championships, and four titles under other sanctioning bodies. Most NC State fans and athletes recognize the
rivalry with the North Carolina Tar HeelsThe Carolina – NC State rivalry, also known locally as the Carolina–State rivalry, NCSU-UNC rivalry, or other similar permutations, is an ongoing series of athletic competitions between the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University, both of which are located in the Research...
as their biggest.
The primary logo for NC State athletics is a red block 'S' with an inscribed 'N' and 'C'. The block S has been in use since 1890 but has seen many alterations through the years. It became the sole logo for all NC State athletic teams in 2000 and was modernized to its current design in 2006.
NC State athletic teams are nicknamed the 'Wolfpack' (most women's teams are named the 'Lady Wolfpack'). The name was adopted in 1922 when a disgruntled fan described the behavior of the student body at athletic events as being "like a wolf pack." Prior to the adoption of the current nickname, NC State athletic teams went by such names as the Aggies, the Techs, and the Red Terrors. Since the 1960s the Wolfpack has been represented at athletic events by its mascots, Mr. and Ms. Wuf. In print, the 'Strutting Wolf' is used and is known by the name 'Tuffy.'
Baseball
- Head Coach: Elliot Avent (1997)
- Stadium: Doak Field
Doak Field opened in 1966 as home to the North Carolina State University Wolfpack baseball team. The stadium is located in Raleigh, North Carolina on NC State's West Campus, behind Lee and Sullivan residence halls. Doak Field hosted the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament for baseball in 1974 and...
- ACC Championships: 4 (1968, 1973, 1974, 1975)
Men's basketball
- Head Coach: Sidney Lowe
Sidney Lowe is a current college basketball head coach at North Carolina State University, former NBA basketball player and coach.-Biography:...
(2006)
- Stadium: RBC Center
The RBC Center is an indoor arena located in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is home to the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League and the North Carolina State University Wolfpack men's basketball team of NCAA Division I. The arena also hosted the Carolina Cobras of the Arena Football...
- National Championships: 2 (1974
The 1974 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It was the first tournament to officially be designated as a Division I championship—previously, NCAA member...
, 1983The 1983 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 52 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 2, 1983, and ended with the championship game on April 4 in Albuquerque, New Mexico...
)
- Southern Conference Championships 7 (1929,1947,1948,1949,1950,1951,1952)
- ACC Championships: 10 (1954, 1955, 1956, 1959, 1965, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1983, 1987)
The above record of conference titles does not include regular season 1st place finishes as championships.
Football
- Head Coach: Tom O'Brien
Thomas P. O'Brien is an American college football coach. He is the current head coach of the NC State Wolfpack. Previously, O'Brien was the head coach at Boston College from 1996 to 2006.-Early career:...
- Stadium: Carter-Finley Stadium
Carter-Finley Stadium was opened in 1966 as home to the North Carolina State University Wolfpack football team. The stadium replaced the obsolete on-campus Riddick Stadium and was originally named Carter Stadium in honor of Harry C. & Wilbert J. "Nick" Carter, both graduates of the university. ...
- ACC Championships: 7 (1957, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1973, 1979)
- Southern Conference Championships: 1 (1927)
- South Atlantic Intercollegiate Championships: 3 (1907, 1910, 1913)
- Bowl Games: 23 (12-10-1)
Other sports
In addition to baseball, basketball, and football, NC State competes in 11 additional varsity sports. Unless noted, both a men's and a women's team is fielded.
- Cross Country
Cross country running is a sport in which runners compete to complete a course over open or rough terrain. The courses used at these events may include grass, mud, woodlands, and water...
: 2 Women's National Championships (1979, 1980); 20 Women's ACC Championships
- Golf
Golf is a precision club-and-ball sport, in which competing players , using many types of clubs, attempt to hit balls into each hole on a golf course while employing the fewest number of strokes. Golf is one of the few ball games that does not require a standardized playing area...
- Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, balance and grace. Artistic gymnastics is the best known and most popular of the gymnastics sports governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique...
(women's only)
- Soccer (Men's)
- Women's Soccer
- Rifle
The shooting sports include those competitive sports involving tests of proficiency using various types of guns such as firearms and airguns . Hunting is also a shooting sport, and indeed shooting live pigeons was an Olympic event...
- Softball
Softball is a team sport popular especially in the United States. It is a direct descendant of baseball. Some key differences between softball and baseball are that softballs are larger than baseballs, and pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand. Softball was invented by George Hancock...
(women's only): 1 Women's ACC Championship (2006)
- Swimming
The aquatic sport of swimming involves competition amongst participants to be the fastest over a given distance under self propulsion.The different events include 25, 50, 100, 200, breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly, the 25, 50, 100, 200, 400, 500, 800, 1000, 1500, and 1650 free and the 100,...
& DivingDiving is the sport of jumping or falling into water from a platform or springboard, sometimes while performing acrobatics. Diving is an internationally-recognized sport that is part of the Olympic Games. In addition, unstructured and non-competitive diving is a recreational pastime.Diving is one...
