NCCU's Peterson hoping to shine vs. Jaguars September 23, 2006

NCCU's Peterson hoping to shine vs. Jaguars

September 23, 2006

By MIKE POTTER, The Herald-Sun

Greg Peterson has a golden opportunity tonight not only to boost his team's fortunes but also his hopes for a pro football career.    
N.C. Central (3-0) will be in Baton Rouge, La., for a 7 p.m. matchup with Division I-AA Southern (2-1) at A.W. Mumford Stadium.     

NCCU is ranked No. 2 (to Southern's No. 6 and No. 7) in the two Black College polls that combine Division I-AA and II teams. And the Eagles are between     

No. 6 and No. 12 in the Division II rankings, with a clear shot at getting a boost in those polls.    

But it's tough to call the Eagles favorites since they are 0-9 all-time against the Southwestern Athletic Conference. NCCU is 5-3 in its last eight meetings with Division I-AA opposition.    

"I feel pretty good about the way we've played so far," said Peterson, a 6-5, 280-pound senior defensive tackle who transferred to NCCU from Hinds (Miss.) C.C. and helped lead the 2005 team to a 10-2 finish. "We showed people we could come out and do the same things we did last year."    

None of the Eagles' first three games looked easy, particularly the season-opening matchup with reigning SIAC champion Albany State. But Peterson said the 20-0 home win over the Golden Rams helped jump-start NCCU, the 2005 CIAA champion.    

"That was a game a lot of people expected us to lose," Peterson said. "The talk was they were going to come in and be a dominant team. But that was a huge confidence-builder."    

Peterson, who was preseason All-CIAA, has 19 tackles including 5½ for losses. The 2.17 TFL average has him second in the CIAA and 13th in Division II.    

"He's a good player -- certainly one of the best defensive linemen in this league, and he can run," NCCU coach Rod Broadway said. "He's done the things he was supposed to do academically. My hat's off to the kid."    

Peterson committed to N.C. State out of East Duplin High -- where he also starred in basketball and as a sprinter on the track squad -- but came up short in the classroom. After his two seasons at Hinds, he said he had several Division I-A schools in the Deep South interested, as well as SWAC members Grambling and Southern.    

"I decided to come here because it was closer to home," Peterson said. "I talked to [former NCCU offensive coordinator Darrell Asberry, who now is head coach at Shaw] and [defensive coordinator Cliff Yoshida] and Coach Broadway, and I felt really comfortable."    

And Peterson, along with running back Greg Pruitt Jr. and receivers Charles Futrell and Julius McClellan, has attracted plenty of attention from NFL scouts. Peterson counted seven teams that have shown interest.    

"Greg has great physical gifts," said Yoshida, who was defensive coordinator at Southern in 1993. "He's big and fast and aggressive, and he's put up some pretty impressive [sprint] times for a guy his size. He can get bigger -- he's not 'weight-room' strong yet."    

Peterson, who runs a 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds and bench-presses 350, said Yoshida has been big in his development.    

"When I first got here, all I did was bull rush," Peterson said. "Coach Yo has taught me about technique, how to 'swim' and use my hands."    

Peterson said his best moment at NCCU was when the Eagles came from behind to beat Bowie State 26-23 for the CIAA title last season. And his biggest play was a second-half interception -- the first of his career -- at a key point of the comeback.    

He said a win over the Jaguars would rank right there with the CIAA title.