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When Virginia offensive lineman Morgan Moses lined up at right tackle against North Carolina this past weekend, he became just the third true freshman in school history to start at an offensive tackle position.

D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Brad Butler both did it in 2002.

There’s a simple reason Moses is in select company -- it’s hard. Very hard.

“It’s very difficult to come in and play as a freshman on the offensive line,” said NC State coach Tom O’Brien, who spent the first 16 years of his coaching career with offensive linemen at Navy and Virginia. “Not a lot of people are able to do it or can do it. In most of the cases it’s by necessity. There are a lot of very good prospects or good talented kids coming in, but it’s something that you don’t want to be in the situation to have happen if you’re coaching a football team.”

That’s why it’s even more impressive that of the eight true freshmen to have started at offensive tackle in the country this year, four are in the ACC: UNC’s James Hurst, NC State’s Robert Crisp, Miami’s Seantrel Henderson and Virginia’s Moses.

Moses wound up playing every snap against North Carolina.

“The speed of the game, things like that, he had to adjust to,” London said. “… I would say Morgan had a couple of mental errors, which is probably the case for any true freshman that took close to 60 snaps. But I think overall his play was very good in terms of knowing assignments, getting on the defender he had to block. But like anything else, the more reps, the more opportunities he has to play, I think he’ll develop into being a really, really good player here.”

The question is whether it will be at tackle or guard. Moses had moved to tackle because of an injury to Landon Bradley.

Henderson has helped Miami’s depth and stability at the position. He played the entire game against Duke.

“Anytime you play as a freshman it’s always difficult,” Miami coach Randy Shannon said. “He’s big, he’s athletic, and he’s got a lot of things that are positive. Like anything he has to still learn and keep going because of so many different defenses you see and different ways they try to attack you. I’ve got to expect North Carolina will do those things to confuse him, to have some hesitation.”

Crisp has since taken the backseat to veteran starter Jake Vermiglio. O’Brien said pass protection is the most difficult part of the playbook to digest from the left tackle position, and all of the intricacies that go with each different protection as they relate to the defense the player sees.

“He’s somewhat of a special young guy,” O’Brien said of Crisp. “He’s very mature for his age and has very good physical talent. He did a nice job for us. He’s learning each and every week for us and getting better. He’s in a backup role now, so he’s about where he should be.”

After all, that's where most true freshman offensive linemen in the country usually are.

Entering last weekend's game against Western Carolina, NC State had five offensive linemen who had never started a game and two running backs who had never even played in a college game.

It was hardly a disaster.

Starting running back Dean Haynes ran for 69 yards and a touchdown, and freshman Mustafa Greene had 35 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.

"Our thought process early was keep it simple," coach Tom O'Brien said. "Hold on to the football, run to the goal line and straight up the field -- no bouncing, no doing anything. As the game progressed and everybody started to get a little more in sync and get into the flow of things and get used to playing, we did a couple different things with them. As the game went on, we got better up front and with both of those kids running the football."

O'Brien said the offensive line did what it had to do for the pass protection, and was going in the right direction the whole night. This week they've worked on some fundamentals. True freshman Robert Crisp started at left tackle in place of starter Jake Vermiglio, and O'Brien called it an "exceptional performance for a freshman."

"What you see in him is really good athletic ability," O'Brien said. "You saw a great tenaciousness. He's got a certain confidence about himself, and he did a great job."

Vermiglio, one of three players held out after facing charges in April that have since been dropped, is still practicing this week and his status could be a game-time decision.

Schedule: Practice begins at 4:30 p.m. ET Tuesday.

What’s new: Former Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta has been hired to coach the linebackers. Tenuta has been a defensive coordinator at seven different schools in a span of 16 seasons, and his addition is expected to help a defense that ranked 99th in the country in scoring defense.

