N.C. State couldn't afford injuries at linebacker or receiver. Five days after losing linebacker Michael Peek, receiver Bryan Underwood got hurt.
Wolfpack coach Tom O'Brien said Underwood, who's expected to be one of State's leading receivers, will be out indefinitely with an undisclosed injury. Underwood needed surgery, O'Brien said, but the coach did not rule him out for the season.
Peek, a sophomore, blew out his knee and will miss the season.
Underwood caught 16 passes for 226 yards with two touchdowns last season. The third-year sophomore is expected to team up with senior Tobais Palmer to be quarterback Mike Glennon's top targets.
Glennon sounded confident that Underwood would be back sooner, rather than later.
"Bryan is going to be a really good player for us," Glennon said. "We're a little deeper than you might expect and I feel comfortable with our receivers."
Freshman Charlie Hegedus continues to earn the praise of O'Brien for his play during camp. Redshirt freshmen Hakeem Flowers and Maurice Morgan will also be counted on at receiver with converted cornerback Rashard Smith.
• Running back Mustafa Greene hasn't played since the Champs Bowl win over West Virginia at the end of the 2010 season.
Injury, academic and legal troubles have cost Greene game and practice time. He was academically cleared Thursday by coach Tom O'Brien and he's eager to get back on the field.
"I'm fortunate enough to get a second chance," Greene said. "I just thank coach O'Brien and my teammates."
Greene, who led the Pack with 597 rushing yards in 2010 as a true freshman, needed two surgeries last year to correct a foot injury he suffered in spring practice in 2011.
He's finally 100 percent, he said, and ready to help James Washington and Tony Creecy improve the Pack's running numbers from a year ago.
"It has been a long time," Greene said. "I'm so ready to get back into practice. I just want to get out there and play."
• Safety Tim Buckley will remember his season at Penn State for the positives and not the scandal that engulfed the program this summer.
Buckley transferred from Penn State after the NCAA hammered the school with a four-year bowl ban in the fallout of the Jerry Sandusky scandal.
Buckley walked on to Penn State, and redshirted last season, but had played his way up the depth chart to second-string free safety.
The former prep star in Raleigh has fond memories of the Big Ten school.
"I'm happy I was there," Buckley said. "I learned a lot there."
Buckley has quickly found a role at N.C. State. The Cardinal Gibbons running back has impressed coach Tom O'Brien with his athleticism. The coach expects Buckley to play on special teams this season and back up senior Earl Wolff at safety.
Buckley, who has four years of eligibility remaining, also went from a walk-on at Penn State to on scholarship at N.C. State.
"It just seemed like a good fit for me," Buckley said. "Coming back home was a big deal for me."
