 His freshman quarterback, Russell Wilson, who would go on to become a Super Bowl winning quarterback for the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, became the first rookie in the history of the Atlantic Coast Conference to be named first-team all-conference at his position and it marked the sixth time in his 19 years in the league that a quarterback under O'Brien's tutelage was named the All-ACC signal caller.In 2009, the Wolfpack posted wins over Pittsburgh of the Big East and a third-straight win over North Carolina, but was decimated by injuries and finished the season 5–7.After being picked to finish fourth in the Atlantic Division in the preseason in 2010, the Wolfpack finished with a record of 9–4 and tied for second in the ACC, was one game away from playing for an ACC title and was the third league team picked in the bowl selections.