Doeren: "I Look Forward To The Opportunity To Play Them"

NC State head coach Dave Doeren discussed a variety of topics with the media after Saturday's bowl practice.

NOTE: Click the video abover to watch the interview.

On how the team is enjoying Jacksonville: 
We’re having a great time. The guys have been balancing fun, work, focus, and play. We’re at a great hotel and a great place.

People have been treating us real nice. We’re excited for the game, but we’ve got a good day of watching football here coming up today. Everything’s doing good.

On who stands out on the Aggies on film: 
They have great personnel. Several players jump out: athletic quarterback, All-American tailback, great tight end, receivers that can run, and big O-linemen. Defensively, I think their front is really physical, and the linebackers are active.

Jimbo’s always done a great job of calling plays, and I have great respect for him and Coach Elko, their defensive coordinator. I’ve competed against them both. I think highly of them, and I look forward to the opportunity to play them.

On the similarities in Texas A&M’s scheme:
We’ve gone backwards because we played against Mike when he was at Wake and at Notre Dame. So [we looked at] how we thought he was going to do and what he actually did and how things have grown with the personnel he has now.

Jimbo’s offense has a lot of similarities from Florida State, but he’s also some more running from the quarterback. It’s similar for them too.

On adapting to the loss of coaches in recent weeks: 
I have a great staff. Some guys have stepped up into new roles.

Coach Kitchings and Coach McDonald are on play-calling duties. 

Our offensive line graduate assistant Shawn Flaherty, whose father’s actually the Jaguars’ offensive line coach here, is coaching our offensive line, and he’s  done a great job. Kriss Proctor, who’s been offensive quality control and has been with Coach Drinkwitz since Boise, is here, and he’s stepped in to coach the quarterback room. The players have rallied around those guys.

Coach Roof is here with us. He’s finishing out the season, so nothing’s changed on defense.

On conversations with student-athletes skipping out on the bowl games: 
They’re private. Everyone you talk to is different. We talk about the why’s, what I think the positives of playing in the game are, and where his mind is. At the end of the day, it’s my job to support my players.

Obviously, I have my take on finishing seasons, and I think all coaches are probably the same. But this is a different time. I think finishing what you start is an important thing, but there’s a lot of things at play. As a coach, you have to support your players and give them all the information you can to make sure they understand what they’re doing.”

On how the team will play without Harmon or Pratt: 
I think these guys, our receiving corps, we’ve had a lot of players make plays this year whether it’s Emeka, C.J., or Thayer. Jakobi has a huge role obviously. We’ve got some younger students we’re excited to see play. I’m excited to see Devin Carter get an opportunity.

Defensively, Brock Miller’s stepped in and played really well when Germaine couldn’t play, so we have an experienced guy there. It’s just an opportunity for those guys. That’s how we look at it. It’s like we’d had an injured player.

On what makes Finley such a great quarterback: 
It starts with his preparation and his mind. It’s his daily presence around this building, what he does, and the kind of person he is. He understands the game. He has great tools and all that.

He’s just an amazing human being. He cares a lot about his coaches. He cares a lot about his teammates, about the university, all of it. It’s been a great ride with him. I’m excited to go out with him one more time.

On Finley’s on-field qualities: 
His timing, his decision-making, his knowledge of not just what we do but what other people do. He sees things before they happen.

On the decision to move Meyers from quarterback to wide receiver: 
I did. We were in a practice, and we’re just struggling at wide receiver. The guy we’d seen as a scout-team quarterback for a year was running around making plays. I said, ‘Hey, you can help us right now. I don’t know if it’s going to stick, but I want to see what it looks like.’

He jumped in and made a bunch of plays on day one, and I said that this looks like something that’d be pretty good. He just had a good attitude about it and just kind of grew into it. He learned how to block and built his body up.

On how similar the Aggies’ offense is to previous Fisher teams: 
I’d say about 75 percent. The DNA is the DNA. His tight end is like when he had Nick O’Leary. He’s always had great receivers; he still has them. He has a great tailback; he’s always had them.

The difference is that now this kid can really run. He’s a dangerous runner. So he’s using his personnel.