NC State head coach Dave Doeren, QB CJ Bailey, and LB Caden Fordham met with the media after their 31-7 bowl game win over Memphis.
Opening statement…
Yeah, first, thanks to the families and fans that came down and got to see us play today. We appreciate you making the trip. Proud of our team, and we're the only team in college football that's played nine, eight plus win teams this year.
And overcame a lot injury wise, overcame some significant difficult things with Coach Eliot when his daughter passed. And just hung together and found a way to start getting better, really after that pick game, I felt like defensively, we finally got everyone into the right spots. They could play consecutive games together.
Each week, defensively, we got better and better. The offense was explosive today. I thought the games that we won, especially down the stretch, CJ did a tremendous job taking care of the football.
And sometimes you gotta take hits at that position. He's been tough and done that. The run game today was tough. There was a lot of stuff going on in the box, and we were a little beat up. Depth wise on the O line, but we got Duke 100 yards, so that's good to see. And I'm just proud of our team.
There's a lot of people not playing in games, and we haven't won. Everyone else, you look at Joly, you look at Cleveland, Caden, like these seniors in a lot of places, they're not doing it. And it just, to me, I can't explain how much that makes me feel special.
That these guys wanna play for each other one more time. Joly was crying in the locker room before the game, cuz he just wanted to play one more time with his brothers. And he wanted Coach Locklear to coach him one more time.
So that's our culture, the love that these kids have for each other. And even when it's hard, we understand, we got another opportunity. So it's great to go into an off season, not just winning a rivalry game, but winning four out of five, having a great bowl win.
And now helping these guys get better, and helping the ones that are leaving transition. And so, I'll miss you.
FORDHAM: I'll miss you, too, Coach.
I'll bet. So for Caden, Dave just talked about it there. A lot of players opted out of bowl games, but you wanted to play in this one. I mean, what was the motivating factor there for you? And then also, how rewarding was it to be the first-ever bowl MVP in this bowl?
FORDHAM: Yeah, I mean, I never even had a thought of not playing. Coach Doeren, these guys on this team have given too much to me for me not to even want to play. Plus, I love this game so much, I want to play anytime I can.
And to play with these guys, these coaches, I mean, I don't see how you could opt out. I mean, I love these guys so much, so I wanted to play every second.
Caden, on the interception, kind of a tip drill play, and then also bringing it back, and almost getting it back. Take us through that play and how you managed to come up with that kind of play.
FORDHAM: Yeah, coach always talks about tips and overthrows, we gotta get those. So I just, I mean, I was covering my guy and seeing the ball thrown, and then kind of reacted. One of our DBs made a great play on that, and deflected the ball, and I just called it.
And then I was wanting to score, I tried my best, but I mean, at the end, I kind of ran out of gas, but no, it was awesome, so yeah. Give me this play.
So, Caden, what's it like for you, after everything you went through in the past, 12 months, to be able to end your college career, these last five years? What could be your best football that you've played?
FORDHAM: Yeah, no, it's been awesome, thanks to these coaches, training staff here, they've helped me a ton, getting back from a serious injury. And then my family, and my faith in Christ, that's the only way I was able to get back to where I wanted to be, and play the ball I wanted to play. And this whole offseason, I just told myself, you gotta work your tail off, that's the only way you're gonna get to where you wanna go.
And I feel like I did that, and played some ball at the end of the year.
CJ, what's it like when you're sitting on the bench, and you see Caden out there, playing as well as he has been?
BAILEY: Well, it's a great sight to see, and I was kind of disappointed when he got quiet. I did not score.And also, when he had the pick, a little bit left that game, Georgia Tech?
FORDHAM: Yeah.
BAILEY: He had a pick in the middle of the field, he didn't hang onto it, I was like, he's there, this is me. No, it's great to see our defense play good, and get our offense going. Same way with offense, when offense is playing good, it gives momentum to the defense, so I like seeing that.
So the second half was a little different, but first half for you guys, what went into that offensive explosion, and being able to move the ball the way you wanted to?
BAILEY: No, it was just game planning, throughout the week, we had a feeling that, we watched them, we had a feeling that the safety's gonna play tight to our heavy sets, and try to fit one hard, and we were gonna be able to get shots in. And throughout the game, they came to us, and sometimes, even though it wasn't completed, it was still there. So, we just took advantage of what they were giving us, defensively.
CJ, any family and friends from your home, coming back to your home state, and what was it like to have this kind of game, coming back to Florida?
BAILEY: No, it was great, this is my second time playing in Florida, in my college career, and this game meant a lot to me, and I came in with a mindset that I wanted to win, and we did it, we put it on, and it was a great effort by our team.
Caden, do you have any respect for running backs now? Because it looked like you cut back, maybe if you'd went straight.
FORDHAM: Yeah, of course, I mean, them dudes, they got a lot of agility, so I respect them a lot, no matter who I play.
Your coach alluded, Caden, to the defensive turnaround, what's gotten into it from the player side, do you think, in terms of how you guys are finishing defensively?
FORDHAM: With the new system, it took us a little bit to get everything coordinated the way we wanted to, like coach said, but I mean, just buying in every day, coming in, no matter what happened the week previously, we were buying in to what Coach Eliot and Coach Doeren were telling us, playing hard for each other, and that's the best way to play ball, so that's how it went after the pick game. Like you said, we flipped the switch, and it worked out.
Just for both players, just the value of this experience this year, can you speak to it, and how do you see it helping you later in life?
FORDHAM: Yeah, I mean, me personally, I had the honor of being a captain and wearing the jersey number one, so a lot comes with that. And from a leader's perspective, it's helped me a ton, just growing as a man personally, Coach Doeren helping me every day grow as a leader, that's something you can't take away from someone. So just having that in my repertoire, as I move forward in life, I'm gonna use it and lean back on it every chance I can get, so thank you to the coach and NC State for that.
