NC State tight end Justin Joly met with the media following the Wolfpack's 34-24 win over Wake Forest Thursday evening.
NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Joly’s interview.
Opening statement…
Before I get any questions, I'd like to thank my tight ends coach, Gavin Locklear. This game wouldn’t have happened without him. Then Cody [Hardy] and Dante Daniels, they’ve been iron, and iron sharpens iron. They’ve helped me so much. I appreciate them.
On Locklear’s impact…
He knows how to push me. He pushed me to my limits. Everyone needs a coach like that. Having him in my circle, he’s the best thing for me at NC State other than C.J. [Bailey].
On the mindset trailing 14-0 and how the team rallied back…
Before the game, their head coach said they’ve got to be tougher than us. We’ve got to show who’s really the toughest team on the field. We’ve got to grind for it, and that’s exactly what we did. It’s exactly what we wanted.
On scoring twice…
Honestly, I could score zero touchdowns and zero catches. As long as we win, I couldn’t care less.
If he had a favorite touchdown…
I don’t. I barely remember each one.
On his relationship with Bailey…
At media day, we roomed together, and it was like two brothers bickering the whole time. You could tell we have love for each other. That’s our relationship.
On this team’s identity…
With Coach [Dave] Doeren at the helm, we can do anything we put our minds to. We just have to do it. That was the biggest struggle last year.
On the fracas during the final snaps…
It’s two in-state teams. There’s bad blood. It’s as simple as that. They don’t like us. We don’t like them.
On what was said in the locker room at halftime…
“Offense, we’ve got to go out there and score. I know the first drive wasn’t our best, but the defense has our backs.” It’s complementary football. Thanks to the defense, and props to everyone on that side.
On the team’s late-game moments…
It’s our mentality, and it’s the people we’ve got on our team. We’re mature, and something we emphasized over the summer and during spring ball was to finish: finish plays, finish blocks, finish catches, and finish tackles. That was a really good emphasis for this game.
On winning the ACC opener…
We’ve got more games. Obviously, we want to make a statement in the ACC. We want to show people that we’re not the underdog. We’ve got some good guys on our team.
If the team has a ceiling that it hasn’t reached yet…
I don’t think this team has a ceiling. As high as we want to jump, we can. What matters is the people who do it.
