The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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State, but this was on a smaller scale in the Midwest. His roots in the region helped, as did his experience having coached J.J. Watt, an All-Pro defensive end who had played for Doeren at Wis- consin. But it all came down to nabbing tal- ent. Doeren found a way to land the kind of players that Northern Illinois hadn't been able to sign in the past. That was partly due to his around- the-clock commitment to the process. Compher can recall several occasions when he and Doeren were talking, only to be interrupted by the coach's phone. If it was a recruiting-related call, Doeren would always pause whatever he was do- ing to answer questions or watch film of a prospect. "He loved to recruit," Compher said. "I think he still does. He gets as much of a kick out of winning the recruiting wars as he does on the field." Compher, who went on to spend five years as athletics director at East Caro- lina, is still impressed by Doeren's re- cruiting efforts more than a decade later. "It was one of those things where I couldn't believe how on top of it he was," Compher said. "I couldn't manage keep- ing up with it as much as he did. He re- ally had his pulse on recruiting. I'll never forget that." A Player's Coach Akeem Daniels thought he was going to be released — or at least suspended — from Northern Illinois' team in 2012. He got in trouble with the program, and the running back was sure he was going to be punished harshly by Doeren. Instead, the two sat down to work through the situation. Doeren told Daniels that he was "extremely disap- pointed" and had "high expectations" for him. The coach challenged Daniels to make it up both academically and ath- letically moving forward. "That conversation that we had, it set a spark," Daniels said. "I ended up finish- ing the season having the best last couple of games of my collegiate career." Daniels logged 124 attempts for 750 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns, while adding 35 receptions for 511 yards and 4 scores in his two seasons playing for Doeren at Northern Illinois. Doeren had a knack for keeping the The Doeren Era Got Off To A Hot Start At NC State On a hot summer afternoon at sunshiny Carter-Finley Stadium, most of NC State's devoted football fans were passed out — but not the bad kind. They were just following the longtime stadium tradition of leaving at halftime for the expansive parking lots around the N.C. State Fairgrounds and PNC Arena for some in-game tailgating, a practice that sometimes leaves the stands looking empty at the beginning of the third quarter of Wolfpack home games. That was a new one for first-year coach Dave Doeren when his team faced Louisiana Tech in his first game as head coach on Aug. 31, 2013. He was greeted by 54,204 spectators to start the game but found far fewer in their seats when the second half began. Doeren's inaugural team, flush with nearly a dozen true freshmen in the lineup and in the hands of a gradu- ate transfer quarterback, had little trouble with their foes from Ruston, La. The Bulldogs were under the guidance of another familiar first-year coach, Skip Holtz, late of East Carolina and South Florida and newly hired to coach the Bulldogs. Nothing went awry in the playing of the game, which the Wolfpack won with relative ease, 40-14, after scor- ing 24 unanswered first-half points. Redshirt junior Tony Creecy opened at running back in place of suspended starter Shadrach Thornton, the team's leading rusher the season be- fore, and scored the first touchdown of the Doeren era just two-and-a-half minutes after kickoff. Freshman Matt Dayes added 3 touchdowns and rushed for 84 yards off the bench, on a day when the Pack gained 247 yards on the ground. The no-huddle scheme of offensive coordinator Matt Canada was click- ing for the Wolfpack for its first three possessions of the game, until starting quarterback Brandon Mitchell suffered a broken foot midway through the first quarter. The injury needed surgery the next day and kept the Arkansas graduate transfer out of the lineup for the next eight weeks. He returned late in the season to finish out a 3-9 campaign for Doeren, in- cluding an 0-8 mark in ACC play. Pete Thomas stepped in during Mitchell's absence, completing 15 of 27 passes for 212 yards. All seemed peachy after the game, and Doeren even applauded the support his inaugural team received from the Carter-Finley faithful. Two days later, however, the coach made a plea for new habits. "With the passion that our fan base has, we need them to be in the seats in the third and fourth quarters to be a great team," he said. "You win big games in the third and fourth quarter. It's great to start fast with a big crowd, but it's better to finish with one. "That's an advantage that we need to gain." It was an advantage that was not necessarily needed for that 12:30 p.m. contest. Many fans sought shade and hydration from their tailgating spots on the 90-degree afternoon. Doeren then and still today wants fans to mitigate their halftime respites. "I'm asking for fans to change their routine a little bit and come back into the stadium a little earlier and stay a little longer and support our guys," Doeren said 12 years ago. "That's something we need if the pro - gram is going to grow the way everybody wants it to." The coach and the fans learned much about each other in that first game, and Doeren has piled up enough wins to surpass Earle Edwards as the program's winningest coach. He's now the second-longest-tenured coach in school history, behind Edwards, and has constructed a strong foundation that will keep him in Ra- leigh for as long as he wants to coach here, with nine winning seasons and nine bowl games in his first 11 campaigns. He and his team receive unprecedented support from Wolfpack fans, especially in frequent postseason bowl games and in-season road games like their visit in September to Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium, a loss to Tennessee in which State sold out its entire ticket allotment before the season started. It's something Doeren fully recognizes and appreciates. "I want to thank our fan base," he said. "You guys were awesome. Our leadership, staff and team appreciate your support. "It was a great environment." — Tim Peeler Matt Dayes shined with 3 rushing touchdowns in NC State's first game under head coach Dave Doeren in 2013. The Pack topped Louisiana Tech, 40-14, on a 90-degree afternoon in Raleigh. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2024 ■ 25