BAILEY: To me, this year just taught me how to fight through adversity, how to battle back, what type of man are you? We lose a game this week, and we get a lot of stuff on our shoulders now. Whatever the case may be, how you gonna attack that Sunday coming up? How do you flip that switch to being back level-headed, just bouncing back from adversity?
And there was a lot of that this year. Nobody thought this season was gonna be easy. We went into this season knowing that it was gonna be problems, knowing it was gonna be hard, and it just taught me even when you lose, how you're gonna get back on your feet, so I appreciate it.
Dave, you mentioned this a little bit, but does this feel like a kind of nostalgic bowl game because you didn't have the opt-outs? And to be fair, Memphis had a gentleman who came back to coach his alma mater in their time of need, so it seemed like this game was important on both sides. Did it feel like an old-school bowl game?
I've been in a lot of these bowls lately where there's been a lot of opt-outs on both teams. And for me, when Eli Drinkwitz became the head coach, Tony Gibson became the head coach; I've lost coordinators, too. So I understand in the heart what Memphis was dealing with.
It was nice to have a full staff for a bowl game. That's the first one I've had in a while. And with the exception of Hollywood, all our guys played today. And so it says a lot about how they feel. I challenged them that we've been really good in November. We have not been winners in December in a while.
And that this team had a chance to flip the script and set the table for what's to come for teams that follow them and live up to what those guys did. And these guys like being challenged, and so they rose to the occasion. I was proud of them. And it was a fun team to coach, man. I think it was a really, really fun team. The season went by really fast. But these guys deserve a lot of credit for their character, their makeup, and just how they listen.
And there are a lot of distractions these days for these kids, and you know why. And so it says a lot to them, to look at the way they feel about each other, the way they felt about our coaching staff, and how they wanted to play the game.
Talked about Hollywood opting out of this game. Duke Scott stepping up in this way, you mentioned the fact that he went over 100 yards. What were those conversations like, and how much did you feel like you were prepared for this moment? And what did he show you out on the field?
Well, we knew he was prepared. I mean, you guys saw us play Georgia Tech. There wasn't a question. So I was excited for Duke. It's his opportunity again. It's his second start, second 100-yard game. So the future is bright for him, super excited. He played really hard, had some tough runs.
Coach, I know a lot has been said about the future of bowl games, especially these secondary bowl games that kind of get overshadowed by the college football playoff bowl games. But there's still some merit in playing in these bowl games, isn't there?
Yeah, I mean, you saw Caden Fordham become an MVP at a bowl game. And he's never had a defensive MVP. He'll have that for the rest of his life, that moment, right?
And so, to me, it's about life experiences for these guys in college. And we'll have one when we go to Brazil next year. That'll be a life experience. I've never been in a foreign country to coach football. So I get to do something for the first time. And that's what these bowl games are.
Yeah, it's sad. And when I saw the playoffs had a 4-team and then went to a 12, I love the playoffs. I think the playoffs are great. But I knew there was gonna be a price to pay for that. The bowls that aren't in the playoff range, some teams aren't gonna wanna play in them. And you saw that with a lot of teams this year. And that to me is really sad for the sport. Shouldn't be that way. I'm not sure how you fix that, to be honest.
Maybe you have to make the playoffs bigger. But it's disappointing, because that's all you used to want at this level, is to be in a good bowl game, go somewhere together, have a lot of fun, and win the game. And the fact that coaches and players agree that we're not playing in the game this year, nine of them, that was pretty hard for me. Just as a true football fan, I don't get it.
You mentioned Caden. What's it like for you to see him cap his NC State career for a game like this?
Yeah, it makes me feel really good, man. I've had some really good players over the years, and some of them have had to overcome injury. And Payton [Wilson] was the same way, he had a phenomenal year after one of his spinal injuries.
But that's all you want. You want them to come back whole, and you want them to be able to realize their dream, and become the best version of themselves. And Caden absolutely did that, as a man, as a leader, as a football player.
And so, yeah, it's heartwarming for me. Our training staff, our strength staff did a great job with him, getting him back to full strength. And I'll tell you, he was better than he was before, which is pretty cool to see that.
How well did he represent that number one jersey? I see that was a decision you had to make during the preseason.
Yeah, I mean, he's an All-American on two teams, an all-conference player. I don't know where he finished and tackles, he’s been in the top five in the country and tackles. So, I don't think he could have done any more than he did. He did a pretty damn good job. I think he finished number one in power four. Pretty good. Matches his jersey number, that's pretty sweet. Dave.
I know it's a bit cliche that some coaches will say, it's a clean slate for the next year after the bowl game or after the last game of the year. Is there anything you can take from this performance, this bowl game going into next season for you?
Yeah, I mean, all the guys that return will have the experience of the offseason under their belt and what it took to win the game. They'll understand how we prepared. They'll understand the process we went through.
And so, that is valuable. You can't replace experience as a coach. So, the experience they have here will carry forward for the next time we're in a postseason game.
Coach, I know this is fresh, but your thoughts on the immediate and long-term future of NC State football. Do you like where they're at now, and where do you see it going? Just in general, how excited are you for the future?
I'm really excited. I just spoke to the team now. I'm here to win a conference championship. That's my dream and goal, being in this position at this school. So, I want this offseason to be all about that. Some things got to go your way, health-wise at times, but this next phase that's about to happen in college football, with retention, attrition, and acquisition, it's going to be crazy, man.
Like, why would you want to not stay here and build a championship? So, hopefully, we'll have enough of those guys decide to do that. And we'll be out recruiting hard, like everybody else, trying to find the spots that we can't get.
