NC State Head Football Coach Dave Doeren met with the media yesterday for his weekly press conference prior to the Wolfpack’s Top-10 matchup against #5 Clemson this Saturday. You can watch it here, or check out a breakdown of what he had to say below.
Opening Statement
Against UConn, really proud of our team…played really hard…were prepared.
We challenged our guys throughout the week to be in the moment…to work on us…not overlook an opponent…not let our guard down…be present and own the opportunity.
Our team showed maturity, which was something that we needed to do.
Our Texas Tech win looks even more impressive now, seeing what they did.
Congrats to Coach McGuire on his win over Texas.
From an offensive standpoint, we started fast.
I don’t know if you can start faster than that…great throw from Devin Leary to Thayer Thomas.
One of the goals we had was to be better after the catch, better after contact…wanted more yards after contact, yards after catches.
Devin Carter answered that, Thayer Thomas, Keyon Lesane, Demie Sumo-Karngbaye.
Michael Allen and Delbert Mimms got in the mix there, so it was a lot of guys who took that to heart.
Devin Leary played fast…made quick decisions, distributed the ball. He was accurate.
He obviously had one that he would like to have back there which was a turnover before the half. He’ll learn from that.
It’s nice when you don’t have to punt.
I don’t know if I’ve had a game like that as the head coach, so that was really nice to be able to end every possession without having to punt the football.
One thing we did a great job of was manage 3rd downs.
We had manageable down-and-distances which means you did well on 1st and 2nd, but that’s your down-and-distance management.
When you do that the right way, it makes coach Tim Beck’s job easier, and the kids performed better in 3rd-and-1, 3rd-and-2, and 3rd-and-3.
Negatively [Offensively], we had some penalties: 2 pre-snap on guys and 1 on our staff…12 men on the field trying to substitute a guy out, and we didn’t get that done in a fast enough fashion for the officials.
We had 2 sacks we probably could have avoided with throwaways, and we had 2 drops that were probably catchable.
Defensively, we had 8 3-and-outs and 2 4th-down stops.
We stopped the run.
They had 0 explosive plays in their pass game, and I thought we tackled well with the 1’s and 2’s.
It got sloppy at the end of the game where we put in a bunch of young guys, and they looked like they were young guys.
It was good to get them that game experience, but the product wasn’t very good. That’s something that they’ll learn a lot from and hopefully be better for the next time they get out there.
On special teams, Chris Dunn continues to be very, very good for us, and I was happy with Collin Smith with his kickoffs.
It was nice for him to get in and play a little bit as our kicker, too. He had a nice field goal and kicked off well.
Our punt return scheme could have blocked better for Thayer.
We had 1 opportunity, and I feel like we need to do a better job there.
The fake field goal, I’ll take the credit for that.
UConn did a nice job. It wasn’t what we thought we were going to get. It wasn’t what they showed us. They did a nice job of not rushing off the edge that they had been the entire game. Kudos to them for that.
As far as this week, I’m excited for the game. It’s a great matchup against a very talented group with an experienced, talented staff.
I’ve got great respect for Coach Dabo Swinney and his program. We look forward to playing a great team.
It’s 2 Top-10 teams competing on a national stage, and that’s why we do this.
The kids have worked hard. The staff has worked hard, and we expected to be in this position. We expected to be 4-0 going to Clemson.
We’ll continue to focus on us. I think the path that has gotten us here is the path that we’ll continue to stay on.
It’s individual and collective improvement through great practice, great meetings, and taking care of business.
We will focus on our opponent and know those guys, but more importantly, we need to know what we need to get better at and get it done.
We’re playing at a great venue. It’s the longest home winning streak in college football. We know the crowd will be into it. It’ll be loud.
When you talk about them, it starts with their defensive front.
They’re really, really talented…great rotation on the D-line. They’re skilled and big.
They’ve done a nice job of recruiting those types of guys, developing them, and coaching them, and they put them in positions to be successful.
At linebacker, Trenton Simpson, is a really good football player.
He’s a sideline-to-sideline guy and a really, really good player.
They’ve played a lot of guys in the secondary.
I know they’ve had some injuries there.
