Doeren: "It's Going To Be A Great Game"

NC State head coach Dave Doeren met with the media to recap the Notre Dame game and preview the Clemson matchup.

Opening Statement...
Back to the game against Notre Dame I was disappointed, like our players were, that we didn't win the line of scrimmage.

It was a great match up and we started fast which was one of our goals in the game... I thought we came out against stopping the run. 

We blocked a punt for a touchdown and got some good momentum. Over the course of the game, losing some rotation on our defensive front her. I didn't feel like we did enough things to get off the field... got a lot of third-and-ones and not third-and-longs.

It was a one-possession game for a lot of the game, and there's one, two or three plays you have to make and we didn't as we had in earlier games this year.  We're driving down, down by one score and unfortunately called a hard-count play... Garrett thought the nose guard jumped offsides and snapped it... we took a shot thinking it's a free play and the refs didn't see it that way. That was a big play.

The pick-six put us down two scores, and we're driving down again to get back to one score and get stopped on a fourth-and-one. 

It just wasn't good enough, and I think there's a lot of positives in the game. We played very well on special teams... we were plus-95 in hidden yardage... our coaches, our players, all of us were frustrated and mad, felt like we didn't play as well, coach as well, as we can.  It gives us a great opportunity to improve this week against another top 10 team in Clemson.

We did have some guys beat up in the game, I don't know statuses... everybody is progressing, nobody is out for the season. It's going to be a day-to-day thing as we try to get these guys back. Nyheim was walking around today and said he felt a lot better, as did Justin Jones, he said he felt really good.  I haven't seen Darian yet, and Eurndraus Bryant, which I think he'll be fine.  We'll just have to see tomorrow where we are with practice.

Clemson is a 7-1 football team with the No. 1 defense in the ACC, second in scoring defense, second in rushing, first in pass, first in total, first in sacks... really good defensive team that we're playing.  Offensively they are fourth, scoring 32 points a game, very balanced... 200-plus in both categories. They have a very fast tailback and excellent receiving corp, and Kelly Bryant is completing 67 percent of his passes.

Great challenge, a game that our players are excited to play in and we've played well against them. We want to find a way to win this football game, and our guys will work their butts off to do that.

I'm excited for homecoming and hoping the crowd is just like it was with the Louisville game. It is a full moon, and we're asking our crowd to be loud, crazy... the student section, all those things.  All of it helps our team play well, and I know we'll be ready to play, regardless of who can. Whoever is out there will play hard.

Clemson seems to be more of a running team. What have you seen from them?
They are running the quarterback more. I think that's the biggest thing... they're really not that much different other than Kelly Bryant is running the ball more than Deshaun did. 

They're still taking their shots down the field. They still have their perimeter screen game. Renfrow is playing really good football for them.  The outside guy is a bigger guy. Both of their returners, Etienne and McCloud... they are going to take what you give them and try to get into the plays they want to be in.

We have to make plays on the ball for sure.

Any carry over from last year within the program... last year's game maybe fueling the fire?
They absolutely remember it, but it's not last year. So all that is going to do is serve for how much they want to win it this year.

They are two different teams. We had several players that aren't on our team anymore, and the guys who played remember it well. I'm sure their players do too. It was a great game. 

I'm not sure what was wrong with Justin... it happened in the first quarter. Was it his arm or shoulder?
He banged his elbow up. He's fine.

Coach how soon did your players get over that last against Notre Dame, knowing what it left as a big loss. 
I asked them yesterday, "Where do you think we're at," and they said, "We're in first place and we control our own destiny," so that was a good sign... the know we're playing for a lot still.

They were disappointed I think because you know you played a football game when there were 11 penalties in the first half and many were calls that don't usually get made but they called them. Our goal when going to Notre Dame was to play our best football that we could play, and we didn't do that... we did it for a short span of time, and I think that was their frustration.

What is Kelvin Harmon doing even better now from the beginning of the season?
He's a big body that has a really good ability to track the football. He's got strong hands. He's a hard guy to climb. He's really strong.  People are on his back and he just holds them off and catches the ball.

The fade ball he's always been really good at, you're seeing him catch a lot more inside plays.  The play that I was probably most excited to see was the quick screen where he accelerated. That's the fastest we've seen him on a short play, accelerate with the ball. Our strength staff said he was running 21 miles per hour or something on that play... for a guy who is 220 pounds, that's pretty impressive.

You just faced one of the best lines in college football. Coach Swinney said the offensive line at Clemson is the best he's had since he's been there.  Do you see them compare?
I think it's an experienced group for sure like Notre Dame's was, but they are just different. Not saying one is better than the other, but there are different ways to coach how you block this play or that play. 

They are doing a great job with their offensive line.  I think Robbie Caldwell does a great job all the time. If Dabo thinks they are the best he's had I'm sure he isn't saying that because they are not.

You've talked about controlling your own destiny...
We want to control where we go. 

I think as a football team and a coaching staff that's something you want to be able to do. We're into  November now, and we want this conversation to continue. And every game we play brings us closer and closer and closer to where we want to be at the end.  It is just a short-term focus, knowing we've got to beat Clemson, and to do that we've got to play much better than we did last week.

So we're focusing on the details and making sure we put a gameplan together where our kids can play fast and execute as needed.

What makes Clemson's defense so dominant?
It starts with their players. They've got great players. They're huge upfront and they're deep. 6-5, 6-5, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, 6-5. All over three hundred pounds inside... the rotation at end is 260, 265... big bodies up front. 

The linebackers are well-coached guys and he's got a couple of guys that are making a ton of plays. Dorian O'Daniel has five sacks, four pressures, and an interception. Kendall Joseph has 66 tackles. He's got three North Carolina guys in the secondary so I know this game will matter to those kids.

It's going to be a great game. I've known Brent Venables a long time, we're both Kansas boys.  He's a  great coach and I know he'll have his guys ready to play. 

Tailback Etienne looks really fast on film.
He does.  He plays at a high speed. I don't know what his times are, but he's averaging 8.4 yards per carry and he gets from a handoff to top speed very quickly.  He's a north-south runner and runs through contact.  He's very impressive.

What have you seen on film from Dexter Lawrence?
He's playing with a lot of confidence. I'm sure anytime he's playing back in his state it matters to him, but he's an incredible athlete at 6'4, 330 pounds. He's a really, really good football player. They put him over the center a lot where he can eat up two blocks and take two gaps up at times. He was the best player in the country coming out for a reason.