Sidelined: Cornerback Rashard Smith is out for season with the “Toney Baker injury,” a.k.a. cartilage damage in his knee that required surgery. Cornerback Jarvis Byrd, who started as a true freshman last year, is out with a knee injury. Brandon Barnes, who was in the mix at running back, is out with an ankle injury but should return for the start of the season. Guard R.J. Mattes is still recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last year. He missed spring ball but is expected to be cleared by early September.

Key battle: Running back, where nobody has any starting experience. Junior Curtis Underwood, who missed the spring game with a knee injury, redshirted last season. He had limited snaps in 2007 and 2008 when he carried 51 times for 200 yards and a touchdown. Underwood will compete with James Washington, who suffered a season-ending knee injury at Boston College. Washington carried 21 times for 76 yards last season, but he’s an undersized back whose durability could be a question.

New on the scene: OL Robert Crisp. Coach Tom O’Brien doesn’t typically play a lot of young offensive linemen, but Mattes played last year and the staff thinks Crisp is talented enough to add something immediately. He was rated the No. 5 offensive tackle by ESPN.com.

Breaking out: Underwood. Somebody has to run the ball, and Underwood has waited for this opportunity.

Don’t forget about: Linebacker Nate Irving. In 2008, Irving was the best player on the team and one of the top linebackers in the ACC.

All eyes on: Russell Wilson. He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league, but doesn’t get a lot of recognition for it because of the Pack’s losing records.

Quotable: "I could've been dead. I could've had my leg cut off. There was so much more that could've happened. But here I am, getting ready to play football again. So I could be nothing but grateful." -- Irving to reporters at ACC media days in Greensboro, N.C.

Here's a look at three Wolfpack players who could make names for themselves this fall:

DE David Akinniyi: He has found a football home again after Northeastern cut its program in November. Akinniyi, who enrolled in January, is expected to start and has one year of eligibility remaining. He was a three-year starter at Northeastern as a defensive end and linebacker. He had 40 tackles, including 12.5 for loss, and four sacks last year. He had two tackles for losses against BC last year.

RB Mustafa Greene: He rushed for 1,367 yards and eight touchdowns while averaging nine yards per carry last year at Irmo (S.C.) High. He also caught six passes for 62 yards and a touchdown. With the lack of experience at running game, the door is open for a rookie like Greene to see some snaps.

OL Robert Crisp: He's expected to contribute immediately, as he was rated the No. 5 offensive lineman in his class by ESPN.com. He started at right tackle for the East team in the 2010 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He recorded 75 pancake blocks during his senior season.

More fresh faces:

• Virginia
• Virginia Tech
• Wake Forest

It would be easy -- and accurate -- to name five ESPNU 150 players Florida State just signed as the newcomers to watch in the ACC this year, but let’s spread the wealth a little bit. There will be plenty of opportunities and position battles throughout the conference worth watching this spring and summer, but here are five players who should have a chance to make an immediate contribution:

FSU freshman linebacker Jeff Luc: The Seminoles need an upgrade on defense, and they didn’t bring an influx of talent in to sit and watch. Luc is a five-star player and the No. 1 overall rated inside linebacker by ESPN.com’s Scouts Inc. He’s the No. 11 overall player in the ESPNU 150 class. Anyone who is that good should be tough to keep off the field.

Wake Forest redshirt freshman quarterback Brendan Cross: The competition is open to replace Riley Skinner, and Cross should be considered a front-runner heading into spring ball. Cross finished his career at Chattahoochee High School in Georgia with 3,540 passing yards and 36 touchdown passes.

NC State freshman offensive tackle Robert Crisp: The Wolfpack are looking for some help up front, and Crisp will be given a chance to give some. He is a four-star, 300-pound tackle whose size will help him work his way in early. NC State lost three starters up front.

Miami redshirt freshman running back Lamar Miller: He didn’t play last year because of the talent in front of him, but with Javarris James graduated and Graig Cooper recovering from a knee injury, the chances are good that Miller will work his way into the rotation. He was a member of the ESPNU 150 and was ranked the No. 12 running back in his class by ESPN.com.

