Dave Doeren: "It's Not About Our Record Anymore"
NC State head coach Dave Doeren met with the media Thursday afternoon to discuss the Wolfpack's upcoming matchup versus Clemson.
NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Doeren’s interview.
On Clemson’s threats on offense…
Well, their running backs are really good players. Every time we play them, I always come away from the game impressed with Will Shipley and how hard he plays. The other running back, [Phil Mafah], is a big, strong kid as well. It starts with stopping the run. [Cade Klubnik] is an athlete. They’ve run him some. I don't know if they'll run him more against us or not, but he is an athlete you have to worry about. [Tyler Brown] has had a really good season for them in the slot. They've had some injuries at some of the other positions. [Jake Briningstool] is a really good player. That guy hurt us last year in our game. They've always had talented players and always do. The best thing you can do is get them in third-and-longs and get them in those situations. They're an uptempo offense, and so when you give uptempo offenses first downs, that's when it gets really hard, so you want to try to get them out of down-and-distance that they like to be in.
On Clemson’s fall-off from national prominence making them more dangerous…
I think they're a better team than their record. When you have 10 fumbles that you lose, that's going to hurt your record. It’s similar to us; we’ve had some interceptions. Turnovers cost you games. They do. I feel the same way about our football team. You’re a 4-3 team; there's a lot of things you look at on film on why you’re 4-3. They have good players. They have good coaches. Their kids were highly recruited, and we've got to do a good job of, like I said, getting them in third-and-longs and then get some takeaways. Our defense has always done a good job of that.
On Sean Brown’s comments on football allowing him to express his anger…
Football is a game that allows you to do that. For those of us that have played this game our whole lives, most of us chose this sport because of the contact of it. If you weren't a contact player, you could go find another sport. It is the one place where you actually get praised, besides the boxing ring and the wrestling match, for your physicality. For those guys that do have anger, then yeah, it's a great place to use that and vent obviously within the rules where you're doing your job. I’ve always felt that way. As a former player, that was my safe place to go have fun and be physical. I hope all of our players do that. We want to be physical. We want to be tough, something that I don't think we were enough in the last game. This will be a great game to go out there and play that way.
On being more introspective this week versus worrying about Clemson…
There's a blend. The first two-thirds of this time we've had since our last game has been about NC State. "Where do we have to improve? What do we have to do better?” Then it was getting on the field and just playing against each other, playing football. We didn't really focus on Clemson until the week of the game Tuesday. It gave us three really good practice days just [to work on] the things we want to be on that football field. How can we do that? We put a vision in front of these guys, and they've accepted what they have to do, and they’ve gone out and worked hard on it.
On this week’s “gnarly” practices, according to Chris Toudle…
They were challenged. Payton [Wilson] challenged the team after the game. I did in our meeting on Sunday. I showed them what elite toughness looks like and when it doesn’t. Win or lose I want to see elite toughness, and that's the thing with this team has always been under me; it’s been physical and tough. Like I said before, that was my biggest takeaway from the game and why I felt so bad coming off that field. I did not feel like that was the DNA we have in our program. Win or lose, we need to go out there, fight, be physical, and play fast. Sometimes, I think guys just try to be perfect, and playing football that way is cautious, and that's not the type of football team I want to coach. So yeah, “gnarly," I guess, if that's what that looks like, fast and physical, then that's what it's been. That’s we're trying to get. Can we play that way in the stadium Saturday? That's the big challenge right now.
On Robert Kennedy matching up with Briningstool…
It depends on where they put him If they put him out at No. 1, he could be on a corner. If he's in the box, he could be on a safety or a nickel. Robert's not going to shadow him outside of the defensive rules that we have. There's going to be a lot of people that have to defend him. He's a really good football player for them, and if I were a quarterback, I'd throw the ball to him. He’s six-six. He’s a big dude.
On tight ends having success against the Wolfpack’s defense…
Early in the year, we were having some eye discipline issues in the Notre Dame game, and they were in three-tight-end sets a lot. That's where you saw that. As the season's gone on, I don’t feel like that has been what it is, and it definitely wasn’t, except for the one goal-line pass, I guess you'd say, in the Duke game. Most of what we've been seeing lately has been outside, to be honest. Our corners have been getting the ball thrown out there on them.
