Dave Doeren spoke with the media for his weekly press conference. Reviewing the Florida State win, looking ahead to this week's game against North Carolina, and more!
Opening statement…
Alright, well, Happy Thanksgiving week to everybody. I always love senior week. We have 22 players on our team who will be playing their final game at Carter–Finley Stadium. It’s a special group. As a coach — and I told the staff this in our meeting — one of the most meaningful milestones you share with players is senior night.
When they go out there, hug their families, and have that moment on the field where they know it’s their last time playing in their home stadium, it’s special. It’s an honor to be part of it. As coaches, it’s our responsibility to prepare them to play their best football in their final opportunity in our stadium. Throughout the week, you’ll see a lot of things shared about these guys, and we look forward to honoring them the right way.
We also have two longtime staff members who will be celebrating their last home game. Smoke Hubert, one of our equipment staff members, has been here forever. He’s a phenomenal human being. I love Smoke to death, and I’ve never met a former player who doesn’t come back wanting to see him. He always has a smile on his face, and he’s retiring after this season.
And then my Director of High School Relations, Henry Trevathan Jr., who I owe a lot to. I hired Henry early in my tenure. He’s a longtime North Carolina high school coach, and his father coached at NC State. He really helped me get to know the high school coaches in this state and helped them get to know me. He is as first-class as they come, and he’s also retiring.
So these guys are at the end of their careers, and this will be their last home game. I love those two men and will miss them tremendously. That’s what this week is about — being thankful. I have a lot to be thankful for professionally and in my family. It’s easy to look at what you don’t have. This is a week to reflect on what you do have and the people you love. I love our stadium — 28 straight sellouts — and I can’t wait for another game in there with all of you, especially against a rival.
Before I get to that, I’m very proud of our team and the grit they showed in Friday night’s win against FSU. It was an amazing defensive performance. They have one of the top scoring offenses in the nation, and we held them to 11 points. We’ve had halves and quarters like that, but not a full game.
We played fundamentally sound football — our lowest number of mental errors, assignments, and missed tackles all season. We made key open-field tackles, moment-of-truth pass breakups, and interceptions. It was a great performance. Coach Eliott, the staff, and the players deserve a lot of credit. It was a complete team win with complementary football.
Our opening drive didn’t end in points, but we moved the ball and pinned them inside the 10. The defense got an interception. The offense took the ball the length of the field, drained clock, and scored. We opened the third quarter the same way — defense forces a three-and-out, we fair catch the punt, and the offense goes on a 15-play, 79-yard touchdown drive.
That’s the type of football we have to play to win.
We had a lot of moment-of-truth plays that could have gone either way — contested catches by Terrell Anderson, Teddy Hoffmann, Justin Joly. Both tailbacks ran hard and protected the ball. The tight ends probably had their best performance as an entire group.
On defense, Caden Fordham and Kenny Soares both played really well — fitting the run, good eye discipline, shedding blocks, tackling, pressuring the quarterback.
Devon Marshall had a career game. He played outstanding against a very good 6'6” receiver — six pass breakups, two interceptions. I’m really proud of him for stepping up, especially after losing Jamel and needing more from Devon and Brian.
Our punt team and our gunners were tremendous. Noah Rogers gets a lot of credit as a receiver, but he’s also a weapon in punt coverage. Same with Wesley. Every time their returner caught a punt, one of those two was right in his face, which contributed to those muffed punts. One recovery was a wild, lucky play, and Caden Noonkester did a great job falling on it. Tra Thomas, playing left guard on the punt team, was one of the first down the field. He stayed fundamentally sound, bent knees, ready to react — and he recovered the muff.
It was a great win and great to get to six wins.
Now we get ready for UNC. Watching them the last two days, they’ve improved a lot — one of the more improved teams I’ve seen on film. When you watch games one through 11, their defensive improvement stands out.
Their defensive front and linebackers are playing at a high level. They have 30 sacks. No. 9 Melkart has 10 sacks. No. 40 Tyler Thompson is a very good pass rusher with seven sacks. Andrew Simpson, the linebacker from Boise State, is playing at a high level and does a lot — blitzing, tackling, rushing.
Their secondary is also playing well. Their corners and nickels press, play tight, contest balls.
Their quarterback, Gio Lopez, played really well against Duke. Strong arm, quick release, mobile, tough to bring down. UNC always has skill players. Their tailbacks run hard — we know Davion well, and the freshman June runs hard too. They’re downhill, tough runners who protect well.
I’m looking forward to it. Records don’t matter in rivalry games. This is the oldest, longest-standing rivalry in the ACC. It’s an awesome game, and they’re well-coached.
Thanksgiving, senior day, the rivalry — all of it makes this one of my favorite weeks in sports. A lot of major rivalry games happen this week across college football.
Bill Belichick came to campus several times when he was with the Patriots. Do you remember those pro days and visits, and what your interactions were like?
He came once during Bradley Chubb’s class, when we had the four defensive linemen drafted. It was great being around him. He always had a lot of questions. Because he was also the GM, he was one of the few NFL head coaches who would call you once or twice a year to talk about your roster. I always respected his attention to detail and how involved he was in building his team.
One of my mentors, Bret Bielema, and one of my former teammates were coaching on his staff at the time, so I was able to go up there, watch OTAs, sit in meetings, and watch him coach. I have a lot of respect for him. I haven’t spent much time with him since he’s been at Carolina — just ACC meetings — but back then it was valuable to sit in and learn.
