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Dave Doeren Speaks With Media After Practice Prior to ECU

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2 years ago

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NC State Head Coach Dave Doeren met with the media briefly after practice yesterday leading up to Saturday’s season opener vs. ECU. Here’s some noteworthy things he had to stay.

Junior Keyon Lesane earned the starting job at the Z-Reciever position. He gave some insight as to why.

“Keyon Lesane has been very consistent day in and day out. The biggest thing you look for is not just ability, but dependability. He had a good Spring, & then he took that into the summer and came through Fall camp as one of the most productive guys in that room on a daily basis. I’m excited for him. He’s really come a long way and dealt with a lot on and off the field with injuries. He’s in a good spot, and we’re excited to see him play.”

Doeren said that two things that have impressed him with this veteran team is the maturity on the field in camp, and what players are doing when they aren’t in.

“I think with an experienced roster like we have, there are a couple of things you look for: one, the maturity on the field while they’re playing and understanding situational football. As the chains move, they understand the down and distances are changing, and they’re not just running plays. They understand how the game flow works. The other thing is you look at how they are when they’re not in. Are they helping the guys that are in? Are they coaching them, or do they just have their head down drinking water? Those are both things that you look for from a mature team, and we’ve seen a lot of that in our camp and practices.”

Graduate Cornerback Derrek Pitts Jr. is a player that can do a lot of things. He’s what they expected him to be when he transferred.

“Coach Tony Gibson worked with Derrek Pitts at a prior school, so he already had that feel about him. Then, I watched film on him at Marshall. He’s a very aggressive player. As a football player, he can do a lot of things. He’s a good special teams guy as well. It didn’t take long. He’s kind of what we thought he’d be from his film.”

Star Linebacker Payton Wilson is coming off of an injury, and has been plagued by injuries throughout his career. They limited his snaps in camp.

“We limited Payton Wilson. He did get tackling. He got blow delivery and contact everyday that we were in pads, for the most part. He didn’t take every rep. All of these guys that are coming off major injuries or the guys that have a lot of reps banked, I’ve talked about that, we looked at how many reps they need. He got what he needed.”

Ruffin McNeil, former ECU head coach, is a Special Assistant to Doeren at NC State, and he’s been a perfect fit in Raleigh.

“I had another head coach on my staff prior with Ted Roof, and that was great for me to have someone like that, and that was the first time I had that as a coach. Then, Ted left, so that 2019 season, I didn’t have that, and I could tell I needed somebody whether it was an active coach or an off-the-field guy I could go to and talk with. It happened to be that a guy that was a mentor and close friend. It worked out. It couldn’t have been a better fit for me and obviously for Ruffin McNeill location-wise.”

The message Doeren is giving his players, is that you never stop preparing as the game approaches.

“I tell them to just to keep preparing. You’re never completely ready for a game. You can always watch something else on film. You can review a practice and see things. You can go through your call sheets, talk with your teammates, get with your coaches, and really the recovery that we ask of these guys now is paramount: getting in the cold tubs, stretching, hydration, and all of the things they need to feel great when we get to Saturday.”

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Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Football

Colorado DT Transfer Chazz Wallace is Taking an Official Visit to NC State Tomorrow

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3 hours ago

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May 6, 2024

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NC State has offered Colorado Defensive Tackle Transfer Chazz Wallace (6’2″/295), and he confirmed with me that he will be taking an Official Visit to Raleigh tomorrow.

Wallace played in 10 games for Coach Prime this past season, starting in 4. He finished with 11 tackles and 1.5 sacks. His PFF Grade was 56.4.

Prior to Colorado, Wallace spent his first three years at Old Dominion.

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NC State Football

NC State Offers FCS DT Brandon Lane

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12 hours ago

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May 6, 2024

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NC State offered Stephen F. Austin (FCS) Transfer Defensive Tackle Brandon Lane (6’3″/300) yesterday.

Lane started in 6 of the 11 games he played in for Stephen F. Austin this past season. He finished the year with 44 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. His PFF Grade was 74.6, which ranked 4th on the Lumberjacks Defense. His 79.9 Run Defense Grade ranked 3rd on the team. In 2022, Lane played 7 games as a reserve for Stephen F. Austin, recording 11 tackles 2.5 tackles for loss and 1 sack.

Lane spent his first two collegiate seasons at South Dakota State (2000-21). In 2000, he played in 1 game. In 2021, he played in 3 games as a reserve for the Jackrabbits. The 2000 season was the Covid Year, and the 2021 season was his redshirt year. As a result, Lane still has two years of eligibility remaining.

Around a week-and-a-half ago, Lane committed to Michigan St., but then he decommitted from the Spartans on May 2nd.

I don’t think Michigan St. is necessarily off the table, and he has visited Washington and West Virginia.

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NC State Football

Congrats to NC State Football’s Spring Graduates!

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3 days ago

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May 3, 2024

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Congratulations to the 7 NC State Football Players that just graduated this Spring.

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2024 Football Spring Graduates

Linebacker Devon Betty (1 year of eligibility)

Defensive End Davin Vann (1 year of eligibility)

Cornerback Aydan White (1 year of eligibility)

Offensive Guard Anthony Carter Jr. (2 years of eligibility)

Offensive Lineman Matt McCabe (2 years of eligibility)

Offensive Tackle Patrick Matan (2 years of eligibility)

Offensive Lineman Brendan Lawson (no longer on the roster)

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NC State Football

Proposed Bill in the NC House Would Require NC State & UNC To Play One Another, as well as ECU, UNCC and App St.

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3 days ago

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May 3, 2024

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A bill has been proposed by members of the North Carolina House of Representatives that would force NC State and UNC to play one another, as well as East Carolina, UNC Charlotte and Appalachian State.

According to House Bill 965, which you can read here in full, NC State and UNC would be required to play one another annually in Football, Men’s Basketball and Women’s Basketball. The Wolfpack and the Tar Heels would also be forced to play a game annually in all three sports against either ECU, UNC-Charlotte or App St. Every six years, NC State and UNC would be required to have played a home and away game against each of the three school in all three sports.

Here’s the exact wording from the proposed bill:

Competition Required. – A high-enrollment institution shall do all of the following in each eligible sport: (1) Every academic year, play at least one home or one away game against (i) another high-enrollment institution and (ii) an eligible constituent institution that is not a high-enrollment institution. (2) Every six academic years, play at least one home and one away game against each eligible constituent institution that is not a high-enrollment institution. A high-enrollment institution shall alternate home and away games that are scheduled against the same eligible constituent institution that is not a high-enrollment institution.

For glossary of terms being referenced above:

For the purposes of this bill, “High-enrollment institutions” = NC State and UNC, while “Eligible constituent institutions” = East Carolina, UNC Charlotte and Appalachian State.

It’s worth noting that NC State already has games schedule against each of these teams home-and-away in Football between now and 2031.

2025 – East Carolina (H)

2025 – @ App St.

2026 – App St. (H)

2028 – @ East Carolina

2030 – Charlotte (H)

2031 – @ Charlotte

What are your thoughts?

For more details, check out this article at WRAL.

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