Boston College freshman quarterback Chase Rettig: The fact that he’s already on campus and will go through spring drills means that Dave Shinskie will have some competition. The California native is a four-star player and the No. 10 quarterback in his class, according to ESPN.com’s Scouts Inc.

As a former offensive line coach, NC State coach Tom O’Brien has a heightened interest in the progress of the group, and with five offensive linemen in this year’s class, the Pack took another important step in building it into the formidable wall of protection O’Brien is aiming for.

“We want to build an NFL line, like we did at Boston College, no doubt about that,” he said. “I think, as we move on, we are recruiting kids who have that kind of skills.”

ESPNU 150 offensive tackle Robert Crisp, the Pack’s top prospect in this class, is one of them.

“He has really good feet,” O’Brien said. “With all linemen, he is not on the ground a lot. He's a lot like Teddy Larsen. If you can move your feet, get good body position and you are not on the ground a lot of the time because you have good balance, those are keys to being a good offensive linemen. He has great size and great reach. If you draw up a proto-type body, he has it for an offensive lineman. He has to come in and learn his right from his left and who to block, then he has the physical skills that look he can be a good lineman.”

NC State helped itself up front on both sides of the ball on Wednesday. With four junior college transfers, five offensive linemen and four defensive backs, O’Brien was able to add depth and talent in his fourth recruiting class. And his top two prospects -- Crisp and defensive back David Amerson -- came from in-state.

“We addressed a lot of things we had to address in this recruiting class,” O’Brien said. “We signed 11 on offense and 11 on defense, so once again we signed a football team. And we signed a kicker who will hopefully help resolve some of the problems we’ve had kicking off. We made a concerted effort once again to recruit our home and did a real nice job in the state of North Carolina.”

NC State had a patchwork secondary in 2009, and O’Brien said it’s one position a freshman could see immediate playing time. The Pack also added maturity and size up front on both sides from junior college transfers David Akinniyi and Mikel Overgaard, who should work their way into the lineup. Another player who could see the field early is running back Mustafa Greene.

“You look at the running back situation, and he probably thinks he has a real good chance, which is why he is coming here,” O’Brien said. “There are not a lot of carries and not a lot of yards by the three guys that are there. As with all freshmen, who knows who is going to play and who is not going to play. As has been explained to him, the faster he learns the offense -- and for a running back that means he is going to have to learn some pass protection, he can't whiff on that -- the faster he can play. But, when it comes down to it, he is going to have to learn to protect the quarterback.”

The one thing that NC State still lacks is upperclassmen, as there will only be 12 seniors on the team this year, and six were inherited from the previous staff and four are incoming junior college players.

“We still need help on both sides of the line with young kids,” O’Brien said, “but we are still trying to buy time until some of these young kids grow up.”

They appear to have done that with this class.

The Wolfpack received 19 letters of intent, the school announced on Wednesday. Four other newcomers, including two freshmen and two transfers, enrolled at NC State in January and will go through spring drills. The top player in the group is ESPNU 150 offensive tackle Robert Crisp. While it's not a class that's packed with highly-rated recruits, it is one that fills needs for the Pack, and the staff did a good job of staying in state, bringing in some junior college players for help, and balancing both offensive and defensive players.

Coach Tom O'Brien also said today that punter Jeff Ruiz, cornerback DeAndre Morgan and receiver Donald Bowens will graduate and move on and won't be with the program anymore.

Clemson has received a letter of intent from four-star athlete and ESPNU 150 recruit Garry Peters. He's a strong dual-threat cornerback, but our guys at Scouts Inc. think he'll move to defensive back in college. Clemson's class is currently No. 16 in the country.

Four-star offensive tackle Robert Crisp has signed with NC State. Crisp is rated the No. 5 offensive tackle by Scouts Inc., and he is the No. 59 player in his class. He had also considered Clemson, Miami and North Carolina. Crisp will definitely fill a need here for the Pack.