Brendan Daly, his D-line coach at the time (now with the Chiefs), was incredibly detailed and knowledgeable. It’s great having Coach Belichick in the conference. I love coaching and the chess match of the game, and I look forward to the competition.
On third or fourth down when Will comes in and the defense knows a run is coming, what’s it like to still pick up first downs like you did this past week?
Will would tell you the guys are blocking hard for him, and he does a great job. He’s incredibly strong — we stopped him at 500 pounds on squat max and he could have gone higher. He’s gotten better as the season has gone on with reading the different runs, finding the soft spots, and knowing where to go. He has a natural feel for it, and we saw that when we recruited him.
He can throw the football well, too. You haven’t seen it yet, but we see it in practice. There are plays for him — we just haven’t used them yet.
It’s a big advantage when you can go out on third-and-two or fourth-and-two and know that even if they have an extra defender, he can run through or drag that guy for a first down.
How important is it to have a runner like that to take carries off Hollywood or Duke?
It helps a lot. There’s so much contact at the running back position, not just in runs but in pass protection. You try to manage that throughout the year. I don’t know the exact numbers, but the short-yardage runs Will has taken definitely reduce what the other backs would have had, and it makes a difference.
Seven of your seniors have been with you from the start. What’s it like seeing those guys finish here, especially someone like Anthony Carter, whom you’ve known for years?
It’s meaningful. In today’s world, these long relationships are rare. Senior day is a milestone just like graduation. Sean Brown, Caden Fordham, AC — I remember the home visits. Brandon Cleveland, Wesley Grimes, whom I recruited for years. These are long relationships.
The relationships don’t end, which is the beauty of it. Whether they come back to train, or return for games and events, these are lifelong connections.
I’m thankful they stayed. That doesn’t always happen now. They care deeply about NC State, and they’ll continue to give back.
In a rivalry game, is there more pressure on you? Are you willing to try different things late in the year, like trick plays?
If it’s there, yes. We faked a punt Friday night. Pressure is a privilege. I view every game as a big game. We prepare, we have plays ready, and if the opportunity presents itself — whether it’s going for it on fourth down or running something different — we’ll do it.
That fourth-and-six call: people keep asking about it. I believed it was the right call. There’s pressure in every game because if it fails and they score, I get second-guessed. But that’s not why you make the decision. You do it because, in that moment, you have the right call, and your playmakers are ready for it.
We talked it through: if we don’t get the third down, it’ll be fourth-and-six. Do we like the play? Yes. Do we want to try to draw them offside with the field goal unit? Yes. If not, call timeout and run it. If it’s fourth-and-one, have another call ready. Those are the conversations.
I’m not thinking about pressure. I’m thinking about preparation, trust, and execution.
Has the math changed with analytics — like going for two down 14, or going for it instead of kicking to go up six?
All of us use analytic companies that provide percentages and odds. But as a coach, you also go with your gut and how the game is going.
Our defense was playing really well, so kicking a field goal and trusting them was an option. If it were a shootout, maybe not. Their receivers and quarterback were really good, but I felt we had a great playcall and the right personnel. The book said it was an either-or call. I trusted our guys.
You go with your gut, and you trust your players.
What’s it been like seeing Caden lead all Power Conference players in tackles after returning from injury and shifting roles early in the season?
He’s playing really well and getting better every week. When Sean went down, we moved him from Will to Mike, and it took a couple games, but he has hit his stride. He knows where to fit, he communicates well, his pass coverage has improved, he plays square, uses his hands, beats blocks, and he’s tough.
I’m really happy for him. Football means a lot to him, and when players care that much and then get injured, you hope they have a big bounce-back year. He has. He’s been as consistent as any Mike linebacker I’ve watched.
For players new to the rivalry, do you show them highlights or tell stories to get them ready?
You don’t have to hype guys for this one. It’s obvious here how important it is. My job is to educate them on the history, and I will — especially for guys like Sabastian Harsh who came from Wyoming.
But the locker room handles a lot of it, too. The players talk about how important it is. Combined with senior day, it’s a powerful message.
But when the talk is over, it comes down to execution. You don’t win because you want to — you win because you execute, avoid mistakes, make plays, avoid costly penalties, strain, and win the critical moments.
Was there a moment you realized how unique this rivalry is?
Not one specific moment, but the biggest thing is how close the schools are. When I first got here, we stayed at the Marriott downtown. Their gift store sold NC State, Duke, and Carolina gear. I remember thinking, “This is our team hotel — why is that here?” But that’s Raleigh. Everyone is here — ECU fans, App fans, everything.
It’s different. At Kansas, you don’t see Missouri gear in Lawrence. At Wisconsin, you don’t see Minnesota stuff in Madison. But here, you bump into a fan from one of these schools everywhere you go.
People introduce their spouse and say, “Sorry, she went to Carolina,” or “Sorry, he went to Duke.” There are mixed households, mixed classrooms, mixed friend groups. That makes it unique — and rare.
This team has gone through a lot on and off the field this year. What are you most grateful for right now?
Two things: the staff and the players.
With what Coach Eliott and his family went through, and with everything we’ve dealt with, the way this staff stayed together showed the humanity of a football program. And the players have stayed together, too.
I’m not going to list all the injuries because people think that sounds like excuses, but we’ve had more than I’ve ever seen, all different. The kids haven’t flinched. The next guy steps in, and the older guys help him. Even after tough losses, these kids are extremely coachable.
I’m grateful for the people I get to work with every day. Do we want more wins? Of course. But the work environment and coaching environment this year have been incredible, and I’m thankful for that.
