Amato, Wolfpack begin post-Rivers era

RALEIGH, N.C. - Chuck Amato has never known a day when Philip Rivers wasn&#39;t there to take the snap for North Carolina State. Now the coach is without No. 17 for the first time in his tenure.<br> <br> The Wolfpack returns plenty of starters in 2004, from a deep offensive line to skill players like T.A. McLendon and Tramain Hall. Its defense, inept for much of last season thanks partly to youth, also returns with a year&#39;s worth of experience.<br> <br> Yet the focus will be largely on who follows Rivers under center.<br> <br> ``That&#39;s college football,&#39;&#39; said Amato, who enters his fifth season at his alma mater. ``We&#39;re glad he was here. Four years ago we had no idea that he was going to be that good. We&#39;ll have fond memories of him, but we&#39;ve got to go on.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> N.C. State is coming off an 8-5 season, one in which the Wolfpack lost overtime games at Florida State and Ohio State. The Wolfpack has 17 returning starters, an experienced unit that will be tested by a schedule featuring Florida State, Miami, Virginia Tech, Ohio State and Maryland the only Atlantic Coast Conference team Amato has not beaten while in Raleigh.<br> <br> It&#39;s the inexperience under center, however, that has gotten the most attention.<br> <br> Rivers threw for 397 yards and three touchdowns in his debut, a double-overtime win against Arkansas State in the 2000 season opener. He went on to start an NCAA-record 51 games and finish second in NCAA history with 13,484 yards.<br> <br> He finished tied for fifth all-time with 95 career TD passes.<br> <br> Now the burden of filling those sizable shoes is left to redshirt junior Jay Davis and redshirt freshman Marcus Stone. Amato is not expected to name a starter until shortly before the Sept. 4 opener at home against Richmond.<br> <br> The Wolfpack wanted to get Davis some snaps last year, but the struggling defense forced N.C. State to leave Rivers in games that turned into shootouts. Davis went 8-for-9 for 83 yards and a touchdown in the opener against Western Carolina, but didn&#39;t throw another pass until a 6-yarder in the 56-26 win against Kansas in the Tangerine Bowl.<br> <br> ``Obviously I&#39;m trying not to think about (the competition),&#39;&#39; Davis said. ``Sometimes you can&#39;t help but think about it because you want to start so bad. ... But at the same time, we&#39;re part of a team right now. We&#39;ll do whatever it takes to win football games.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The 6-4, 226-pound Stone threw for more than 5,100 yards and 50 touchdowns in his prep career.<br> <br> ``I just go to practice with the mindset of how can I help the team or how can I get better,&#39;&#39; Stone said. ``I don&#39;t want to think about following in the footsteps of Philip Rivers, because that tends to put pressure on somebody&#39;s shoulders.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> No matter who starts, he&#39;ll have plenty of help around them. McLendon, who battled a variety of injuries last season, is back with seven career 100-yard rushing games. Hall (799 yards, seven touchdowns) leads a receiving corps that includes Richard Washington, Brian Clark, T.J. Williams.<br> <br> The offense also could get a boost if offensive tackle Chris Colmer and wideout Sterling Hicks are back in the lineup.<br> <br> Colmer missed all of last season with Parsonage Turner Syndrome, which caused pain and numbness in his left arm. He was granted a sixth year of eligibility and could deepen an already experienced unit.<br> <br> Hicks missed much of last season with a torn knee ligament after starting seven games in 2002. Both players have participated in preseason drills.<br> <br> Hall said the experienced players will need to help ease the quarterback&#39;s transition.<br> <br> ``Jay may get down sometimes or Marcus may get down sometimes because they&#39;ve never been in heat like that,&#39;&#39; Hall said. ``So we&#39;ve got to crowd around them and say, &#39;Look man, just calm down.&#39;&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Defensively, the Wolfpack will look for improvement after allowing 30 points and 421 yards per game. The Wolfpack returns its leading tacklers in Andre Maddox (145 hits), Pat Thomas (130) and Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay (103).<br> <br> After struggling last season, the defense is ready to apply lessons learned from on-the-job training, defensive end Mario Williams said.<br> <br> ``We&#39;ve been through the trenches, we&#39;ve been down, everything&#39;s been thrown at us,&#39;&#39; said Williams, who started all 13 games and had five sacks as a true freshman. ``We&#39;ve seen some adversity, so we&#39;ll be prepared. ... If something happens and we fall apart, we&#39;ll get back together and we&#39;ll be all right.&#39;&#39;