: 24 Men's ACC Champions; 72 Men's All-Americans; 5 Men's Individual National Champions
- Tennis
Tennis is a sport played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a strung racquet to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court....
: Notable former players: Christian Welte
- Track & Field
Track and field athletics is a collection of sports events that involve running, throwing, jumping and walking. Organised athletics are traced back to the Ancient Olympic Games from 776 BC, and most modern events are conducted by the member clubs of the International Association of Athletics...
: 6 Men's ACC Championships
- Volleyball
Volleyball is an Olympic team sport in which two teams of 6 players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules...
(women's only)
- Wrestling
Wrestling is an ancient martial art that uses grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, generally between two people, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...
(men's only): 15 ACC Championships, five individual champions
NC State also competes in
CheerleadingCheerleading is a sport that uses organized routines that range from 1 minute to 3 minutes made from elements of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games and matches and/or compete at cheerleading competitions. Cheerleaders draw...
, which is not sanctioned by the NCAA, and Dance, but only field a full varsity team in Cheerleading.
Notable former athletes
- Tommy Burleson
Tommy Loren Burleson is an American and former collegiate and professional basketball player...
, basketball (1972–74)
- Kenny Carr
Kenneth Alan Carr is a retired American basketball player.A 6'7" forward from North Carolina State University, Carr won a gold medal with the United States national basketball team at the 1976 Summer Olympics...
, basketball (1975–77)
- Lorenzo Charles
Lorenzo Emile Charles, nicknamed Zo , is a retired American college and professional basketball player.Charles is a graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School...
, basketball (1982–85)
- Tim Clark
Timothy Henry Clark is a South African professional golfer.Clark was born in Durban, South Africa. He took up golf at the age of three and was taught to play by his father. He attended North Carolina State University in the United States, where he had a successful college golf career...
, golf (1996–1997)
- Chris Corchiani
Christopher Corchiani is a retired American professional basketball player.He attended North Carolina State University and was selected by the Orlando Magic with the 9th pick of the 2nd round of the 1991 NBA Draft. He played with two other teams, the Boston Celtics and the Washington Bullets...
, basketball (1988–91)
- Jerricho Cotchery
Jerricho Cotchery is a wide receiver for the New York Jets. He was drafted in the fourth round in the 2004 NFL Draft out of North Carolina State University.-College:...
, football (2000–04)
- Bill Cowher
William Laird "Bill" Cowher is a former American football coach and player. Cowher resigned after 15 seasons as the Steelers' coach on January 5, 2007, just 11 months to the day after winning 2005–06's Super Bowl XL...
, football (1977–79)
- David Fox
David Fox is a multimedia producer, best known for his early work on LucasArts games, most notably Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders. He and his wife, Annie Fox, now work on educational software, Web design, Emotional Intelligence content, online community, emerging technologies, and writing...
, swimming (1990–1994)
- Roman Gabriel
Roman Ildonzo Gabriel, Jr. is a former American football player. The son of a Filipino immigrant, he was the first Asian-American to start as an NFL quarterback and is considered by many to have been one of the best players at that position during the late 1960s and early 70s...
, football (1960–62)
- Tom Gugliotta
Thomas James Gugliotta is a former American professional basketball player....
, basketball (1989–92)
- Julius Hodge
Julius Melvin Hodge is an American professional basketball player. He was recently released at his request in his second season with the Adelaide 36ers in the Australian NBL....
, basketball (2001–05)
- Torry Holt
Torrance "Torry" Jabar Holt nicknamed "Big Game" is an American football wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft...
, football (1995–98)
- Charmaine Hooper
Charmaine Hooper is a former striker for the Canadian women's national soccer team.- Career :A former star at North Carolina State University, she currently plays for the * of the Women's Premier Soccer League. In 2006 she played for the New Jersey Wildcats in the American W-League...
, soccer (1987–90)
- Cullen Jones
Cullen Jones is an American freestyle sprint swimmer and Olympic gold medalist.-Early life:Born in the Bronx borough of New York City, Jones moved to Irvington, New Jersey while in elementary school...
, swimming (2002–06)
- Manny Lawson
Manny Lawson is a linebacker/defensive end in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers. He was drafted by the 49ers in the 1st round in the 2006 NFL Draft. He went to North Carolina State. His father Donald P...
, football (2002–05)
- Sidney Lowe
Sidney Lowe is a current college basketball head coach at North Carolina State University, former NBA basketball player and coach.-Biography:...
, basketball (1980–83)
- Pablo Mastroeni
Pablo Mastroeni is an Argentine-born American soccer player of Italian Argentine heritage who currently plays for Colorado Rapids in Major League Soccer, and for the United States national soccer team....
, soccer (1995–98)
- Rodney Monroe
Rodney Monroe is an American professional basketball player who was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the 2nd round of the 1991 NBA Draft. A 6'3" shooting guard, Monroe played only one year in the NBA with the Hawks during the 1991-92 season, appearing in 38 games and scoring a total of 131 points...
