With NC State football sitting at 2-0 and set to face No. 14 West Virginia (weather permitting) Saturday, head coach Dave Doeren held his weekly news conference Monday. Here are some of the highlights.
On the team’s 41-7 win over Georgia State: “I thought there was a lot of improvement in a lot of areas. There were a lot of firsts for a lot of young players. There were some definite things that went from the first week to the second week that we talked about. That we got to see. The pass game, 400-plus yards, over 70 percent completions, gave up zero sacks. They only had two tackles for loss in the game. I thought our offensive line really protected [graduate quarterback Ryan Finley] well.”
“…Defensively, I thought other than the first drive they played really well. Had a shutout after the first drive. I thought our third-down was really solid in the game. It was good to see [freshman defensive tackle Alim McNeill] get his first sack. Red zone we were very strong. Had the blocked field goal with [senior defensive tackle Eurndraus Bryant] down there, which was a big part of what we were trying to do. They’d shown weakness there the week prior and I thought our guys really executed the plan there.”
On West Virginia: “We’re playing a really good football team. I think [Dana Holgorsen] does a really good job for this program. They’re aggressive. They recruit well; you can see that. They have good speed on offense, defense and in the return game. An explosive offense. They’re well-designed and well-coached. They have talented players. Their offensive line protects well and doesn’t give up a lot of negative plays.”
“Will Grier’s a really talented quarterback with really good weapons around him. [Wide receiver David Sills] last year led the nation in touchdowns. … On defense, 3-3-5, stacked defense. They blitz a lot, give you different coverages. Not afraid to go cover zero and bring them all but for the most part you’re getting a fourth or a fifth guy with what they’re doing. … It’s going to be a great challenge offensively. I know we’re excited about playing them and I’m sure they are us. Two really good quarterbacks squaring off against each other, two great receiving corps. A lot of good football players. A team that has a lot of accolades coming in to play us, so it’ll be a great challenge. We’re excited for the opportunity to play them.”
On Hurricane Florence and its potential impact: “Obviously there’s a lot of conversation about the weather coming this way. Our prayers go out to all those that could be affected by that. I’m not certain how it’s going to impact us, gameday or any of that. We’re expecting to play and proceeding and planning like we will until somebody says otherwise.”
On potentially playing in bad weather: “We’re going to prepare for whatever we get. Like I told our guys on Sunday, there’s going to be talk about this all week. It could be sunny and not even touch us or it could be horrible like we’ve seen. We’ve got to be ready and not let this impact us. I can’t tell you all we’re going to do is talk about the rain and then it’s hot, and that’s a problem. If we get it, we’ll have a plan. Our monsoon plan, do the best we can do in the conditions and try to take care of the football. There was a unique challenge two years ago [against Notre Dame during Hurricane Matthew in 2016]. It’s hard to imagine playing in that again, but if we do our guys will have definitely had an experience like that to relate to.”
On changes to game-week preparations: “We definitely have to do [wet ball drills] whether we get rain and can do it naturally or whether we have to do it with buckets of water or hoses or whatever we have to do. But we do have to do that for sure. That’s the most you can do if it’s not truly raining outside to give them that experience. We’ll over exaggerate it so it’s not a big deal for them. I remember Joe Scelfo was our center when we played Notre Dame and we were constantly giving him wet balls throughout the week and we went the whole game and didn’t have a single snap issue. We’ve try to do the same for [senior center Garrett Bradbury].”
On Finley vs. Grier: “I really don’t think about it. I really just try to do whatever I can to help Ryan. Who he’s facing has zero impact on what he’s got to do. I think if he’s worried about the other quarterback than he’s not going to be doing his job. I think obviously as a competitor, any time you’re facing somebody else you want to play well, but his focus needs to be on what he needs to do and not what the other quarterback’s doing.”
On expectations for freshman running back Trent Pennix: “Just to continue to play fast. He missed some reads in the run game. I thought he did a really nice job in protection. He obviously had the one catch and then he had another catch where he made a guy miss. He did have a drop. Week one, he was nervous; week two he wasn’t. Week three, continuing to build on the assignment aspect of things, his tracks in the game, being a little bit more detailed.”
On the importance of the run game in bad weather: “I think both teams will probably have to have the ability to do that. [West Virginia] has run the ball well this year up there. For us, we’re just not there yet. I thought our offensive line came off the ball better last week. We did miss some combination schemes that we’ll need to clean up. We’re struggling a little bit at the tight end position. Hopefully [redshirt sophomore Dylan Autenrieth] should be able to play this week. And that would help us a lot. … Until [we get injured players back], we’ve just got to continue to look at what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and how with what we have. Continue to improve it. I thought we did in some ways. It’ll be an emphasis because it’s important to us; we want to be good at it. But we’re not going to bail on it either, we’ve just got to find other ways that fit what we have right now and do a little better.”
On the pregame flyovers: “It’s awesome. When I’m running out and the fireworks are going off, I always look up and say my thanks and see them flying. I said actually two weeks to myself, ‘That’s amazing.’ Pretty awesome. You’re running through a tunnel of people, the fans are all cheering, fireworks are going off and there’s planes flying over your head. Twenty years ago I was living in the basement of an apartment complex next to a 7-11 making $300 a month, now I get planes flying over my head at a football game; it’s pretty cool.”
On redshirt junior receiver Jakobi Meyers and freshman running back Ricky Person, who missed the Georgia State game with injuries: “They’re doing great.”
On where the team is after two games: “I think we’re a work in progress still. I’m happy with the fact that we’re 2-0 and that we scored a lot of touchdowns and a lot of new guys are getting the ball. We’re still seeing what people can do at some positions.”
