(Editor's note: Georgia Tech quarterback Joe Hamilton will share a weekly diary with ESPN.com throughout the season. For more on the Yellow Jackets, visit the FANSonly Georgia Tech team page. For more on the ACC, visit the conference's official site at theacc.com.)

Oct. 26, 1999

We play N.C. State this week. The Wolfpack is impressive. They have some linebackers who run around pretty well. They tackle very well. Their secondary is one of the best in the ACC. And they have two of the best corners. We just have to go out there and play our game. We have to execute and understand that we are going to be in a dog fight. If we understand that, then we are going to be all right.

	Hamilton passed for 2,166 yards in 1998, leading Tech to a 10-2 record.

I think we have to understand that there are five more games to finish the season and get to our goal, which is to be in a BCS game, you have to take one game at a time and you can't overlook any team, because they are going to be five tough games. All five of these teams are tough teams and are very capable of beating us.

We understand that we just have to win the rest of our games. We control our own destiny and we can be second in the ACC. We hope that somebody can knock off Florida State so that we can win a share of the ACC. But the BCS is our goal. And we have to go out there and execute.

Right now, we can't be satisfied. Everyone wants to knock off a ranked team. We have to understand that, and we have to continue to get better and play within ourselves, to go to the practice field and work hard every day.

I think I have made some mistakes that I would like to take back. But we are winning. Sometimes it doesn't look good, but winning is always a positive.

For the most part, the Heisman attention hasn't been too bad. It hasn't been bad at all. My job and the team's job is to focus on the task at hand and to focus on the team that we are playing each week. If we do that, the rest is going to take care of itself.

To be a Heisman candidate, you have to let your teammates know that you are the same person as you were before. You have to be about winning and doing whatever you can to help the team win. The trophy is for the media and the fans. It's not for me to put added pressure on myself. I just have to do my job and win games. At the end, hopefully I can be around for the award.

	THE FULL DOSE OF DIARIES
	UCLA's Danny Farmer: Another tough loss
	Miami's André King: Bring on West Virginia
	Ole Miss' Tode Wade: Date in Death Valley
	Oregon State's Ken Simonton: Running down a dream
	Oregon's Reuben Droughns: Contributing to the success

I'm in love with college football, with the other players. I want everyone to do well. I am not in competition with them to win the Heisman Trophy. I'm in competition with the team that we are playing to do the best that I can. Whatever happens after that is up to the voters. I'm just trying to do the best that I can.

By no means would I tell you that I don't want to win the Heisman. To say that I would not like to win the Heisman would be crazy. I would love to win the Heisman. But I can't dwell on it or let my teammates think that it is a major part of my thinking right now because it is not.

Running the offense
The offense that we run is very complex. It's difficult if it's your first time, or your first opportunity to run the offense and call plays. I just have to make sure I understand what offensive coordinator Ralph Friedgen is trying to do and understand each call that he's making and why. There are a lot of plays that you practice, and you have to make sure you know them so you'll be prepared to go into the game.

It took me long time and a lot of hard work to really get it down. I can't say I know all about the offense; there is still a lot to learn. I understand there is a lot for coach Friedgen to teach me. I think coach Friedgen is definitely the key. He understands what it takes to win. He doesn't let us come to practice and just go through the motions. He understands that practice makes perfect. He's just a smart guy. He's able to take advantage of what other coaches don't.

I pride myself on the ability to allow the offensive coordinator to call any play he wants to call. I don't want him to open up his play book and say that he can't run that play because Joe can't execute it. I want to be able to execute any play that he wants to call. I work hard in practice to be able to be the type of guy that can do that.

I have come to understand that my biggest asset is studying film. You have to be able to study film so that you know what the other defense is going to try to do to you. If you do that, you're prepared and aren't going to be in trouble. There are a lot of different defenses out there that can force you to do different things, make bad decisions.

Compared to my freshman year, I understand the role of a quarterback a lot better. Sometimes a 2-yard gain is good, sometimes a punt is good. You don't have to try to make all big plays all the time. I'm a little more relaxed now and I think the game has slowed down a lot in my head. When I was a freshman, the game would go by so fast that I couldn't read the defenses.