Elliott Avent: "We Have To Grow As A Team Offensively"

NC State head coach Elliott Avent met with IPS to discuss the series loss to Florida State on the road.

NOTE: Click the video above to watch the full press conference!

Elliott, I know you have to catch your plane. I appreciate you taking this time, sir. 

Glad to, appreciate you being out here.

Your assessment of the weekend as a whole, if you don't mind.

Great getting that first game, and after the last two days, it shows you how important getting that first game is, which could have gone either way, and our guys fought and scrapped and found a way to get it on our side. But yesterday's game, I thought we did a great job, threw about five, and then in the sixth inning, a lot of things went crazy. And anyway, today, we just got beat.

Today, we just got flat beaten. Heath didn't have his good stuff, Coop didn't have his good stuff, and we just put ourselves in bad positions. Didn't make some plays defensively that could have helped, and we just got to get better offensively. We've got to grow. Pitching's going to have to take care of itself. Defensively, maybe I'm playing the wrong people.

But offensively, we have to grow as a team offensively. We're not very mature yet offensively. We need to get a little more mature, understand the game, and right now, we're not doing that. So we'll see how we grow. Got a tough week this week, the way Campbell's playing and going to Georgia Tech. So we got to get better. 

To your point about the offense, halfway through yesterday's game, you had all these runners. I think it was like 11 runners on basically whatever it was. Is that kind of the fine line? So, hey, if we get some of these runs, that's the difference between winning and losing a series? 

Well, that's the great job we did. Mendes, I think we scored as many runs against Mendes Friday night as he's given up in his last four starts. Then you take Beard, he's unbelievable. Nobody gets Beard out in the fifth inning. And so we did some great things. But as you said, we left 11 people on base after five, nine, after four. And we just got to get more mature as an offense. That's the biggest thing we have to do. 

The balance of that with a game like this, you said we just got beat. How do you handle that? Some days, baseball's a game of failure. It just happens. How do you, as a leader, is there instruction? Is there leadership? Or is it just kind of write it off? How do you work that?

No, they're getting instruction. It's about getting them to follow the instructions. Players grow up a little differently today. And they hear things about what's important. And I watched the basketball game last night between Nebraska and I think Vanderbilt, maybe. And watching the way Nebraska played basketball. And I was texting with Bobby Lutz last night.

I know he's really good friends with Fred Horber and coached with him for a while. But watching them play basketball is how you have a chance to be successful against today's great athletes. 

And we got to understand the game a little more and understand there's more than three-run homers and how to play this game. And some of the guys are getting it, and some aren't. Maybe I'm playing the wrong people. Maybe I need to sit down with the coaching staff and reevaluate who we're playing.

Now you've got two more questions for me, sir. Just Campbell, then you've got to go to the flats next weekend for Georgia Tech. It doesn't get any easier. How do you handle this week coming up? Are you going to make some assessments on the flight back? Where are you at right now?

We'll meet tomorrow. Now, the flight back is the flight back. We'll meet tomorrow and try to figure some things out. And as I said, maybe there's some lineup changes. Certainly, some guys have to grow up. Certainly, we have to be a little more mature. Maturity is a big thing in this game. That's why you see a lot of teens stalking 22-year-olds on ball clubs. But we've got to grow up fast because this league will show you no mercy.

And my final question, sir. You are the go-to guy for NC State. You love the school as much as anybody. Last night, Isaac Trumble. If you don't mind just speaking to that, I know.

I love that kid. I love that. I've been close with all the wrestlers. Gwizz came by to see me the other day. Gwizz red-shirted and came here. We became instant friends. I used to see him in the waiting room all the time. And the job that Pat Popolizio has done, and I've loved wrestling ever since Bobby Guzzo invented it here at NC State and brought it down from Pennsylvania. I'm a big wrestling guy.

And to see the job that Pat Pappalizio has done, all his kids are not only mature, which I was talking about, disciplined, tough-minded, but they're great people. They're great people. They're just unbelievable. I see him at Trumble. He's at the top of that list. He's just humble. A good guy. I saw some things you tweeted out about him last night. He's just a class act in every way and a great representative of our university.

Elliott, I appreciate your time. Best of luck, Campbell, and in the flats, Midtown Atlanta next week. Good luck to you. Safe travels. 

Thank you for coming down. I appreciate you always.