They have good length at corner. You can see that they’re not doing a ton of things.
They’re probably less multiple than they’ve been, and guys are playing hard.
They just had a tough game against Wake Forest, but I have a lot of respect for Mike Reed and I know he’ll have his guys ready.
Offensively, their Offensive Line has stayed healthy.
They’ve played the same five guys in all four games.
They’re better than they were a year ago.
Quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei is maybe the most improved part of their offense.
He’s playing with more poise…he’s accurate…definitely giving his guys a chance on deep balls.
His receivers, he’s got 2 guys who are long and making plays for him.
Beaux Collins has gotten 4 touchdowns.
Not surprising to see Will Shipley playing the way that he is.
I have great respect for Will. He’s competitive, he’s talented, and he’s got a lot of great spirit and demeanor.
How significant it is to have his team in the Top-10 for the 1st time in 20 years
It’s not for me. It’s significant for our team. It’s for our university and our alumni. It’s great.
We’ve worked really hard to move ourselves up in the national footprint of this sport. It’s taken a lot of time, blood, sweat, tears, and commitment from a lot of people.
I know that it’s not a stationary spot either. You go up and down based on your performance, but you still have to get to that spot, and we’ve worked hard to get there.
We’re going to embrace the opportunity being there.
We know a lot comes with it, so I think it’s something to celebrate for sure.
It’s not something to say ‘we’ve arrived,’ yet because the rankings at the end of the season matter a lot more than they do at the end of the 4th week, but 20 years is a long time. I think it’s something that should be noted.
I think it’s something that people should be excited about. I’m proud of our players. 3 years ago, we were 4-8. These guys have worked really hard to get our football team where it is right now
Preparing for inclement weather due to Hurricane
We’re going to have to have wet balls.
I’ve been through the hurricane situation before.
I hope we don’t have to play in something like the Notre Dame game in 2016. That was nuts.
We’ll be prepared if it is raining.
Hopefully, it won’t be one of those things that has devastation that comes with it either.
Sometimes, these things fizzle out. Sometimes, they get pretty strong, so we’ll just have to see where it goes.
We’ll plan for the worst and hope for the best.
We do have to have plans on travel. If we can’t fly, then how are we going to get there?
3rd Down against Clemson
3rd down on both sides of the ball is going to be a huge thing.
Last year, when we won this game, we had roughly 42 minutes of time of possession, and that’s because we were successful on defense on 3rd down, and we were successful on offense on 3rd down.
Those things lead to time of possession which is a big deal when you are playing an explosive offense like Clemson’s.
Giving yourself favorable down-and-distances on both sides of the ball.
It’s trying to get them behind the chains and us trying to keep ourselves from being behind the chains.
Running tempo vs. UCONN
We did mix it up a little bit more.
Some of that is just a game flow thing for Coach Beck, too.
When he sees the defense is tired and he wants to step on them that way, then he’ll do that.
Some of it is our defense.
If we’re playing a lot of snaps, we’ve got to be smart.
You don’t want to go out there and run tempo for 3 plays and go 3-and-out when your defense is tired.
It’s complementary football.
We’ve been basically going 3-and-out, 3-and-out, 3-and-out on defense. They were rested.
Tim knew he could play at whatever tempo he wanted.
Has Demie Sumo exceeded expectations?
No, I think he’s right where I’d hoped he was going to be.
You’ve heard me talk about it for a year, so I don’t need to repeat it all.
Until you get into live games, you don’t know.
This is what I thought we would have watching him and how he played in practice.
He’s very talented…hard to tackle…good vision…patient…can catch…tough.
He’s in a good spot. We’ve just got to keep him growing. He’s still learning. Each week, he gets a little bit better.
Value of experienced players going against Clemson
You need guys like that linebacking group in particular, some of the D-linemen, our receivers Thayer and Carter.
We’ve got a lot of guys that have played football. That’s good.
They’ve been in big games. They’ve won big games.
They bring a calmness to the locker room. They’re talking the right way.
These are things they believe, and they can talk to their teammates and show good leadership.
They can be calm in the midst of a storm and get guys to settle down if they need to.
That experience is something that I value a lot because I’ve had teams that were the opposite.