, basketball (1988–91)
- Jessica O'Rourke
Jessica Lynne O'Rourke is an American professional soccer player from Marlton, New Jersey. She is currently playing internationally in the Spanish Superliga Femenina with the Club Cajasol Sporting de Huelva....
, soccer (2004–07)
- Nancy Radloff, swimming (2006–10)
- Philip Rivers
Philip Rivers is a professional American football quarterback for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League. He was drafted in the 1st round of the 2004 NFL Draft as one half of the infamous Manning-Rivers draft trade which sent him to San Diego and the 1st overall pick, Ole Miss...
, football (2000–04)
- Ronnie Shavlik
Ronnie Shavlik was an All-American center for the North Carolina State Wolfpack in the 1950s. He later played briefly for the National Basketball Association's New York Knicks. His grandson, Ronald Shavlik Randolph, played college basketball for Duke University and is currently an NBA player for...
, basketball (1954–56)
- David Thompson (basketball)
David O'Neil Thompson is a former American professional basketball star with the Denver Nuggets of both the National Basketball Association and American Basketball Association , as well as the Seattle SuperSonics...
, basketball (1973–75)
- Monte Towe
Monte Corwin Towe is an American basketball coach and retired player.Towe attended Oak Hill High School in Converse, Indiana...
, basketball (1972–75)
- Mario Williams
Mario Jerrel Williams is an American football defensive end for the Houston Texans of the National Football League. He was selected first overall by the Texans in the 2006 NFL Draft, being the first player in Atlantic Coast Conference history to be chosen as the first overall pick...
, football (2003–2005)
- Adrian Wilson, football (1997–01)
- Cullen Jones
Cullen Jones is an American freestyle sprint swimmer and Olympic gold medalist.-Early life:Born in the Bronx borough of New York City, Jones moved to Irvington, New Jersey while in elementary school...
, swimming (2004–2006)
- Vinny Del Negro
Vincent "Vinny" Joseph Del Negro is a retired American basketball player and current head coach of the NBA's Chicago Bulls.-Early Life:...
, basketball (1983–1987)
- Nate McMillan
Nathaniel "Nate" McMillan is a retired American professional basketball player and current head coach of the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers...
, basketball (1985–1986)
NC State Fight Song
The words to the Fight Song were written by Hardy Ray, Class of 1926, and the music was written by
Edmund L. GruberEdmund Louis "Snitz" Gruber Cincinnati, Ohio and attended the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, from June 19, 1900 to June 15, 1904...
in 1908. It is essentially a sped-up version of "The Caisson Song," or more recently, "
The Army Goes Rolling Along"The Army Goes Rolling Along" is the official song of the United States Army and is typically called "The Army Song."-The Caisson Song:The song is based on the "Caisson Song" written by field artillery First Lieutenant Edmund L...
."
Shout aloud to the men,
Who will play the game to win.
We're behind you,
Keep fighting for State.
Hold that line,
Hold them fast,
We will reach victory at last
We're behind you
Keep fighting for State.
Rise up to the fray,
And let your colors wave,
Shout out for dear old NC State
(Go State!)
For where e'er we go,
We will let the whole world know,
We're behind you,
Keep fighting for State.
Red and White Song
The Red and White Song is a popular song sung by fans and played by the band at many NC State athletic events, especially at football and basketball games. It was written by J. Perry Watson, a former Director of Music at NC State. The song, although very popular, is in fact not the official Fight Song of NC State. The colors mentioned in the song refer to the NCSU's main athletic colors, while "Caroline", "Devils", and "Deacs" refer to other
Tobacco RoadTobacco Road refers to the tobacco-producing area of North Carolina and is often used when referring to sports played among rival North Carolina universities...
team names:
North Carolina Tar HeelsThe North Carolina Tar Heels are the athletic teams for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to individuals from the state of North Carolina, the Tar Heel State...
,
Duke Blue DevilsDuke University's 26 varsity sports teams, known as the Blue Devils, compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The name comes from the French "les Diables Bleus" or "the Blue Devils," which was the nickname given during World War I to the Chasseurs Alpins, the French Alpine light infantry...
, and
Wake Forest Demon DeaconsOriginally, Wake Forest's athletic teams were known as the Fighting Baptists, due to its association with the Baptist Convention...
. The song's lyrics are as follows:
We're the Red and White from State,
And we know we are the best.
A hand behind our back,
We can take on all the rest.
Come over the hill, Caroline.
Devils and Deacs stand in line.
The Red and White from N.C. State,
Go State!
*"
Come over the hill, Caroline" is often replaced by "
Go to Hell, Carolina" by fans. This change is a reflection of the
Carolina-NC State rivalryThe Carolina – NC State rivalry, also known locally as the Carolina–State rivalry, NCSU-UNC rivalry, or other similar permutations, is an ongoing series of athletic competitions between the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University, both of which are located in the Research...
.
External links