NC State head coach Dave Doeren met with the media to discuss the team's offseason progression, his thoughts on the Justin Gainey hire, and much more!
NOTE: Click the video above to watch the full press conference!
On what position group has been the most pleasantly surprising...
I think the linebacker group, just with what we lost there and the unknowns coming back. Not just adding Popo and Da’Karri, but their growth.
And then the freshmen, that group's competitive right now. There's really good depth in it. Ziggy's done a really good job. Moreta's done a really good job.
And so there's a lot of unknowns, probably more in that group than any. And I'd say between that and the receivers, we lost the most production and had the most new faces. So it's been fun to watch both those groups.
You're trying as a coach to not just coach these guys and develop them, but in these cases, what can these guys do? What are their skill sets? How can we utilize their skill sets? How do we need to take what we've got now after tomorrow and work until August to get a few things better in their game? And so it's been fun watching the receivers and the linebackers because, I don't know how many of them, but there's a lot. We're at it on both sides of the ball in those two spots, new faces and departures.
You were there for Justin's announcement at our press conference yesterday. Just your thoughts on his hiring and what it means for the program.
Well, first of all, happy for him. Happy for the university. My stance on hiring an alum is very strong. I've hired a lot of them in my time here and have a lot of them currently on the staff. And, there's a certain desire they have to win. Anyone in this profession is going to be ultra-competitive.
But when it's at your school, it's just a little different. And for him, being a two-time captain here, this is a homecoming. It's, you know, a local guy from High Point, North Carolina. It's really cool to have that feeling in that program. So I'm excited for Justin and his family to come home.
And, I know what it's going to mean to them. I've witnessed it for over 13 years. Probably over 10 now, alumni have come to work for me. You can feel it. You can feel how important it is to them to get their job done the right way.
Speaking of alum, I know you guys are here working out. I know that's not an abnormal thing, but when you have somebody who just won the Super Bowl, does it help motivate some of the guys a little bit more at this point in the season?
I think it's really tangible as a college athlete when you look up and look at practice today. BJ Hill was out there, Germaine Pratt, Bradley Chubb, walking around. And then you come into the indoor, and you see Payton and Drake.
And then you see Wesley getting ready. It's tangible. It's not just, hey, NC State's had some good players. It's that they're here and you get to look at them and you can see how important their development still is to them, how their conditioning is to them. I mean, McNeill's out there running right now and sweating.
Like, they're working hard in their off time. And I think that's great for the players to visibly see, not just hear about it or watch a 20-second Instagram of some new training. Like, when you walk out there and see how hard they're sweating right now, it's a job. And it requires a level of commitment, not just to get to the league but to stay in the league.
And so I'm thankful, first of all, that we have a place that they want to come back to. It tells you a little bit about their experience, but also that they chose to, because there are a lot of places they go to spend money and train elsewhere. They want to be where they started, and that's very meaningful to me.
We talked to CJ last week about his decision to come back, and he talked about just how much he loves being here and how loved he feels. What does that mean to you to be able to keep a guy like that, and for that reason?
He's a special young man for a lot of reasons. But he and I have very similar thoughts on this. He came here to leave this place better than he found it. And so for him, there's meat on the bone. I feel the same way.
And the culture that these former players, myself, these current players, all the staff over 13 years have created, some of the guys recognize that and they know, yeah, they might make something more or something less somewhere else, but they're giving up this quality of life that you can't put a price on.
And then there's that competitive juice that he has to put NC State in another place. For him, that's a legacy item that's meaningful. And the fan base has embraced him and his family, and they've done a lot of really nice things, how they treat him, how they talk to him, and that's meaningful. As a player, when you know your family shows up, people are going to welcome you; it's a good feeling.
What's it been like for you to see Duke Scott and his growth this offseason, whether it's the fourth season or fifth?
Yeah, playing fast, you can see guys that have banked game reps and how that helps them succeed, helps your confidence, and he had a lot of success last year. And now, moving up the depth chart as he has, he's worked really hard this offseason. And now his development's not just playing, it's leading.
And so you guys know, I think he's in here. But he's a very quiet, soft-spoken guy. And, the challenge I've given to Duke is now to take his voice to another level with his teammates and to be able to utilize the platform he's created with his work ethic and with his talent and with his production on the field.
And you guys are redoing the dining hall in the building. What does that say about the program that you can invest back into those, to spend money on that and not just roster building?
Well, it’s critical that you do both. And that room in particular is one of the most important, probably non-talked-about rooms in a football building where these guys eat. And when you're talking about a 20-year-old-plus kitchen and 20-year-old-plus equipment, the chefs are kind of limited on, and we always poll these guys on what we can do better for you.
And one of the common themes is the variety of food, right? 125 guys are never going to all like the menu. But when you can create variety in the menu, it helps. And so having different stations, having a bigger kitchen, having brand-new equipment, giving the chef opportunities now to be much better at his job, and create variety.
And, developing players in nutrition is a massive piece of that. And so it's huge that Boo understands that. We meet and talk about the program and what things can help us get better. And that's been one that's been on the list for a while. And last year, he was able to find a donor with the Wolfpack Club that really helped us. And so it's meaningful. And each year we're trying to just continue to build the Murphy Center, you know, one spot at a time, kind of facelifting it into a modern building at times.
With the transfer portal players coming and going, especially during the spring, are you guys coaching more during the spring than you had maybe five, six, seven years ago?
You're definitely coaching everybody like they don't know what they're doing more, okay, because you don't have as many returning players. I don't know that you're coaching more. I think what you're doing is a little different.
You're taking a junior and a senior and treating them like a freshman because he's just now learning your offense, defense, or club protection, whatever it is. But the amount of coaching and energy and detail doesn't change. It's just, you can't say, hey, that guy's been here three years. He knows what he's doing as much. You have fewer of those guys on the field.
