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Highlighting What Dave Doeren had to Say in Week 1 of NC State’s Fall Practice

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1 month ago

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This past week kicked off NC State’s 2024 Fall Football Camp. Here’s a breakdown of some of the main highlights of what Wolfpack Head Coach Dave Doeren had to say. You can watch the full video of his time with the press ABOVE .

Highlights

On the first day of practice on Wednesday, without being prompted, Doeren went out of his way to give praise to two young new members of the Wolfpack.

“It was good to see Tamarcus Cooley make some plays today. Had some nice interceptions. Keenan Jackson had some nice catches. Those two guys stepped up today. I thought they looked good in practice.”

Cooley is a Redshirt Freshman Defensive Back, who transferred in from Maryland this offseason. In practice, he was running with the 2nd Team Defense as the Nickelback. Cooley was High School teammates with Wolfpack Receiver Noah Rogers, who transferred in from Ohio St. this offseason.

Jackson is a True Freshman, who flipped his commitment from UNC to NC State on National Signing Day back in December. He was a 4-Star prospect out of Weddington High School in Matthews, North Carolina.

Doeren also gave an update on Junior Sean Brown moving from Safety to Linebacker.

“Really well. He’s a smart football player. In-game last year we had to move in there when Payton (Wilson) was out in the Clemson game. He had eight tackles in the fourth quarter. He showed us that he can play there in a game. He’s built for it. He can run. He’s physical. He’s got really good instincts, vision. He understands coach [Tony] Gibson’s defense and what he wants. That position has to have a guy in it that can really run and erase things. Sean is built for that.”

Brown has big shoes to fill, moving into the void that was left at WILL Linebacker. Payton Wilson used to wear those shoes. Back in the Spring, Brown had put on 10 pounds of muscle, and from the looks of things this past week, he might have put on a few more pounds of muscle since then.

Dantonio Burnette, NC State’s Strength & Conditioning Coach, shared this tweet last week, sharing that Brown ran a 4.43 40-yard dash this offseason.

Check out our 2023 Highlight Reel of Brown.

Doeren said there are a few areas on the team where position battles are taking place.

“On the offensive line there’s some competition there. Looking forward to seeing that at the guard positions and the position of left guard in particular. There’s some really talented young receivers. Want to see how they come along and what they can do to help in some spots. On defense we brought in some older DBs. There’s a competition there.”

On Wednesday, former Walk-On, Redshirt Junior Matt McCabe was starting at Left Guard, and Redshirt Junior Anthony Carter Jr. was backing him up. Carter Jr. was the starter last season, and he has been recovering from offseason surgery. On the Right Side, Senior Timothy McKay was with the 1’s, and I expect him to remain there, serving as the starter last season.

On Wednesday, Sophomore KC Concepcion, Redshirt Freshman Noah Rogers and Redshirt Junior Dacari Collins were the starting Wide Receivers. I expect them to be the starters in Week 1 against Western Carolina, but expect a lot of the young talent behind them to fight for playing time as the year progresses. In my opinion, I can’t foresee any player behind Concepcion or Rogers taking their starting roles, but it will be interesting to see if someone pushes Collins for his job.

Obviously Aydan White will be starting at one of the Cornerback spots, and it looks like Sophomore Brandon Cisse is poised start on the other side, but I’m sure Corey Coley and Devon Marshall, who both Transferred in this offseason, are going to fight tooth-and-nail for that spot.

He had some kind words to say about McCabe’s journey from Walk-On to Scholarship Player.

“I’m really proud of Matt. Matt’s worked really hard. He does everything we ask him to do. He plays really hard. He trains really hard. He handles himself well in the community, in the classroom. It’s a great story.”

McCabe was awarded a Scholarship prior to the 2023 season.

Finally, Doeren thinks that NC State and Quarterback Grayson McCall are a perfect match.

