After their massive upset victory over Florida State, Tom O’Brien was certainly one happy guy. NC State has been a program that has struggled to find consistent success, even when they had quarterback Russell Wilson. But with this victory, following back-to-back seasons where they qualified for bowl games, things might be finally getting turned around for good.
O’Brien says that when he came to NC State, he knew they had potential, but he was also surprised that there was no developed alumni base. In order to combat this, he took the third practice in the Spring, which was usually a Friday, and made it a day where alumni could come and watch practice.
Making a reunion for the players was a great way to get the football alumni to back him up, and originally he hoped to get somewhere around 50 guys to show up. To his surprise and pleasure, around 150 showed up the first year. He says that now there are 300+ guys that show up each year and he says it works great.
O’Brien wants everyone to feel connected to the program and have the alumni help out the younger players at NC State. Without O’Brien, who knows if this base would have developed or if their success would have ever gained consistency.
H/T: Coaching Search