You’ve just got to, when you have it, ride the wave with it.
Biggest game in his tenure…in program history
I don’t know. I’ll let you guys figure that out. I haven’t studied 35 years of games, so I don’t want to speak out of turn on that.
In my 10 years, I would say probably so.
As far as the history, that’s a long time. I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes with that answer.
Handling the hype
Enjoy the moment, enjoy the stage, and enjoy the opportunity that’s in front of you, but that’s now what this week is about.
This week’s about winning a game, and how do you win a game?
By having the best Tuesday practice of the season, and then getting the right food in your body, getting treatment, going to class, getting rest, and having a great Wednesday.
We have to stack things on top of each other all week.
We need to win the game way before the game is played with our players and our staff.
That’s what we’re focusing on, and don’t spend your time on your phone reading about how great the game is going to be.
Let’s focus on watching film. Let’s focus on 1st down, 2nd down, 3rd down and red zone, all the things that we have to be good at.
Let’s focus on the game plan.
The guys understand that there are a lot of things that can get you distracted in a week like this.
We’re trying not to look at it as that.
Has Thayer Thomas’ career exceeded expectations?
There’s no way I could have sat there in that game and told you that he was going to have the career he has had.
I thought he’d be a good player. I knew he would help us. I had no idea.
At that time, he weighed like 150 pounds. You couldn’t have predicted what he is now.
You have to give Thayer the credit. The guy is the hardest working player on this football team.
He does everything right off the field. He spends so much time on his body. He was just in the training room now.
He’s always doing things to be in peak condition. He eats right. He sleeps right.
He watches extra film. He practices as hard as any guy in that locker room, if not harder.
It’s not a surprise that he’s successful when you think about all the things he does right.
I’m glad he came back because I think he’s really putting an exclamation point on what was already a good career right now.
He’s blue collar, man. He works. He’s a grinder. He’s an overachiever, and he’s talented.
He’s definitely an incredible representative of the DNA of our program.
Preparation for Notre Dame in 2016 in Hurricane weather
We prepared for if we weren’t gonna be able to throw a pass, thinking, “How were we gonna win?” We talked about things like that.
We practiced with wet balls.
We’re just going to have to do similarly to be ready for that and those conditions.
I hope it’s not like that. That was terrible.
We were standing in water that was calf-deep on the sideline with sideways rain.
Value of watching last year’s game vs. Clemson with all their new coaches
Yeah, I watched last year’s game.
Offensively, it’s the same.
Coach Brandon Streeter is very similar to what they were.
Their personnel is very similar on offense, so you can look at last year’s game on that side of the ball.
Defensively, I think they’ve changed more than they have offensively, but player-wise, it helps to go back and see who gave us problems and how they attacked us.
I know they’re going to study that as well, so it’s an important piece, but you do have to base more of it on the 4 games this year when you are looking at the defense.
Importance of getting Shyheim Battle back vs. UCONN
We wanted to get him back in there. It was good to see him.
He had a great 4th-down stop when he came in.
We had a rotation with all 4 corners.
We only played 42 snaps on defense.
Those guys all played 20-something each. It was good to get them all in there.
Teshaun Smith got some good reps in that game as well. I think that’s a healthy rotation for us.
Growth of Clemson QB D.J. Uiagalelei
He’s endured a lot of criticism.
His completion rate is up.
He’s throwing good deep balls.
A lot of times a year ago, he was overthrowing guys, and now guys have chances to make plays.
You can see that his chemistry is good with his receivers. He’s throwing them deep. He’s throwing back-shoulder to guys, and his guys are making better plays for him, too.
That’s part of this that gets lost sometimes. Quarterbacks take the heat, but there’s guys dropping passes all over the field that could have changed the game. That changes the quarterback, too.
A lot has been said about his body transformation.
Until I’m right there with him, it will be hard for me to comment on that, but they say that he’s lost weight, and he’s more mobile.
He’s playing good. He’s got people hanging all over him.
That 2-point play last week was a huge play that he made.
There was a play in the Georgia Tech game on 3rd down that was in a similar situation.
He finds the back and shovels it to him with people hanging all over him. It was a critical play in that game that kind of busted the game open.
