NC State Head Coach met with the media for his postgame press conference after the Wolfpack’s 35-31 win over UVA this afternoon. You can watch the video above, and read the transcript below.
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Super proud of the comeback win. Proud of the guys for their grit and their resiliency. A lot of reasons why it happened.
Before I get to that, I just want to thank our fans that came today. It was hot, and for you guys to sit in that sun and cheer for us the way you did means a lot to our players and our staff. So, thank you for your loyalty. Noon kick on top of it. I know it’s not easy for a lot of you that travel into Raleigh, so thank you.
It’s great to be 2-0. Another great, crazy finish. You’ve got to make a play, and sometimes you don’t know who it’s going to be. It’s awesome when it’s a Senior. I told the guys in the locker room, I was really proud of Cian (Slone) for making that. It was a key play in the game at the end.
Offensively, we played really well. We had zero turnovers.
We only had 1 penalty as a team the entire game, so we didn’t beat ourselves that way.
We were able to be productive moving the football. We were 100% in the red zone, scoring points. We had explosive plays.
Our run game, rushing for 200 yards. Hollywood (Smothers) was really in a good groove. The O-Line, Tight Ends and Receivers did a good job blocking.
Defensively, it was a much better 2nd half. Our first half was pretty bad. Gave up 24 points. A lot of untouched runs, uncovered guys. We just didn’t play well, so we’ve got things to work on.
I was proud of them in the 2nd half. Only gave up one score, and offensively, we scored on every possession but one.
Our short yardage offense was tremendous. The only time we didn’t make it was on a pass we threw, which was probably a play we wish we wouldn’t have called.
We were physical, man. Trusted the guys, 4th-and-1, 3rd-and-1, to go and get it, and they did.
Obviously, you can see the faith we have in Will (Wilson) to be in there in a situation like that.
It’s great to be 2-0, and we don’t get much time here to celebrate. We’ve got to play on Thursday, so we’re going to put this one to bed pretty quick.
What was it like to see the Offensive Line enforce its will in the 2nd half and the journey that Yousef (Mugharbil) has gone through to move into the starting lineup and be a part of that, after walking on to the program?
I think his story is amazing. So two-part question.
Part one, it was awesome to see us run the football the way we did. Coach Roper and the offensive staff made some adjustments and said, ‘Look, let’s just hand the ball to #3 and get downhill, and that first drive of the 2nd half, that’s what we did.
The offense did a great job, being physical, Tight Ends, Running Backs, Receivers, making plays.
But Yousef’s story is one for the books, you know? He was one of the highest-recruited O-Linemen in college football coming out of high school, goes to Florida and has a tragic accident. He was hit by a semi-truck on a scooter and drug. Lost football for a while and couldn’t play.
Really had to go through a real intensive recovery process. Then they had a coaching change, and he ends up at another school, and they have a coaching change, and he ends up just saying, ‘I just want to go home,’ and came here and has worked really hard.
I’m proud of him. It’s a great story. He came in and gave us some really good energy today. He blocks and he’s a physical kid, really strong. One of our stronger O-Linemen. Happy for him, proud of him. It’s a great story. Not one you see a lot in college football.
You mentioned giving the ball to Hollywood and letting him work in the 2nd half. What’s it like for you as a coach to see him kind of take over in the 2nd half for 115 yards on 12 carries?
It’s what we hope for. He finished the season that way, too. The last half of last year, you could see that he was ready. He had a great offseason, great Fall camp.
He brings energy, holds people accountable. He plays hard as hell. He wants the football. If you don’t give it to him, he’s not going to complain. He’s going to block. He’s going to run routes. He doesn’t care. He just wants to win. Guys like that tend to make plays. Unselfish, tough guys that work hard.
He’s got a lot of talent. So anytime he touches the ball, it’s a potential explosive play.
With the ACC wanting you to play more Power 4 opponents, and with the math not really working for you guys to go to non-conference games, do you anticipate playing more games like this, non-conference against ACC teams? Do you like them?
I love it. I’m all for playing all-conference games.
To me, you know, we’re in the ACC. Let’s play each other every week and see who the best team is, you know? But I know I’m not everybody, and everybody has their things that they like. Some of them have SEC rivalry games.
Notre Dame screws up our scheduling because they get five games in our league, but I’d be all in favor of, you know, 17 teams, and they figure out a rotation where we play each other all the time.
I think nowadays, if you have a goal of being a playoff team, you’ve got to play 10 Power 4 games. You’ve got to have that strength to schedule.
It was a no-brainer for me to want to add Virginia, because I’d much rather play a regional team than play someone from across the country. It just doesn’t make as much sense for fans, for families, and for recruiting.
CJ (Bailey) has expanded his game with the run. It’s not just scampering to avoid. You’re calling run plays for him. Could you speak to that, and how much that makes it a better offense?
When you can throw the football the way that he can, and have the skill around him, but then also make them have to defend his legs, that’s tough on a defense. It’s really hard. Then you’re going to add more people in the box. When you’re worried about Quarterback runs, it opens up things in the air. When you can utilize his legs, and be smart with it because you don’t want to put more hits on him than you need to.
I thought Kurt (Roper) called some really good QB runs in the game. CJ made some plays on his own. Obviously, the 2nd touchdown run was a scramble, but having that extra element changes how you have to defend us on offense.
It’s great to see his confidence in that.
Gibby, go ahead.
Two straight games that go right down to the wire. You win both those games. What does that say about your team, and how can this help you guys down the road?
I think it’s a team that understands who NC State is. It’s grit, you know? This team has grit. It’s in our DNA.
We train in chaos. We look forward to tough situations here. We’ve practiced a lot of this stuff that you’re seeing at the end of games. The guys always revert back to their training.
They’re tough kids. They want to win. They know how to dig deep, and we’ve trained them well in those situations.
It’s a combination of things, along with the identity of our program. It’s hard, tough together. If you’re going to be on this football team, you’ve got to have that kind of resiliency in you.
I’m proud of the leadership guys on our team, because they’re demanding that from each other as well.