“We’re very, very grateful that he’s here, one. Excited for him. Impressed by him. He understands the game. He’s a quick learner. He’s a really good teammate. Goes hard, holds himself to a high standard. Has no problem holding guys accountable and he does it in a good way. He’s demanding but not demeaning with people. He’s got great touch on the football. His game management skills, his clock management, everything. He’s a vet. He’s a great fit in our program.”

This past week, the ACC Network stopped by NC State’s practice for their ACC Football Road Trip, and chatted with Doeren as well.

A couple of notes from that:

Kevin Concepcion will be a part of the return game in some way this year on Special Teams. He was working with the Punt Return team in practice last week.

He also alluded to the fact that opposing Defenses won’t be able to simply focus on KC this year, because if they do, it will open up things for Noah Rogers, Justin Joly, Dacari Collins, Wesley Grimes and the Running Backs.

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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’s Running Backs vs. Tennessee in Week 2: BY THE NUMBERS

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4 hours ago

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September 13, 2024

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In NC State’s 10-51 loss to Tennessee in Week 2, 5 different players rushed the ball. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the Wolfpack players that ran the ball against the Volunteers.

Rushing Yards

RB Hollywood Smothers – 25 yards
QB CJ Bailey – 7 yards
QB Grayson McCall – 6 yards
RB Kendrick Raphael – 5 yards
RB Jordan Waters – -4 yards

Carries

QB Grayson McCall – 9
RB Jordan Waters – 7
RB Hollywood Smothers – 6
RB Kendrick Raphael – 4
QB CJ Bailey – 2

Yards Per Carry

RB Hollywood Smothers – 4.5
QB CJ Bailey – 3.5
RB Kendrick Raphael – 1.3
QB Grayson McCall – 0.7
RB Jordan Waters – -0.6 yards

Yards After Contact

RB Hollywood Smothers – 25
QB Grayson McCall – 15
RB Jordan Waters – 12
RB Kendrick Raphael – 8
QB CJ Bailey – 0

Rushes for 10+ Yards

RB Hollywood Smothers – 2
QB Grayson McCall – 1
QB CJ Bailey – 1

Missed Tackles Forced

RB Hollywood Smothers – 1
RB Kendrick Raphael – 1
QB Grayson McCall – 1

Rushing Direction

Short Yardage on 2nd, 3rd and 4th Down (1-2 Yards to Go)

2nd Down – 1 attempt/-3 yards/0 1st downs

4th Down – 1 attempt/0 yards/0 1st downs

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WATCH: NC State DE Noah Potter: “There’s a Sense of Urgency” (with transcript)

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7 hours ago

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September 13, 2024

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NC State Defensive End Noah Potter met with the media earlier this week after practice. You can watch the video ABOVE, or read the transcript BELOW.

You got to play 45 snaps. When was the last time you guys played that much? You’ve had quite a journey.

Yeah, I played that much at Cincinnati, but obviously dealing with injuries last year, it was good to finally be able to get a lot more plays, which is what I’ve been working for.

How did you feel you did?

I thought I made some plays that came my way.

There were some plays that I probably could have finished more. But overall, I think I did good, but we lost, so there’s obviously more stuff to work on.

Did you get some good leadership on this team that will help you guys get through what happened on Saturday?

We had a team meeting, and we kind of just aired some stuff out, things that we need to work on.

It was a good talk, it wasn’t berating one another, but just uplifting guys, but still holding people accountable. We didn’t come out the way we needed to on Saturday. Obviously, all of our goals are still in play, so it’s not the end of the world or anything, but there’s a sense of urgency there that we know we need to play better if we want to reach those goals.

It happened early in the year, so if it’s going to happen early in the year, it’s probably better than later in the year, I imagine. I mean, yeah, you don’t want to lose any game, but obviously all of our goals, if we win the ACC, that’s our goal, obviously. We kind of had a similar situation last year in the Notre Dame game, and we still let it affect us by losing to Louisville and Duke.

Coach Doeren’s message was, ‘We’re not doing that again’, and I agree with him. We’re not going to let one game affect us, it’s just a one-off, and we do not lose the attack.