Running Back Jordan Waters represented NC State at the 2024 ACC Kickoff this morning. Here’s a TRANSCRIPT of his press conference.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for Jordan.
Q. You transferred in from Duke. Can you share a little bit about your transition into the Wolf Pack.
JORDAN WATERS: That transition was great. Everybody welcomed me with open arms. There was no ego. Everybody know what we came to do. Everybody is great. I love to be here. I’m excited, I’m happy and blessed.
Q. You were with one family for so long, how have you approached being the new guy in the new family? JORDAN WATERS: Just the same way I did that one. Like I said, everybody welcomed me with open arms. Great coaches, great staff. Nobody treated me differently because I come down the road.
Coach D welcomed me. We went fishing a couple times. I beat him in fishing. So it’s been fun.
Q. Coming into this program and working with the offensive coordinator, what has that been like for you, especially from a guy that’s been at so many other staffs?
JORDAN WATERS: It’s been fun. When I first got here, he showed me all the film of him lining running backs up in the slot, wideout. I feel like I fit right in. I feel like I can play all three downs, catch the ball, anything. I feel like I can fit right in.
Q. There’s a history at NC State of some strong running backs. What does that mean to be able to carry that torch? How would you like to be remembered?
JORDAN WATERS: I got one more year and I just want to be remembered as a great teammate. I do want to come here, play some good ball, rush for a lot of yards, just come in and be a good person, be the best teammate I could, and be remembered as a great person.
Q. In high school you played running back, wide receiver and quarterback, is that correct?
JORDAN WATERS: Correct.
Q. What is it about the running back position that you love so much compared to the other two?
JORDAN WATERS: It’s easy for me to get the ball (smiling). All you got to do is turn around…
It’s fun. I came in as a safety. That wasn’t for me. I went to running back. All I got to do is go out there and run and not get hit – try not to get hit.
Defensive End Davin Vann represented NC State at the 2024 ACC Kickoff this morning. Here’s a TRANSCRIPT of his press conference.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for Davin.
Q. How much are you specifically looking forward to stepping up as a leader on defensive side of the ball?
DAVIN VANN: I’m looking forward to it a lot. I had some great guys in front of me coming up, Drake, Payton, Zai, all those guys. They taught me a lot in the four years I’ve been here.
I’m looking forward to it, excited to take charge and be the leader of the defense.
Q. You were awarded the No. 1 jersey. Coach Doeren said because you play with one speed. What speed is that?
DAVIN VANN: 100%, 100%. That’s something Coach Thunder has helped instill in me. Coach Gibby, too. Just playing 100%, giving it all you got every time you go out there. That’s my one speed.
Q. You leave the state three times. How important is that, to play most of your games within the state of North Carolina this season?
DAVIN VANN: That’s real important. We have a great fan base. Wolfpack Nation helps us a lot in games. They bring the energy and stuff like that.
I think playing most of our games in state is a really good opportunity for us and we’re going to enjoy every moment of it.
Q. You were a wrestler in high school. How does your wrestling background help you in football?
DAVIN VANN: It helps me a lot. Wrestling has taught me a lot about self-discipline, body leverage, control, things like that. It’s helped take my game to the next level.
Originally I didn’t really want to wrestle, but my mom forced me to. I’m appreciative of that. But yeah, it’s helped me a lot, for sure.
Q. The video, that decision for you to come back, just that moment, bring me into that, how much fun that was to do with your family, and also the why of doing that. When we hear from NC State, there’s something about when you’re there, you stay.
DAVIN VANN: There was a lot of things that I wanted to work on personally. Coach Doeren has helped me a lot with those things mentally, emotionally and physically as well. It was more the mental, emotional part that was one of the biggest reasons I wanted to stay. I also felt like there was a lot of unfinished business that I had to wrap up before I left.
Those were kind of the biggest factors in why I stayed.
Q. There’s been a lot of talk this off-season about the revamped offense. On the defensive side of the football, are you taking that personally?
DAVIN VANN: Of course, we take it a little bit personally. It’s understandable. A lot of people think that ’cause we lost Payton we lost our whole defense. That’s definitely not the case.