On Brayden Narveson kicking a record-breaking, 57-yard field goal versus Duke…
He made a 60-yarder in pregame. He made it both ways in pregame. He said, "I got this from 60.” “All right, well, I’ll give you a three-yard cushion." At that time, we needed to score points. We'd just gotten a turnover, and I felt like the kid did a good job. That was only 10 minutes prior. That was the first drive of the game.
On the message to the team for the final stretch…
We have to be in the moment. A lot of times, particularly publicly, everyone focuses on where you are and the things that have happened. To me, it's not about that. It’s not about our record anymore. It's about our finish. It's about the five games we have left, honoring the guys that are in their last season, playing as hard as we can for them, and the legacy that that group gets to leave behind. There's a lot of football left in the season. There are so many things that can happen. We’re just taking it one at a time and focusing on right now. Rght now, the most important thing is a win against Clemson, and that's where everything's at.
On the receivers’ execution in practice…
We had a great week. We had a great week. It wasn’t a one day thing; it was day after day after day. I'm excited about the way they've come out. I said to them, “Normally, you're going to play like you practice, and that didn't happen a week ago." But we practiced well three days in a row on that side of the football. The carryover now is about just cutting it loose and just going out there and playing fast.
On this being the week the Wolfpack puts together a successful game in all three phases…
I said that before the last game. I felt like that's where we were at. We were coming off a game where we scored 48 points, and our defense gave up 41, so the defense was all mad or disappointed. They practiced really hard, and I said, “All right, we've got a pissed off defense and an offense that gained some confidence, and the special teams has played well. It's time for the three phases to go do it." I thought that would happen in the Duke game, and obviously I was very wrong. That's what we need to take the next step. We need a three-phase football. Everyone just needs to go out there and play that complimentary football we preach here and do it all in the same game.
On shifting the offensive linemen around and how they’ve been in practice…
It's pretty good. It's not the first time this year. Unfortunately, with [Dylan McMahon’s] injury, we had to shuffle the deck three different times. We've seen Jacarrius Peak at tackle. You saw him in the Louisville game there. You've seen Tim McKay at guard. You’ve seen [Lyndon Cooper] at center. You’ve seen Coop at guard. We've had Derrick Eason at left guard and right guard; you’ve seen Anthony Carter at left guard and right guard, so this isn’t new. It’s new on the depth chart, so everyone's making it like the first time ever we've done this. It’s not, but we're going to keep rewarding performance. That's what this sport is. If you grade out well, and you don't have penalties, then you're going to play more than the guy that's not. If you don't, then you get an opportunity to earn it back. That’s kind of where we’re at.
On Isaiah Moore getting signed by the Kansas City Chiefs…
I was fired up for him. He texted me. Obviously, you guys know that's my hometown. He started on two or three special teams and backup middle linebacker. It couldn’t have happen to a better guy. It’s an awesome football team, too. They’re in a good rhythm, and they’ve got the Taylor Swift fan mania going on. That's pretty cool. I'm not [a “Swiftie”]. I'd say I'm Travis Kelce guy though. I love watching that guy play. Man, is he good. I'm excited for their team. They're playing really well.
On his love for Merle Haggard…
When I was a house painter in high school, every summer my basketball coach had an old boombox, and 61 Country [WDAF-AM] is a radio station in Kansas City. There was a knob that you turn, for people that don't know what a boombox is anymore, to change the channel, and he took the pliers and yanked the knob off so it was stuck on 61 Country, and that was all oldies. He always said, “There's only two kinds of music: country and western, and that's what you're gonna listen to, by God.” I heard a lot of Merle Haggard growing up, and I just fell in love with the guy.
On the program’s success with producing NFL-caliber talent…
We lost more than people realize from last year's team. We had five defensive players that are playing on NFL rosters right now. We had some players on offense [like Chandler] Zavala. Then, three guys left for other schools in the portal that were starters for us that are starting at their new school. We had a new staff come in. There's been a lot of change. I've said this many times — I don't think people really understand it — but we're evolving right now. We’re in the process of figuring out a little bit of who we are and what we need to do better. Is it a failure? I'm sure some people think it is. To me, it's just an opportunity to keep getting better, and we got five games. I'm excited about the challenge. I really am. We lost some good players, and we're recruiting some really good players. This is a great place to come to school. It's a great opportunity to learn and grow under a staff that's been here and has a lot of experience.