NOTEBOOK: New Class, New Times

NC State head coach Dave Doeren recently met with the media inside Vaughn Towers at Carter-Finley Stadium.

Several topics were discussed, including the signees in the Wolfpack’s upcoming 2018 recruiting class.

New Class, New Times

The 2018 class is the first to hold a signing day in the middle of December. New times mean the need to adapt and NC State has done so.

Dave Doeren announced that 21 commits signed Wednesday and are confirmed to joining the Pack in the upcoming season.

“It is kind of unique and a first for all of us in this business to have a signing day in the middle of December,” Doeren said. “For us it is an opportunity to celebrate 21 new members of the Wolfpack nation.”

Where the new rules, which means more official visits for recruits will be made in February, takes the industry remains to be seen.

"We will just see how things unfold really," NC State recruiting coordinator Desmond Kitchings said. "There will probably be some kids out there that don’t sign with a school that may, as we re-address ourselves, is there a need that we need to address throughout January so we will discuss all of that."

"How this impacts college football, we will have to wait and see," Doeren said. "It is the first time for all of us."

December has been a busy month for Doeren and his staff.

"To have this going on in the middle of our bowl preparation for our own team with finals finishing last week and for me as a head coach normally you have until February to see your kids that are committed," Doeren said. "I had to see 22 guys in a week almost."

There will be more to do in early 2018 for the NC State coaching staff one way or another.

"We don’t have full class signed yet," Doeren said. "We have 21 of the members fully signed."

An End To Silence

Prior to the week there was a list of days that NC State players and coaches were going to be available to the media as signing day approached and bowl preparation amped up.

That changed.

The program then announced that Wednesday’s press conference would be the only time Doeren would be available to speak. No players will be giving interviews this week, although assistant coaches Dwayne Ledford and Des Kitchings did also attend the press conference to speak of the incoming signees.

The hectic nature of the new signing period, couple with the uncertainty of how to handle a new situation in the college football landscape, compelled Doeren to limit access in the week prior to the holidays.

"People wonder why we are shutting things down, but we want to be able to focus purely on our bowl game this week," Doeren explained.  "We are out of school and these are the most hectic two weeks I have had in my life in recruiting with trying to see 20-to-30 guys. I was in 11 homes in three days in multiple cities."

"No disrespect to any of the media, I just want to have complete focus on the task at hand and that is going to play Arizona State in the Sun Bowl," Doeren added. "When we get down there to the bowl we will be like have been in the past, you will have access to all of us, coaches and players."

Unwilling to Compare

It will be quite easy for the 2018 recruits to be compared to Dave Doeren’s first recruiting class in 2014.

The 2018 crew enters as the 2014 gang exits and the seniors that conclude their college career at the Sun Bowl next week have certainly provided the incoming freshmen with a platform to stand on and build off of.

Many of the new players will replace the darting seniors and their college adventure will mirror that of the 2014 class in that they will have the chance to earn reps early while using game action to develop.

Doeren is unwilling to take that link any further. Next season’s newcomers will write their own story.

"As far as comparing it to another class, I don’t think that’s fair," Doeren said. "The 2014 class developed themselves into a great senior class. Obviously, every class we sign we hope we can get the same out of that, from a developmental standpoint."

Doeren’s perspective is how things are handled in the the toughest moments will define the group and not solely their successes.

"A lot of it depends on these young men," Doeren said. "The fortitude, their ability to stick to it. There isn’t a college athlete in the county that doesn't go through adversity at some point. That was one thing that I thought this senior class handled very well.

"There is tremendous talent in the class, and I do feel like because we lost so many players, we didn't say we had to answer one single question in this class. We wanted to get a lot of guys in multiple positions that had talent. Some can compete early and some we will develop."