The transfer portal has helped play a really big role in that. We have some dawgs that are ready to go out there and play. Our defense is going to be really good.
Q. You spoke about family. You have your younger brother on campus. Do you give him his space? Do you hang out a whole lot?
DAVIN VANN: Yeah, we see each other every day, of course in the weight room and stuff. We love hanging out outside of football. Having my little brother at NC State with me takes the aspect of brotherhood to a whole ‘nother level. I enjoy being a part of his college journey and I really enjoy having him as part of mine.
Quarterback Grayson McCall represented NC State at the 2024 ACC Kickoff this morning. Here’s a TRANSCRIPT of his press conference.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for Grayson.
Q. Talk about what it’s like being in a new program, your last year of eligibility, you’re being tasked as a leader.
GRAYSON McCALL: It’s refreshing to be in a new spot. Unbelievable opportunity for me to put on the red and black and represent NC State.
First of all, just extremely excited for the opportunity that Coach Doeren has given me. As an older guy, I know that’s my responsibility, especially as the quarterback, is to lead the guys, set the example, coming every day, showing them how it’s done.
The transition was really smooth. Those guys showed me how we do it in Raleigh. Now that I know the standard, now it’s my expectation and my job, my responsibility to come in every day and lead the guys. That starts obviously with my actions. Being more vocal on the field, leading those guys in the right direction every day.
Q. The in-helmet communication, that being a part of this, how much have you prepared for that ahead of fall camp? How much is that an emphasis?
GRAYSON McCALL: It was something that we implemented in the spring. We were able to get that going. Some of that’s great. I think it’s about time that college football did that.
Obviously as a quarterback, it makes my job a lot easier. I know for play callers and things like that, it kind of simplifies it for us. It was awesome. You have hiccups with the mics and things like that on a day-to-day basis. Just like anything, the more you use it, the better you’ll get with it.
It was awesome to do it for the first time. Like I said, kind of simplifies things for me. We’re able to communicate quicker and better.
It was awesome. Looking forward to using it in the fall.
Q. Was there a moment or conversation with a player coach that convinced you that State was a place for you to be?
GRAYSON McCALL: On my visit, walking into the place, kind of overwhelmed with the facilities. As I got there and able to talk to Coach Doeren, Coach Roper, Coach Anae, and meet some of the guys, it’s an unbelievable place to be.
The culture is extremely strong. Coach Doeren has been there for obviously over 10 years. The standard that he’s set in place, the play style that the football team has week in, week out, the toughness and the grit, the blue-collar mentality, the chip on their shoulder, that’s been me my whole career.
I think it’s a perfect fit, a perfect mold for me to go in there and get the job done. It’s an awesome, unbelievable transition. Really grateful for the opportunity to be the quarterback at NC State.
Q. I see the hair starting to come back. Will the mullet be in full force this season?
GRAYSON McCALL: It’s coming, baby. It’s coming. I showed it to Raleigh with the buzz cut. I got a lot of mullet requests. I’m ready to let this thing go.
Q. When you committed to Coastal Carolina, they were in their second year as an FBS program. This year you’re a starter in a power conference team. Can you describe that journey?
GRAYSON McCALL: God works in mysterious ways. God is so good. Kind of surreal for me being here at ACC Media Day going into year six as the quarterback at NC State.
It’s been an unbelievable journey, a lot of ups, a few downs. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Excited for this upcoming year. Just so grateful. Every day I walk in the building with a smile on my face because I am truly grateful to be in Raleigh with the guys.
I wouldn’t trade my time at Coastal Carolina for anything. It made me who I am. I love that place, and I’m looking forward and excited to be in Raleigh with NC State.
Q. You went into it a little bit of your relationship with coach. You said being around the guys, something sold you. To know there’s one more ride, opportunity this season for you, what is it about the culture of this team that you felt had to be a place to spend the last year?
GRAYSON McCALL: The best football teams I’ve been on are player-led teams. You get that vibe when you walk into the building. You have guys like Davin Vann, players that have been there a long time that have put in the work, set the standard, continue to build on it year in, year out.
Sitting down talking to the guys, I know everybody says it, but it truly is a family identity in that building. The guys love each other. It’s a special place to be.
