Dave Doeren: "They Made More Plays Than We Did"

NC State head coach Dave Doeren met with the media after the Wolfpack's loss to Wake Forest.

NOTE: Click the video above to watch the interview.

“Heartbreaking loss. We didn't make enough plays in that last 11 minutes of the game to close the game out and they did. There were plenty of opportunities to close that game out for us. Third downs, we had them in third and long, fourth and long, fourth and five, forced a fumble but didn't recover it, dropped an interception -- kept their drives going in a situation where we had been dominating them. You've got to give them credit. They made more plays than we did in those moments.”

“Offensively, we did some good things, but the last 11 minutes of the game were not good enough. We didn't finish. We didn't make enough plays to close the game out. Had opportunities. It's offense, defense, special teams. It is no one side of the football. You've got some guys down there that are really upset and some coaches that feel the same way. We didn't finish.”

“I was proud of how they came back after Grayson. Got us back in the game. Regained momentum. Had the time of possession, flipped the turnover margin in our favor. We were running the football effectively. Kendrick [Raphael] had a great run that got us up by 10. Then we didn't finish the game. That hurts.”

“As far as Grayson goes, all the reports back from the hospital are positive. Once they're done running through the tests and all that we'll have more information at that time.”

“Grayson went through the entire protocol and was cleared. Had a great week of practice. He's our starting quarterback. He's a captain. You don't lose your position due to injury. He was ready to play. He took a really, really vicious hit. Sometimes football is a very violent sport.”

“That was a big hit that he took. I hate it for him. You hate to see a guy get hit like that. The results of those kinds of hits are scary.”

“As far as CJ goes, I was proud of him. He came in the game with poise. He gave us a chance to win the game. He made a lot of nice plays with his arm, with his legs. He's a good leader on the sideline. I know he's down for throwing a pick there in that last drive. CJ didn't lose that football game. He did a lot of good things today.”

“I was worried for him. I didn't see -- everyone was yelling targeting -- I couldn't see it from where I was standing. I was more concerned about him. Getting out there and making sure. Justin Smith and the sports med team did a great job with him. Grayson, once he came to, was talking and said, 'I want the boys to win the game.' He was trying to get up and they wouldn't let him. I felt for him and his parents. You're trying to be comforting and pray for him in that moment.”

“It was not getting off the field on third down. Two fourth downs that they converted. They weren't doing that earlier in the game. They were able to extend drives, one with a penalty and then with fourth-down conversions. The one at the end of the game was a huge one for them, gutsy call by them.”

“They made plays and we didn't. Earlier in the game we were stymieing them on third down. They were three of 11 on third down but they were three of three on fourth. Those conversions were the difference. They were able to stay on the field which flipped the time of possession in those last 11 minutes their way.”

“You get the guys back in the room tomorrow. You look at the film with them and you try to make them better. You look at everything you're doing as a coach. You look at everything the players can do better, and you go to work on them. That's what you do. That was a hard-fought football game by two teams that really wanted to win. The bottom line is they made more plays than we did in key moments. You've got to learn from that, you've got to.”

“This is a team that has a lot of football left in front of them. I'm going to coach as hard as I can. The guys that are going to show up tomorrow are going to work as hard as they can to get it right. That's what we do here.”

“I talked to [CJ Bailey] in front of the team. I told him I believe in him. I know he's down on himself. I told him he's going to make a game-winning throw here in the next game. The guys are going to play hard for him.” 

“He delivered today in a lot of drives. He did some really good things for a true freshman. He didn't look like a true freshman at times. Made some nice throws. CJ has got a bright future.”