WEEKLY PC: Dave Doeren Shares Thoughts On Upcoming Miami Matchup

NC State head coach Dave Doeren fielded questions from the media on Monday and he discussed a variety of topics, ranging from the bye week to the upcoming matchup against Miami.

NOTE: Click on the video above to watch the press conference.

Opening statement…

Yeah, going back to the Georgia Tech game, really proud of our team and staff and our fans, our students. It was an awesome night, great environment and just a bunch of guys that went out there and played together and what we've been trying to get for four quarters we finally got.

And it was a really fun night, the rooms that needed to step up because of the players that were out. 

Obviously, Duke Scott, with Hollywood being out, we needed him to really play well, and he did. He played a tremendous football game at running back. CJ played great, with Justin out at tight end. I thought that room did more than they've had to do and did it well.Cody continues to block well, but has become a bigger and bigger part of the pass game.

Dante Daniels has really grown as a player, a leader, really happy about Dante and what he's brought to the offense. Defensively, Tristan Teasdell started his first game and had some really good tackles. I thought Asaad Brown had three or four open field tackles on Haynes King that were touchdown saving tackles. Caden Fordham played his best football game for us. Brandon Cleveland really stepped up and played well. It was a team effort and we played well off of each other.

We knew that they'd score points and we had to stop them enough and play really well  offensively, and we did. And we'd get touchdowns and hold them to a field goal. We had some really good red zone stops and obviously a big interception to close the game out.

And our special teams did what we asked them to do. Kanoah made both field goal attempts and was perfect on his PATs. Operation time was good.

And so it's just a really good growth by the football team. And with all the things we've been through that are well documented, it was great to see them, you know, step up and play that way in a game of that magnitude, in a game we needed to win. And so now coming off a bye week, it was good timing, having two buys later in the season with our health, definitely going to help us at certain positions.

And whether it's a starter that we get back or backup that's back into rotation, as you know, I'm not going to speak on that until the end of the week. But the bye week did give us that opportunity not only to get healthier, but to have a little bit of time, to get a head start on a really good Miami team coming off a very well played game against Syracuse, firing on all cylinders in that game. And just look at them statistically averaging 33 points a game holding teams to 15, stopping the run 88 yards a game, they're giving up and a bunch of weapons, can't say enough about their freshman receiver number 10, Toney, what a good football player he is.

Their quarterbacks got a lot of weapons around him. The offensive line is big and does a really good job in pass protection, clean pockets, defensively, probably the best defensive line that we'll see all year. When you look at all four starters, four NFL guys. 

I think they're nickel, Scott number zero, really good football player, leading tackler, good blitzer, good man to man guy who drops well in zone coverage does a lot for him as a football team. Their boundary safety does a lot for him in the run game. They kind of interchange who's blitzing and who's fitting the runs out of their secondary, but you see zero and eight a lot making plays in the box.

Rueben Bain and Mesidor, the two ends, and they do a good job moving them around on third down and creating some protection things. So, we're going to have to play like we did last week, play a really good football game, play together, not beat ourselves.

And we need to play better on the road. It's a team that we've played much better at home this season than we have on the road. And so we need to be able to take what we did last week on the road and play against a really good football team. 

You mentioned that they're defensive ends, but from your perspective, what has been the play like for Teague Andersen and Jacarrius Peak? 

Yeah, I mean, they've played the whole season. They've been really consistent. I think Jacarrius has had a really good season for us. Really one game that he probably could have played better in, Virginia Tech. Outside of that, I think he's been really good. And, Teague battled some injuries early, played through them. He's a tough kid. And he's gotten better and better and better as the season's gone on.

I think there's a lot of confidence right now with those guys. And, they know what they've not done well. They've worked hard at it in these bye weeks that we've had. And I think early on, there's a lot of different guys in and out of the game at guard. And those guys have gotten better, which helps your tackles, when there's chemistry with who you're playing next to. So it's going to be a great matchup.

I mean, those are two great defensive ends. And I love how hard our tackles play, how invested they are, how coachable they are. So I know they're excited about the opportunity to play against those two guys. They're really good players for them. 

When you started recruiting CJ out of high school, you know, what did you see in him? And what kind of what did you hope he could do for this program? And how has he kind of lived up to those hopes? 

Well, he's a winner in high school, two-time state champion, had great control of their offense, and was an accurate passer. Obviously, with his size, you knew you'd be able to build a bigger frame than he had at that time. But we knew he would develop. And he's a winner, and bringing that kind of spirit and belief about who he is and the players that we would want to play with him.