Like coach said, he’s around great staff, grit players. He loves doing what he do. I’m the same exact way. You walk in that building, it’s a good time to be there.
It’s exciting to be in there with the guys. I mean, whenever I walked in, walked out of my visit, I knew that was the place for me. A lot of buzz in Raleigh right now with the men’s and women’s basketball team, baseball. A lot of energy. A lot of support from the fans in the community.
Ready to get this thing rolling, take this momentum and keep it going, so…
The 2024 ACC Kickoff has been going on this week, and this morning NC State finally took the stage. Here’s a video of Head Coach Dave Doeren’s Press Conference, with a Transcript underneath.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach Doeren.
Q. It seems like you have been super active in the transfer portal. How much of a role has the transfer portal played for you and your program?
DAVE DOEREN: Yeah, I think year to year for us it’s just another method of adding talent, adding the key ingredients to the roster. It’s all based on need, where you may have a void.
In the past, pre portal, you would look into the junior college areas, sometimes find a transfer that was a grad to fill a spot where maybe you had an injury or player left early to go to the NFL.
Obviously, as you know, now there’s outflow and inflow coming in at different times differently than there ever has been.
For us, it’s assessing your roster. It’s never ending, changes weekly on kind of where you’re at based on the health of what’s going on, who’s coming back, where you think you need to be better. Just getting into last season and how all this stuff came together, I mean, we’ve revamped our recruiting office two years ago. Once this stuff started, felt like we were chasing our tails a little bit.
Came up with a plan based on the NFL model on how they assess, evaluate. Once players are deemed players they would want on their rosters, how do they go about the process. Then integrating that into our program.
Have a great recruiting staff. It was regionally based. You look at Jordan and Grayson, two guys that chose to move on from their schools. They were guys that are in-state players to us, guys I knew would have personal value in staying home and doing something with the team that has the largest alumni base in the state.
Sometimes things just kind of click. There was a bunch of guys in this cycle that wanted to come back to the state. Noah Rogers, Daylan Smothers, several guys from Raleigh or North Carolina that left and wanted to return back closer to their families and be a part of our program. We were able to get the right type of guys.
That’s the biggest thing. When you want talent, that’s one thing. Being here 12 years now, I’m not going to take a risk on the culture with that talent. You have to find guys that fit what we’re all about. It’s earned, not given. It’s guys that want to work, enjoy the brotherhood of the game, that are willing to sacrifice for the cause.
We were blessed this year. We had a bunch of really good players that fit kind of the design of what we were doing, that fit returning players as well. Guys like Davin that have helped build this program, we don’t want to sacrifice all the hard work of the players that have been here for a guy that’s coming in for a year. They needed to understand they were joining something, and in that helping them to continue to grow what we do and increase what we’re doing.
We’re very pleased. Obviously two of the guys are here. The team is pretty mixed if you look at that recruiting class. There’s still a great emphasis on high school recruiting, as well.
Q. These last couple years your team has talked about wanting to be different, doing things that take this program to the next level. What have you seen from your guys this year that might prove that they are different?
DAVE DOEREN: Well, we’re about to hit the grass on Wednesday. I think every day we’re out there it’s a measuring stick, it is. We’re one of five programs over the last four years that have won eight or more games in college football. We’ve sustained a level of competitive greatness that not many people have been able to do.
With that being said, we want to win a championship. So different is that. It’s taken the program from the second most wins since 2020 to winning the league. That is different.
What we did last year and the year before and the year before is good. Winning nine games is good. We don’t want to be good, we want to be the best at what we do. These guys understand that. We’ve talked a lot about what it looks like to be the best and how do we do that, using the voice of the players to describe that. What does it not look like? What do we need to stay 8-8 from, safeguard our program there?
There’s been a lot of discussion, a lot of hard work by these guys and our staff as we evaluate our schemes to utilize the roster talent, to utilize the coaching talent that we have, to be integrated together.
Each day it’s really a challenge. You go out there day by day trying to be better than we were. A year ago Wednesday when we started camp, that’s a measuring stick to when we start camp this Wednesday. It’s everything. It’s how the grades come in from the summer, what Thunder says about the summer workouts, what Justin Smith says about the guys in the training room, in the nutrition area, ask how the guys are doing.
