NC State head coach Dave Doeren met with the media after the Wolfpack's first fall practice to discuss where his team currently stands.
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How was the first day of camp?
It’s good to be back on the field. These guys worked hard all summer. Just to get back out there and coach and be around them and see the focus they have, it’s a lot of fun. I enjoyed it, but there’s no pads on yet. There’s not a lot you can say about where we’re at.
How do you evaluate guys with no pads?
It’s mental. How much do they know in their fundamentals, their footwork, communication? You can see their effort and how their chasing the football or going after things.
You really get a feel for watching some of the young players who just got here a month ago and how hard the playbook might be already for them. It’s a mental judgment on a lot of it.
What’s the biggest observation you’ve seen from what you saw last year?
There’s more guys in returning places, so as a staff, you’re looking at your twos and threes differently than we were last year where we were looking for our ones and twos.
There are still some places that are still in competition, and that will go for a while, but last year, there were so many open positions. Your eyes are different.
Anything you’ve noticed in terms of attitude?
There’s good focus.
Obviously, what they went through last year and how they finished, they want to continue with the momentum they had. I think the lessons learned in life are for you to do something with what happens with you and the obstacles you face.
I think the guys did that, and we’ll see where that takes us. I do like where they’re at mentally right now.
Any adjustments you can do for two-a-days?
We didn’t do two-a-days last year. Our nights have always been, for the last two seasons anyway, walk-throughs or run-through type setting where we didn’t have pads on.
Our evenings have been more mental with every part because we want to really be able to have a great practice in the morning.
How big of a transition has it been for your new assistant coaches?
It’s been pretty seamless. The players have done a nice job adjusting. The coaches have spent a lot of personal time with these young men to get to know them and know what they’re about and their back ground.
From a staff standpoint, they jumped right in. Coach [Aaron] Henry knew our defense because he played in it. Coach [Kevin] Patrick had worked with a couple of coordinators that Coach [Dave] Huxtable has worked for, so that part of it was pretty easy.
Expectations are pretty high. Do the guys know that, and do they practice to live up to that?
We’re taking it one day at a time. That’s all we’re doing.
We don’t have a schedule board up in our building. All it says is today. That’s all we’re going to focus on.
The only expectation we have is how good we’re going to play today.
What are your impressions on Ryan Finley and his comfort level?
Totally different. I think most of that is because he’s friends with a lot of kids on the team. They know him. He understands the culture of the program. They understand his work ethic and how he works.
Last year, they were all trying to figure out what he’s all about. I think just the comfort of the other 10 knowing him and what he brings to the table has helped him a lot.
What does the overall health of the team look like?
We had 105 guys practicing today, so that was a good thing. There are still some guys that are rehabbing from surgeries they had last year, but sometimes you can’t even get 105 guys out here.
