Ron Rivera won the press conference Tuesday. He spoke of how his Panthers players have to conduct themselves appropriately off the field, how his Latino heritage was a source of pride, and how his life in a military family – his father served for 32 years – helped shape him with a sense of determination and disciplline.

Perhaps most significantly, though, he spoke of bringing a tough level of play to the Panthers. Carolina has sought that from the beginning, from Dom Capers to George Seifert to John Fox and now Rivera. It’s no accident every Panthers coach has come up on the defensive side.

“I’d like to be an aggressive, physical football team,” Rivera said, his voice rising. He expressed disdain for players who want to hit with their helmets and be otherwise fundamentally unsound. “I want to get back to tackling. I want to have a physical, no nonsense, get the job done identity.

“I think that’s important. I saw tape of the [Panthers] guys trying to give their best. I was pleasantly surprised.”

Still, Carolina was far from being a dominant team last season. The defense just doesn’t have many great players, and an offense that once could grind it out with the running game just floundered.

Rivera spoke highly of his new players. He described the offensive line as “solid,” praised Steve Smith’s abilities, said he was impressed by the young receivers and of course liked the talent and depth at running back. He also said Jimmy Clausen would get the early nod as the starter, although the new offensive coordinator and new quarterbacks coach would have input.

For a man who had been passed over for multiple jobs in the past, Rivera showed a sense of command and assurance. The toughness angle was significant – the Panthers aren’t going to turn into the NFL’s version of the Oregon Ducks.

But don’t make a mistake about this – Ron Rivera has a tough job with a franchise long on hope and short on talent.

N.C. State finished 25th in the final AP poll, which came on Tuesday morning. That finish completes what was a turnaround year for the Wolfpack, which finished 9-4 and won its bowl game.

Finishing in the rankings will help for next year. Voters tend to remember who got votes and who did not, and if Russell Wilson returns, the Pack could be formidable. State plays South Alabama, Central Michigan and Liberty at home, with a road game at Cincinnati. The Pack should win three, and possibly four, of those.

The ACC, after a poor year overall, still finished the 2010 season with four teams in the rankings. The highest was just No. 15 Virginia Tech (which finished 11-3),  followed by No. 17 Florida State (10-4) and No. 23 Maryland (9-4).

By the way, isn’t it ridiculous to see Oregon lose on the last play of the game in the national title game and fall to third in the rankings? Does anyone really think No. 2 TCU, which played a weak schedule and squeezed by Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, would beat Oregon?

Of course not. Oregon clearly is the second-best team in the country.

San Diego Chargers coach Ron Rivera is expected to be named the head coach of the Carolina Panthers, according to Pro Football Talk. A press conference could be held as soon as Tuesday, according to some reports.

Rivera would replace John Fox, whose contract was not renewed after last season.

In just the second ACC contest of the year, North Carolina is facing one of only two teams predicted to finish ahead of the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill Thursday night.

Virginia Tech, picked by ACC writers to finish second in the league to Duke, has won six games in row including a 71-59 ACC win over Florida State Saturday. All-ACC selection Malcolm Delaney is leading the way offensively and Jeff Allen is the leading defender and rebounder.

Carolina stands at 11-4 including an ugly win in Virginia Saturday.

“Our losses were against good teams but we just didn’t play as well as we needed to play,” UNC coach Roy Williams said during a teleconference Monday. “I think now the guys are understanding that we gotta step up and play. We’re going to get everybody’s best shot Nobody is going to roll over just because we’re North Carolina.”

Williams said he was proud of the tenacity it took of coming from 11 down against the Cavaliers when things weren’t going well for them.

“Just because we haven’t played well the last six minutes doesnt mean we can’t play well the next six minutes,” Williams said, adding that coaches try to get the players to focus on the next play. “I told them at halftime (of the Virginia game) ‘that’s about as bad as we can play.’ I told them at the 10 minute mark ‘we’ve been awful but we’re still here and have a chance.’ That’s been important to our team and will continue to be important.”

Now that the ACC season has begun, don’t expect NC State coach Sidney Lowe to change the way he’s playing his point guards. He says both are getting better and settling in.