You’re always looking for signs of improvement and signs where we need to call this up, talk about this, we’re better than this. Just holding each other accountable to what we want. We want to be elite.
That means everything that we do, can’t cut corners. It’s going to be something that we push forward together.
Q. The last few years the running game hasn’t quite been there for this offense. You get a guy like Jordan Waters out of the portal. How much better does that make this run game?
DAVE DOEREN: Jordan is going to help us in the run game, for sure. The whole offense in general, it always starts with what is the quarterback going to do, right? We feel great about what Grayson can do. Then the offensive line, the blocking schemes that those guys are good at, the depth that you have there. How the tight end plays into that game.
Blocking at the perimeter is critical. There’s no doubt being balanced on offense is something that you know I like. At the same time we’re going to play to our strengths.
To answer that question today, we need to get on the grass, go through training camp, see where we’re at. I feel good about not just Jordan but the running back room in general. It’s a great room. There’s good leadership but there’s depth. There’s competition and the guys are working hard. Jordan has done a really nice job showing them what it looks like coming back from the season he had last year. You have young guys below him.
That’s part of your job as an older player, this is what it looks like, this is what it doesn’t look like, holding those guys to a standard.
I know coach and I and the staff on offense, offensive football has changed a lot, you guys know that, with the rule changes, the linemen down the field, the RPOs, tempo.
Now you have another change, sideline communication, which allows our coaches to speak to these guys in the huddle on the field. You’re going to see another evolution how to plays into offensive football this fall which hasn’t been talked about a lot.
I’m excited to see how that does things for us and how we can take advantage of what those rules bring. I think for Grayson and for any quarterback, he would tell you having a run game helps, it changes the coverages you’re throwing the ball against. It does. If they’re worried about what’s going on with the handoffs and pressure we can put on people not just with the runs but the RPOs behind them, it opens up a lot of things.
When you’re talking about getting one-on-one coverage with the receivers we now have, obviously KC coming back, Dacari Collins came on in the spring, the way we’ve seen Wesley Grimes and Noah Rogers coming in from the transfer portal, the weapons for him are different out there. It plays into the entire thing.
Not that you just call plays where you’re taking what they give, but sometimes you are. When you can spread the ball around to different people, it just opens up things and creates a different pressure system on the defensive coordinator. That’s one of the things that I really like about football. Trying to create chaos on the other side of the ball.
If you’re on offense, defense, whatever that is, let’s make their jobs really hard.
Q. Looking at the fact that you’ve spent a lot of time within the ACC, you’ve seen change, new institutions come in. We see accomplish greatness. When you look at this conference throughout, how would you define it, who is coming in, what this looks like?
DAVE DOEREN: I think maximizing the gift that God gave you, to me. One of the tenets, one of the standards of our program is no underachievement allowed. That’s maximizing the opportunity you have as a person. Accomplishing greatness is that. When you go to bed and lay your head down, did you do everything you could that day to be the best version of yourself? If I get enough coaches and players to do that on a daily basis compared to those we compete against, the score ends up being the consequence of those actions.
What does greatness look like for NC State? We want to hold that trophy up at the end of the year. Day in, day out, it’s about maximizing the gift. You expect to wake up every day, you expect for things to be a certain way. We all know that’s not reality. Every day we get is a blessing.
Taking advantage of that blessing is something that the older I get, the more that I value. I do. Really the relationships and the gratitude I have for the staff that I get to work with, for the players that I get to coach, I mean, I got a great job. I got great guys to work with. I’m thankful for that. I’m thankful that these guys are here, getting ready to go to work, and the work they put in this summer.
They know it’s going to be hard. I look forward to that with them. When you talk about accomplishing greatness, it’s not something you can define in one sentence. Football seasons are crazy. The emotional swings that take place day to day, minute to minute, the amount of things that happen over the course of the year, how fast it goes, within that million things that goes on.
It’s going to be a fun journey with these guys (smiling). Just really thankful for the opportunity to do this with them, and looking forward to where it goes.