And so, I think he's doing a great job. He's a 19-year-old kid that plays his butt off. And, the scramble he had at the end of that game shows his heart, how tough he is jumping over the top of some guys on a critical third down to extend our possession there and keep the ball away from him in the final five minutes. He's just going to keep getting better and better and better because of how he is and how he lets us coach him and how he works day in and day out. 

A few guys told us last week that the win over Georgia Tech really helped to improve the mood around the facility and the building and give everybody an extra pep in their step. Wondering if you've seen the same thing and if that can also translate to practice before another big game and if you can see the level of play raised because of that. 

Yeah, I think, proof of concept is what last week was. We've had quarters and halves this year where we've played really good complementary football and we played well. The second half of the Virginia game, the second half of the Wake Forest game, there's been spurts where we've really played well off of each other and set up our offense or our defense with special teams play. 

We hadn't done it for four quarters and then you get into a game like that and do it. And so proof of concept is a big thing and it's what we talked about today in the team meeting, is you know what it takes, how hard you worked, the chip you had on your shoulder and you can't let the attaboys and all those things change the process that created the outcome. And that's really what practice is. It's a prequel to what Saturday will be.

You earn the plays in practice that you're going to get on Saturday with your work ethic, your precision, your attention to detail, when you make a mistake, correcting it, not repeating it.

And so I think the way that we practiced that whole week and since that week, no question about it, getting a win like that helps, it helps with the messaging that you're giving them because the things that we've been preaching finally came together. And so, I'm proud of the guys for continuing to believe and fight.

And that was a big moment. I think winning does a lot of things, and improves your mood. You tell the staff and the team that the water even tastes better when you win, and everything coming into a bye week off of a win like that's great, for their mood, their mental health and all those things.

And but, football is a “what have you done for me lately” business. And we understand that. And we got another opportunity to go play another ranked opponent, really good team, really good personnel. And you got to lean into the process that gave us that win.

And the trick is, trying to replicate that when our back was up against the wall going into that game, there wasn't anybody saying a nice word about anybody around here for weeks. And then all of a sudden, where everybody's favorite coach, favorite friend, player of the week, coach of the week, all that stuff, like, it's temporary is what it is.

And you got to remember that. And you got to get back to what got you into that position to get the reward, not the accolades. And it's execution, it's doing the things that are necessary in practice during the week. Having player ownership and getting your teammates to do those things. The keys to victory are big things, and when you look at them on a Monday and a Tuesday and a Wednesday and a Thursday and a Friday and Saturday morning, they need to come to life on game day.

And that's what it is. It's a living resume. And it's a forever record of a performance that you put together based on your work ethic and your attention to detail through the week. So I'm excited for them that they got that taste.

And now I'm also on edge with them about, hey, you got to let the wind go, just like you let a loss go, we got to get back to how you win a game. And remember, remembering what it took to make that happen.

On how Rico Jackson has played at guard in the last two weeks, and seeing his growth since coming in as a freshman...

Yeah, I'm proud of Rico, proud of Kamen Smith. I think those two guys really did a nice job stepping in the last two games. And both of them started and played every snap and two games. And it's given us a chance to get Anthony Carter and Spike [Sowells] healthy during that time period.

And now you've got not just depth, but you got guys that you can trust to put in the game, they're gonna play really well. I know Rico being a Florida native, this is a game that's meaningful to him. And so really proud of him.

He's grown a ton since he's gotten here and worked really hard, and so it's great when you see a guy get an opportunity, whether it's from an injury, or because he earned the opportunity by beating somebody out to maximize the opportunity.  And I think Rico definitely did that in this last game against Georgia Tech. 

Hey, coach, your teams have had a lot of success in November over the past few years. I was wondering if you've seen some of the similar traits from those successful teams in this group? And if so, what are those? 

Well, I think finish, is a big thing in our program, and I'm sure everybody talks about it. But the way we train, the way that we look at our schedule with the guys and how many reps they take, and I mean, you can burn them out pretty quick. It's a long season, we had eight games without a bye week. Two years ago, we had seven without a bye week this year. And so you've got to be calculated and your volume, because it's a long season.

And that's, I said what I did multiple times throughout the year, like there's a lot of football left. And the month of November is really important. I mean, it's really important that you get on a run here at the end of the season, do some really good things. And I definitely see the characteristics, it starts with leadership.

