Pack's Wilson has come a long way

Russell Wilson fiddled with his baseball cap Monday afternoon as he talked about N.C. State's season opener in 2004.

Wilson was in Raleigh to see his brother, Harrison Wilson IV, play wide receiver for Richmond. Russell was a high school sophomore at that time with no idea he would play for N.C. State one day.

He remembers being fascinated by the atmosphere outside Carter-Finley Stadium. Now the same fans who impressed him that day are eager to watch him start at quarterback for N.C. State as a redshirt freshman on Thursday night at South Carolina.

On the ACC's weekly coaches' teleconference Wednesday, reporters tried to pry information about Wilson from N.C. State's Tom O'Brien. Fearful of revealing too much about his game plan, O'Brien didn't say much except to indicate that Wilson is a confident guy with a strong arm. 

"By the end of the fourth (preseason) scrimmage, it was pretty apparent to us that he was ready to play," O'Brien said.

It's also apparent that Wilson has come a long way since that visit to Raleigh four years ago.