Many observers had expected freshman Ryan Harrow to have replaced senior starter Javier Gonzalez by now but it hasn’t happened even though Harrow is averaging about two more minutes a game than Gonzalez.

“It’s going to take both of those guys to play well for us,” Lowe said. “They have to be ready to go and provide some direction on the floor and keep the push going. I’m very pleased with both of them right now.”

Harrow has 52 assists compared to Gonzalez’ 32 assists and is averaging 11 points a game compared to 5 points a game for Gonzalez. Still, Gonzalez has started every game.

Perhaps some senior leadership and the sense of paying dues plays into that decision. Lowe says that Gonzalez is pushing the ball up the floor better of late so, unless Lowe is playing possum, don’t expect Harrow to start anytime soon.

The State team left early today to avoid weather on its trip to Chestnut Hill to play Boston College Tuesday at 9 p.m.

The Virginia basketball program, which just gave North Carolina a tough game in Charlottesville Saturday, suffered a blow Monday when coach Tony Bennett announced senior Mike Scott has had a second surgery on his left ankle and is out for the season.

Scott, a 6-foot-8 senior, led the Cavaliers in 15.9 points and 10.2 rebounds. “Guys will have to find a way. We don’t have a dominant post player,” Bennett said Monday.

Bennett said Scott had “a loose piece” in his ankle and the program had hoped the first surgery Dec. 16 would be successful. The Cavaliers next game is Saturday at Duke at 2 p.m.

Virginia hopes Scott will be awarded a medical redshirt.

Two years ago, John Wall was running the point for Word of God in Raleigh. Saturday night, he was the No. 1 pick for Washington Wizards and playing at Time Warner Arena in Charlotte.

The Bobcats won 104-89, but watching from midcourt, it was clear Wall is already one of the best players in the NBA. He had 16 points and 11 assists and played a fluid, confident game. Wall is explosive on the break but plays for a poor Wizards team with few players to build around. In watching the game, Wall almost seemed like Magic Johnson with Kareem and Worthy and all the parts that made him so great.

Wall is not Magic, of course, but he is electric, and his game is only going to improve. Charlotte’s D.J. Augustin had 20 points and nine assists but, if you watched the game, Augustin did little impressive. He looked like a run-of-the-mill NBA guard while Wall was a star.

Two other points about the game jumped out. Gerald Wallace was out for Charlotte and Gerald Henderson of Duke started in his place. Henderson did not do much as a rookie, but he played hard, and well, against Washington. As expected, he hustled on defense, but he also shot with confidence and looked like a guy who will be in the NBA a while. Henderson finished with 19 points and nine rebounds.

By the way, the Bobcats also have former Duke signee Shaun Livingstone coming off the bench at point guard. Livingstone was one of the top players in the country but skipped college for the NBA, and you can see in his game how much he is missing. Livingstone is a miserable defensive player – rarely hustling on defense, always seemeing a step behind – and had seven points in backup duty for Charlotte.

Watching him, you couldn’t help but wonder how much better he would be if he’d spent two years honing his game in the ACC.

The TV announcers kept talking about what a good game the UNC at Virginia game was. And I normally like lower scoring, fewer possession games. But this was not a good game.

It was a good 62-56 win for the Tar Heels, who rallied from 11 down in the second half to win a road game to start the ACC season. But this was not a good game.

This was a game that was tied with 2:56 to go and was a one-point game with 38 seconds to go. But this was not a good game.

Neither team shot very well. And while it was close at the end, the game didn’t really seem close throughout. Carolina had a big lead early and Virginia had a big lead in the second half.

The 12-minute stretch during the middle of the game when Carolina scored just two points was like watching paint dry. Despite the futility, the Cavaliers came out of the 12 minutes with only an eight-point lead.

The game did show that Carolina can hit free throws – especially with John Henson on the bench as the Heels canned 14 of their last 16 from the line.

And the game did show that this Carolina team, when it gets behind, is tougher than last year’s team. This team is willing to grind it out and keep playing its game until something breaks for them.

For more on the Virginia game, please click here.