Robert Anae: "Strength and Stability Brought Me Here Quickly"
No. 23 NC State offensive coordinator Robert Anae met with the media ahead of the Wolfpack’s upcoming matchup versus Maryland in the 2022 Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
NOTE: Click the video in the player above to watch Anae’s interview.
Opening Statement
I’m very excited to be a part of the Wolfpack. The future direction of the offense, we’re not going to really get into until after the bowl game. Right now, my role is to recruit, retain, and observe. As demonstrated today, there’s no on-the-field coaching and no role along that line. It’s one of resource and supportive roles.
On Anae’s offensive philosophy…
Move the ball and score points as well as you possibly can with all you’ve got.
On offensive balance…
Balance only matters when it works. When it doesn’t work, then balance becomes an issue. Let’s balance it out to where we’re doing things that actually move the dial and actually works.
On what he’s observed about the Wolfpack team…
It’s very competitive. This group has been well recruited. That is obvious.
On what stood out about NC State…
In my world, it goes fast. Decisions had to be made quick. I don’t want to say rash, but quick. I will say the strength and the stability were the two things that brought me here very quickly.
On the players needing to learn new terminology…
It’s the same stuff, but yes, the terminology will be different. There will be a ton of learning curve, but like I said, the best opportunity for the bowl game is to keep what they’re doing.
On the influence of LaVell Edwards…
Well, you’re talking to one of his players, so of course I’m going to say [his influence is] huge. Yes, I’ve worked with guys throughout the country, and those things are alive and well in the game. Probably one of his chief guys on his staff was Norm Chow, and someone just mentioned him to me while I was coming off the field. I’m one of those players in the locker room under those two coaches. They’re both guiding lights, so to speak, in what I’ve done and what’s going to happen here.
On Chow’s influence…
How a practice plan is practiced and utilized over the course of a game. As a young coach, I sat right next to him for a couple of years and observed that in real time. As a player, he would orchestrate the practice plan, so I experienced both sides of that coin with Coach Edwards and Coach Chow. I wouldn’t be here today if I wasn’t a student of that process of how they did it.
On what makes a great quarterback…
First, you want to recruit the best players you can at that spot, and then you want to open it up for competition and treat that spot like the other spots on the team. With competition, they say iron sharpens iron. You go from Marc Wilson to Jim McMahon to Steve Young to Robbie Boscoe, and before that and behind that, there’s All-Americans that all want to play. It’s the same thing at O-line, same thing at tight end, same thing at linebacker, same thing at nose guard. Iron sharpens iron, so the better quality of player you get in a position group, I do believe the better the outcome will be.
On how much time and patience is required to install a new offense…
A lot of that has to do with how motivated your group is. I’m looking forward to the motivation level. It appears that here our players are very capable and very motivated. How long? I really couldn’t tell you other than a really motivated group is faster.
On how much of a pull his family was for coming to NC State…
It was a way added bonus. I have three granddaughters and a fourth one on the way here in Raleigh, in Fuquay-Varina. My son [Famika Anae] is the offensive line coach at Campbell. I tried to talk him out of the profession. He wouldn’t have it. My dad was the head high school coach at Hawaii. That’s the home I was raised in. He was raised by a college coach, and all we did was bounce around the country, and now he’s doing that with his little family. But, yes, family, the best part of who I am is Grandpa.
On if his father tried to talk him out of coaching…
He certainly did, especially in the hometown. If you’re the head coach in a hometown for years, there are certainly high expectations. My younger sister is an A.D. The rest of them did not touch the athletic world because you’ve got to be up to the drill if that’s what you choose. That was very clear in the home growing up.
On his relationship with Garett Tujague…
I was part of the group that helped recruit him as a junior college transfer. He was an All-American, and he played on some outstanding teams. He was an outstanding junior college head coach for years, and when the chance came to hire him 10 or 11 years ago, I jumped at the opportunity, and he’s been doing an excellent job ever since.
On the history he’s had with several coaches on NC State’s staff…
Trust is something that you develop. It’s consistency over time, and there’s been a lot of time put in with relationships with other people. Even though I’d never worked with [Dave] Doeren, I’ve always admired how the program is run from the opposing sideline, and when given the opportunity, I didn’t hesitate because the trust factor with guys here is very high. I feel blessed. I feel lucky to be here.
On if he has any stories about Mike Leach…
My relationship with Mike goes beyond the coaching world. Those guys were at Iowa Wesleyan, and I was at a junior college named Ricks in Idaho. He started funneling players there, and then he went to Valdosta State, funneled players there, won a national championship, went to Kentucky, funneled players there, and went to Oklahoma. When it came time to hire a guy [at Texas Tech], he went, “Here’s a guy I’ve known pretty well over the years.” Those were great years in Lubbock. I have a huge amount of condolences to the family. All of our former players and coaches that have a bond with him are better because of it.