Coach talked about last week, for a football play to work, it has to be 11 guys doing their job. How do you have that sense of urgency, but yet still abide by the game plan and not try to do too much?

Yeah, I think in our defense, and probably offense too, it’s just like if you don’t do your job in every play, the play’s not going to work. Coach Doeren was talking about if 10 guys do the right thing, but one guy doesn’t, it could end up in a touchdown on the defensive side, or a pick-six, or a tackle for loss. So I think that’s the sense of urgency, like I don’t want to let my teammate down and the team down by not doing what I’m supposed to do.

But on the flip side, you’ve got to have that confidence that if you’re in the right spot, you’re going to make the play for your team. So I think obviously there’s a sense of urgency, but if you play within the scheme, they say if you do your job, you’re going to make the plays that count for you. So I think that’s the mindset you’ve got to have.

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WATCH: S Bishop Fitzgerald Says Tomorrow’s Game is the Biggest of the Season for NC State (with transcript)

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9 hours ago

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September 13, 2024

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NC State starting Safety Bishop Fitzgerald met with the media earlier this week after practice. You can watch the video ABOVE, or read the transcript BELOW.

1 bad performance doesn’t make you a bad football team

Yeah, if you look back at the game, it’s 10-3 with three minutes left to go at halftime, we’re in the red zone and then unfortunately get a pick six and then mess up a kickoff and that’s a 14 change of points and that was 20 to three going into halftime. So if that doesn’t happen, it’s a 10-10 game at half and things aren’t looking too bad for us. So we know we can compete with anyone, we just have to learn how to capitalize on our opportunities.

How do you deal with negativities surrounding the team?

Definitely, we kind of have to take this loss to the chin for the next five days until we play again. And that’s kind of been the thing for us, just go out there and show people, and most importantly, show us that we can do it and we are the team we think we are.

How important was it for you guys to get back on the field of practice and did that help a little bit?

Yeah, we got up there, coaches getting after us, trying to pick up the intensity, we’re running around a lot.

Trying to hit our max velocity, that’s kind of what they’ve been harping is, practicing as hard as we can and not being soft at practice.

So with that said, what kind of team should we expect out there? What kind of game y’all gonna play on Saturday against Louisiana Tech?

We think, obviously, it’s the biggest game of the season. The game on Saturday is the biggest game of the season for us.

It’s taking it one day at a time, and we just kind of have to go out there and show people that we are who we say we are. And all this hype around us, you guys should be able to believe in us confidently, and we should go out there and play our best game of the season.

All your goals are still out there, aren’t they?

Yeah, we lost, I guess, an SEC opponent. Our goal is the ACC championship, so that necessarily doesn’t affect our ACC record. And we know that ACC play starts two weeks from now, and just taking it one game at a time, and winning this game, and being able to move forward with momentum.

Does it matter how you look at this? I mean, does it matter how you win this game as much as winning the game?

I mean, a win is a win. Winning is hard at any level, and that’s the thing. But we know that if we play our brand of football, that nobody can beat us. And that’s what we’re trying to play, is get back to our brand of football. Defense flying around, offense scoring points, and getting the run game going. So that’s kind of what we’ve been harping on.

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NC State had the Most Fans in Attendance in the ACC in Week 1

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10 hours ago

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September 13, 2024

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NC State packed the house in Week 1 for the season opener against Western Carolina, filling it 56,919 people, which was the most of any team in the ACC.

The Wolfpack ranked 24th nationally in attendance in Week 1.

ACC Home Attendance in Week 1
24. NC State – 56,919
28. Florida State – 51,719
35. Louisville – 47,067
37. Pittsburgh – 44,616
42. Virginia – 40,811
44. Georgia Tech – 40,113
46. Syracuse – 37,225
50. Stanford – 36,026
52. California – 32,275
55. Wake Forest – 29,450
59. SMU – 27,080
78. Duke – 18,466

Tomorrow’s game vs. Louisiana Tech is also sold out, making it 15 straight home games NC State has sold out, which is a school record. The Wolfpack’s next home game against Northern Illinois is already sold out as well.

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