Coach Tom O’Brien addressed the media Friday to discuss the 2010 football program as preseason winds to a close. Unlike the last two years, when the Pack opened the season against South Carolina in a highly publicized Thursday night game, State will begin the year on Saturday, Sept. 4th at Carter-Finley Stadium, against FBS opponent Western Carolina.

“There are pluses and minus to open up on national TV like we have done the last two years,” O’Brien said. “You might say that the questions about overlooking opponents are good because you can’t overlook an opponent like South Carolina. But no one intended to disrespect Western Carolina because they are a Bowl Subdivision school. But when you only have 12 opportunities there is no reason why you wouldn’t show up and play your best every game.”

Although the game against Western may lack the publicity and national recognition that surrounded the last two season openers, neither the coaching staff nor the players are taking the first game lightly.

“That would be an insult to Western Carolina,” O’Brien said. “The one thing about them is they have Carolina in their name and that is always a big game for anybody here at State. This team has a little bit of a chip on their shoulder. They feel like they have something to prove. The one thing about college football today is that every game is a championship game. And if you want to be a champion you have to win every game.”

O’Brien planned to release the depth chart on Friday, but the coaching staff had not yet finalized its decisions. The depth chart for the Western Carolina game will be released Monday.

“We don’t have a depth chart at this time because we are not finished working through some of the issues we have as far as positional things,” O’Brien said. “But that will be released on Monday, once we finish our evaluations. Not all decisions have been made. But I think there will be a handful of freshmen on the two deep when it comes out.”

After three injury-stricken years, O’Brien said this coaching staff and football team are coming together as a team.

“We are much more comfortable as a coaching staff,” O’Brien said. “This team is as close as I have had to those I had at Boston College in terms of being a football team and not be a me-organization and a bunch of me guys. Obviously the key is to keep our best guys healthy, and we are due for a little bit of luck in that department.”