The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1536961
22 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY NOAH FLEISCHMAN year ago, Dave Doeren sat in a padded chair inside his fourth-floor Murphy Center office knowing well that there were high expectations for his team. They didn't mean much to the veteran coach. What really mattered was NC State's perfor- mance on the field. At the time, nearly every national outlet ranked the Wolfpack as a preseason top- 25 team, with some calling it a dark horse for the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff. That, however, didn't happen. Instead, the Pack went 6-6 in the regular season, then fell to East Carolina, 26-21, in the Military Bowl. It was a turbulent season marred by several injuries, including a pair of concussions that ended gradu- ate quarterback Grayson McCall's play- ing career. While Doeren downplayed his team's external expectations ahead of last season, dismissing them as "preseason hoopla," he has a new focus in 2025: right- ing the ship after four one-possession losses a year ago. "Losing is terrible. No one likes it, but when you know you were a play or two away multiple times, it really eats at you," Doeren said, sitting in the same chair a few weeks ago for a preseason interview with The Wolfpacker. "What could I have done to get one or two better plays out of this game? It's not on just me, it's every- body, but it starts with me." Entering his 13th season, Doeren has redefined what NC State football can ac- complish. He's the program's winningest coach, having led the Wolfpack to seven seasons with eight or more victories, in- cluding four of the past five. Now, he's looking to get his team back on that same trajectory this fall. There's not been as much national attention this year, but Doeren's teams tend to perform well when flying under the radar. After both of his two previous losing seasons (2013 and '19), the Pack rebounded with eight victories the fol- lowing fall. NC State hopes to follow that pattern again this year. "Losing one-possession games, it's a bad taste in your mouth because you know how close you were to the season being different — and not wanting to have A DRIVEN DRIVEN TO IMPROVE TO IMPROVE NC State Is Eager To Turn Last Year's Near-Misses Into Victories that [this year]," Doeren said. "When you talk about close losses and close wins, it's one or two plays in a game that dictate those things. You find those one or two things and you improve [in those areas]. I think that was part of it, and I think some of the new players came in with the right attitude to help us get better. It's a hungry team." 'Change Can Be Good' It isn't just talk, either. Doeren and his staff saw the players' determination dur- ing the team's 15 practices this spring. That mindset has extended into summer workouts, where the staff has limited in- teraction with players while they work with strength coach Dantonio "Thun- der" Burnette. Doeren praised his play- ers' coachability and desire to improve. "I know that sounds weird, because everyone thinks that's what these guys do," he said. "But sometimes guys think they're better than they are, and they don't work as hard as they can. I thought this was a team that really wanted to do what the coaches were asking them to do." Looking to take that next step forward, Doeren made a bold move by bringing in two new coordinators in the same off- season. The last time he did that was af- ter the 2019 season when he dismissed both offensive coordinator Des Kitch- ings and defensive coordinator Dave Huxtable. This time was different in that defensive coordinator Tony Gibson left to take a head coaching job at Marshall, opening up a spot on the staff. Offensive coordinator Robert Anae, meanwhile, was let go with one year remaining on his contract, part of an effort by Doeren to shake things up. "I think change can be good," he said. "I think you do it to help the guys, and NC State Football Schedule Date Opponent Time (TV) Aug. 28 EAST CAROLINA 7 p.m. (ACCN) Sept. 6 VIRGINIA Noon (ESPN2) Sept. 11 at Wake Forest 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) Sept. 20 at Duke TBA Sept. 27 VIRGINIA TECH TBA Oct. 4 CAMPBELL TBA Oct. 11 at Notre Dame 3:30 p.m. (Peacock) Oct. 25 at Pitt TBA Nov. 1 GEORGIA TECH TBA Nov. 15 at Miami TBA Nov. 21 FLORIDA STATE 8 p.m. (ESPN) Nov. 29 NORTH CAROLINA TBA