I mean, you got to have players that want to finish, it matters to them, and it's said all the time, you're going to remember what happens in November. And it's really a month that can change a lot of seats in bowl games and playoff contention, all that rankings.

And so, this team's built for that they're built to be finishers. It's a part of our DNA. And we've got tough finishing schedule, you look at Georgia Tech, and then Miami, then Florida State, now and then UNC. It's a big month for us, big month, big four games and competitive games coming up.

And so we need to make sure that the team understood that it's talked about, and everything we do, it's finished, not to the line through the line, if you're gonna run 10 yards, run 11, you got to do 10 reps to 11 reps, and everything's about trying to get one more better than the opponent and then what you did the day before. 

You played a lot of teams in ACC, you're gonna play nine ACC games here before the season is over. It seems like the league comes down to one play here, one play there, it's very balanced across the league. What does that do as a player, as a coach, when you're in games, knowing going in that, one play one, one mistake, or one, properly executed play could be the difference, week after week after week? 

Yeah, I mean, it's a well coached conference, there's a lot of parody, the rosters aren't that different. When you look at us at the beginning of the year, obviously, at the end of the year, the health changes and your rosters are different than when you started the season. But you're right, the margin for margin of error for victory is very small.

And it's not just plays you make, it's mistakes you make, in games and every play matters. And it's not, everyone makes this huge deal out of the last play of the game. Sometimes that play is the winning play. And obviously it is, I mean, you've seen it across college football, but there's a lot of plays in the game that can make that ending different too.

And so it's understanding the value of the Iowa-Oregon game, there's a punt snapped over the punter's head early in that football game that cost him two points and end up losing by one. There's a lot of plays in the game, man. And every single play that you have right now in the ACC, it's anybody's game, any Saturday you line it up.

And so you just got to do a really diligent job as coaches and as leaders in the locker room, making sure they understand that. And I told them that today, we had a shorter practice today, but a chance to get ahead with an install and, their attention to detail, their focus, their demeanor, even though we're five days out from playing, it matters. And they're going to earn the opportunity to make plays in practice.

And practice doesn't make perfect, it makes permanent, makes all these habits that you have, winning habits and losing habits real through repetition, repetition, repetition, because that's what football is. It's as a coach, you say the same thing to them a hundred times, hoping that finally sinks in, and you run the same plays, the same coverages, the same blitzes until you get it to where it needs to be from a timing standpoint.

And if they're going through at half speed or going through the motions, that's what it's going to look like on game day. So it takes a mature football player to practice like they're going to play on Saturday. And you got to really work that. 

Does it feel like sometimes the league doesn't get credit because maybe you guys beat yourselves up a little bit and doesn't get credit for the kind of football that's being played in the league? 

Yeah, I think there's this. And I'm not going to get into all the reasons behind that. But there's a lot of reasons for that. And this is a very competitive league from top to bottom. I mean, there are no easy outs in this conference. And there hasn't been, since I've been in this league, it's been a long time. It's you got to show up every week, you better have your guys ready to play. 

And for people that know college football, if they studied our league and saw that over the years, how many of these games, top ranked teams coming in here, going to Wake Forest and then when Clawson's teams were rolling, they were hard. That's a tough place to win at. And it's very competitive, well balanced, and there is no bottom.

These teams that are at the lower half of our conference from a win loss standpoint, a lot of their losses are one possession games. And they're fighting till the end. It's not a blowout deal like you see in some of these leagues where teams are getting beat by 30 points in the league. You don't see that in our conference. And so very rarely, I should say. 

Yeah, I know you'll have your word of the week. And this year, or this week's on the graphic, it was faith. And I just wanted to know, why that one has significance for this specific matchup or this specific week? 

Yeah, it's going on the road, playing against we knew they'd be a highly ranked team going into the year. And, faith, obviously has a lot of meaning in the football world for us.

It's believing in the journey and never flinching in the face of adversity. And we know, playing on the road in a NFL stadium against the team that has all these accolades, you can't achieve anything you don't believe can happen.

And so for us, it's faith in the journey, faith in the plays that are being called, faith in the player, the teammate, the brother that you're playing with, faith in your, your key progression, faith in your eye discipline. There's so many different places. And then it's how you handle adversity, the tests that you have in this sport as a coach, as a player, you're constantly tested.

And I said it to him today, who's who in this room has been through really hard things, and everybody's hand goes up, all kinds of crazy stuff in their lives, whether it's injuries or deaths in their family, tragedy, you name it, tough losses.

