The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1497827
TRACKING THE PACK 12 ■ THE WOLFPACKER In February, NC State football head coach Dave Doeren an- nounced that he was hiring Andy Vaughn to be the new assistant athletics director/general man- ager for his team. Vaughn had been the associate athletics director for player per- sonnel and recruiting at Arizona State, and before that he was the director of player personnel at Miami from 2019-22. He has also worked at Arizona, Nebraska, Nevada, Middle Tennessee State and Clemson. "Andy brings a great wealth of experience from programs in dif- ferent Power Five conferences," Doeren said. "At his previous stops, when there has been turn- over at the head coach position, the new coaches have retained him. That shows what a valuable asset he is, and I'm excited to have him joining the Pack." Here are highlights from a Q&A with Vaughn: How would you describe your position? "From a coaching standpoint, I'm kind of like a coordinator. I'm overseeing a lot of differ- ent areas that affect the current roster and the people that we're trying to bring in to fill spots on the roster. "If you think about the different parts of the recruiting office, I'm going to oversee the talent acquisition piece of it. Once we identify guys that fit our schemes, our culture here, how do we go sign those players? That entails the guys in the recruiting office who are going to manage on-campus visits, creative content, mailing lists, calling lists, game-day visits, all that stuff. "How do we leverage everything that NC State and Raleigh have to offer to get guys to sign here? "And the other part is the identification and evaluation piece. Where do we go to find the players? Who are we looking for? Why are we looking for him? What are our factors? How do we grade guys? What's that process look like? "And that's not just for high school and junior college play- ers, but also college personnel. We assess what's on our roster and then what's out there so that when people hit the portal we're not behind. We know if they fit or if they don't fit. "The best way to describe my job is I'm like an NFL gen- eral manager in some regards. I'm just making sure that all these different departments and people who are experts in their specific field, like recruiting or creative content, are all seeing the same vision." What put you on this path? "I never wanted to be a coach. I moonlighted as one. Right out of college, I was helping out my old high school as a coach. I love being around the guys, but coaching never appealed to me. I've never had that desire to be a coach. "I like this part of it. I like how every day you come in there's a new challenge. I like finding cre- ative ways to solve problems and trying to find ways to push us forward and be innovative. "I like doing all those things behind the scenes and having a small part of when we have a big win on Saturdays or win a cham- pionship or win a bowl game. "I like knowing that I helped bring players into the program or put the coaches in the best posi- tion to be successful." What motivated you as you worked your way up the lad- der? "I'm from a small town with a lot of blue-collar people. My parents both worked really hard. They instilled in me that hard-work ethic. They taught me if you really want to accomplish something that you have to put in the time and the effort. "At times, it's been challenging. You wonder what's next, but it's all been part of the journey. The process has been in- credible. "This profession and this game have taken me places that I never thought I would go growing up in Seneca, S.C. That includes being on the West Coast for several years and hav- ing several opportunities in the Midwest in the Big Ten. I have been all across the country and experienced different situa- tions, universities and cities. "The relationships that I've been able to build over the last 18 years or so have been incredible. Things are tough some- times, but I've always loved it. I love the challenge, and I love the opportunity. "Nothing is given to you. Everything you get in this business is earned. You have to work hard for it, just like the guys do on the field." ■ Vaughn is responsible for helping keep the football team's roster well stocked. He came to Raleigh from Arizona State and has worked all over the country. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS SITTING DOWN WITH: Assistant Athletics Director/General Manager Andy Vaughn