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From afterthought to star NC State nearly passed on starting QB Barnette
Posted: Monday December 28, 1998 12:45 PM
MIAMI (AP) -- Jamie Barnette engineered victories this season over No. 2 Florida State and No. 18 Syracuse. But it might be a bigger upset that the junior is even playing quarterback for North Carolina State. Almost passed on out of Person County (North Carolina) High School by the Wolfpack and then signed as some insurance at quarterback, Barnette has emerged from some long odds to lead N.C. State (7-4) against No. 24 Miami in the Micron PC Bowl on Tuesday. "We came that close to not taking him," said coach Mike O'Cain, holding his fingers an inch apart. "It was an afterthought. We took Jamie not as a project but as a backup because we felt we needed to bring in a quarterback. But we thought we had made a mistake." The 6-foot, 190-pound Barnette has turned into quite an afterthought. Barnette already holds the N.C. State career records for total offense (7,295 yards), passing yards (7,141), TD passes (46) and TD responsibility (56) with one season left in a career that has certainly surprised O'Cain. This year, Barnette led the Atlantic Coast Conference with 3,169 passing yards and finished 12th in the nation in total offense. "I have matured more as far as the mental part of the game," Barnette said when asked about his rapid improvement. "I have worked hard in the weight room and studied film harder than most people probably do when they first get here." But Barnette's lack of size and speed were detriments when he first arrived on campus in Raleigh. And Barnette wasn't very impressive in practice, O'Cain said. Coaches even wanted to switch Barnette to defensive back, not seeing much of a future for him at quarterback. That was until they put the stopwatch on him. "We thought he was a lot faster than he was," O'Cain said. "We thought he could play in the secondary and when we got him here he ran a 4.8 [40-yard dash]." So, Barnette was stuck at quarterback, the only position he could really play with his lack of speed. "In the game he has to make things happen and we didn't see that until the spring of his freshman year and then we felt we had a little something there," O'Cain said. Barnette started the Alabama game midway through the 1996 season and has been in the lineup ever since, throwing for 469 yards at Baylor and 374 at Clemson this year. Barnette is also well respected around the ACC for being able to take a hit and bounce back. "Jamie is phenomenal," said favorite target and All-American Torry Holt. "He's tough, man. Ya'll just don't know how tough he is. Every day after practice he's getting something iced down. "He can throw it from any angle. He really makes this offense click. I've called him the general several times and that's what he is on the offensive side of the ball." Barnette said he's anxious to play another ranked team Tuesday, hoping once again to rise to the occasion. "There have been a lot of great quarterbacks at that college that went on to the next level and are doing well. It's exciting playing against them," Barnette said of the Hurricanes (8-3). "These games will make you or break you. If you do well then [pro] scouts start to look at you more, but if you do bad you'll be at the bottom of the line."
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