We live in a Burger King world: have it your way, right away, at Burger King now. So many fans carry that same drive-thru energy into sports — if the wins don’t show up instantly, they want the coach bagged before the receipt hits the counter.
But NC State women’s soccer is proving how misguided that impatience really is. First-year head coach Gary Higgins inherited a roster that won four games a year ago, including just one conference win, and began this fall on an 0-5-1 trudge. “Nice hire Boo …,” said an X user after the Wolfpack fell 3-0 to then-No. 20 Michigan State.
Since then, though, the Wolfpack has gone 2-1-2, pushed No. 7 Florida State to the brink before conceding a goal in the final 40 seconds and earned a road win over SMU. The tide is turning — not because of quick fixes, but because of steady buy-in.
“[The team’s perseverance is] honestly one of the proudest moments of my coaching career because people were laughing at us in the month of August,” Higgins said. “We were 0-5-1, and people were making fun of us and this group kept together and kept getting at it. That’s what it’s all about in my opinion.”
The numbers back him up. The Wolfpack has outshot opponents 154-139 this season, including a 23-6 edge in its loss to Western Carolina. The finishing touch has lagged behind, but that’s not a coaching failure. That’s what recruitment, development and time are meant to solve.
Higgins’ track record also proves he’s the man to steady the ship. Before arriving in Raleigh, he guided East Carolina to its first conference title and NCAA Tournament berth in program history. In just three years with the Pirates, he piled up 27 wins, produced 13 All-Conference appearances and set a new standard in Greenville.
And that wasn’t a fluke. At DII Lenoir-Rhyne, Higgins became the program’s all-time winningest coach, taking the Bears to a Final Four and coaching four All-Americans. He’s built winners everywhere he’s been. To those who just check the GoPack box scores and scoff — how’s he looking now? He just needs time to mold NC State into his next success story.
Look no further than South Carolina and its women’s basketball team. Before Dawn Staley built the Gamecocks into the standard of women’s basketball, they were just another middling SEC team. Her first three seasons in Columbia? 11-18, 15-15 and 19-15. No banners, no trophies, plenty of skepticism. Today? Three National Championships, seven Final Fours in the last 10 tournaments and a dynasty.
That kind of growth doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen when a program — at all levels — buys into the principles.
“That’s the foundation for the program,” Higgins said. “We talk about three things: Having a competitive and physical foundation, that’s the bare minimum. And then, can you have tactical discipline on top of that? Then you start sprinkling some quality in different categories, in different areas of the pitch. That’s when you start becoming a really good team.”