And I said, Well, everybody's still sitting here, you made it through that. And you're probably tougher and more resilient, in a better version of yourself, because you face those adversities, and you had faith that you could do so.

And that's what a football season is like, it goes fast, but a billion things happen. And the emotional roller coaster of it all. It's amazing.

And these kids are so resilient, tough. And it's that brotherhood and that chemistry and that glue that you have as a family that builds up that faith, and it takes time, and so I just felt like that was the right place to put it in our 12 game schedule towards the end. And with this being our last road game. 

Speaking of road games sir, I believe this is the fourth one. How do you use Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, and then the good game against Wake Forest, who turns out to be really solid or bowl eligible? How do you use those to your advantage for the Miami game? 

Well, each experience is a learning tool, and each of those are different games, and you take everything you can out of the wins and the losses with the guys. And I think the biggest lesson is, you go through Wake Forest, it was two different halves. Notre Dame was two different halves in a different way. We played pretty good on defense in the first half in that game, and struggled offensively. 

I don't think we played good at all in the Pittsburgh game. So I'm not sure there's much to take from that one other than don't do that again. That was about as bad as we can do it as coaches and players. And so that's one you'd like to forget, not remember.

But I think the beauty of each opportunity you get with each team each week is what can you take from that? What do you want to repeat? And how did you make that happen? What do you not want to repeat? And how can you fix it?

And then going to work together, I mean, that's what coaching is, is going in there with your guys and like, this is not good. This is because of me, I didn't do a good enough job helping you guys here. Or, hey, we coach this, we practice this 10 times. And then they did it, that should be a dead play, or that should be a big play for us. And that's execution.

And that's what you heard me talk about a couple weeks ago with a broken record, like, we shouldn't have. As a coach, when you design, it's like a layup, you go in there and shoot layups, the guy probably makes 90 in a row. And that's layups got to be made.

And a layup in football is, hey, they're in cover three, and you got a hitch route, you throw the hitch, he's uncovered, and he drops it. These are layup plays. They run a play that we practice over and over and over against the exact front, exact coverage, we got enough guys in the box, and a guy misfits it doesn't have his eyes right.

Like those are plays that shouldn't happen in a football game. And it's just eye discipline. It's guys taking ownership and doing the right things repetitively. And that happened last week.

And so you get to take those things that you've done well and repeat them, you get to really get into the things you haven't, and it's ownership as a coach, as a position coach, a coordinator, and as a player, and trying to get it off the film and create a better version of that the next time out. 

Hey, Coach, you had mentioned that practice going to Georgia Tech was good and practice last week was good. What was the biggest difference, from those two weeks of practice worth, different than you saw from maybe the previous weeks that didn't allow you to come together on Saturday? 

I think going into Georgia Tech, there was just, there was a lot of anger in this building about playing better, man. Like people were fed up with it, coaches, players, we wanted to fix it.

And we did. And what was the magic in that? I'm not sure if I could bottle it up, we'd be undefeated, but there was a feeling in this building that things got to get fixed and the players owned it. 

They talked amongst themselves, they got some things out that they needed to about some things they want to do differently from their teammates and how we're going to proceed and it happened on the field. And then you get to take that success and say, okay, remember what happened and now we can't just go back, that becomes the standard and the standard is not going to be lowered because you allow it to. 

It's our job to uphold it. And so they took that feeling to the field. And like I told you, we took some time off in there too, to get some guys back feeling better. They came back from the weekend. Today was our first practice since the bye weekend and great energy, really, really good enthusiasm.

It was a nice, crisp, cool day. And so it was the first time we've had 40 degree weather for practice. And, I was wondering how they'd hold up and how they'd handle that. They were great guys flying around having fun. So just keep building off of it. 

The day before we got done with Georgia Tech, in the post game, CJ Bailey mentioned the fact that, the upcoming game for him against Miami is a big one. But how do you kind of balance the, you know, the personal feelings that he has about going back home along with trying to keep him in check going into this game too? 

Yeah, I mean, there'll be some conversations we have, but it's still, when you put the ball down and that whistle blows, it's a normal football field and a stadium. And it's not about where we're at at that point in time, it's about how we play. And I get it when you're from somewhere and you want to play well there and there's some personal sauce on that.

But he's a mature kid and he's going to understand that the preparation and the practice habits, his eye discipline, understanding what Coach Roper wants him to do, that's what's going to make him feel good at the end of that game and give him the results that he wants. And you've got to take the personal stuff out of it. It's got to be about how he plays.