Doeren Reflects on Military Family Ties Before FSU Clash

RALEIGH — Dave Doeren, the steadfast, oft-rigid leader of NC State football, is battling for his team down the stretch of a season that started with five wins and five losses. From an outside perspective, it is by all accounts a lost season in terms of competing nationally and in the ACC. Doeren wasn't raised to quit, however.

Now in his 13th year with the Wolfpack, Doeren will lead the Wolfpack into battle Friday night against Florida State, a game that has more meaning to him than just any other matchup. The tilt is NC State's Military Appreciation Game. That tagline raises the stakes for Doeren because of his military roots.

Reflecting on his Upbringing

For those familiar with the way Doeren runs the NC State program, it has some of the same tendencies that exist at various military academies across the country and their football programs. There is a heavy emphasis on accountability, leadership and perhaps most importantly for the Wolfpack, toughness. Those traits start at the top with Doeren. They spawned from his upbringing.

Both Doeren and his wife, Sara, were raised in military families. The former's father served in the Navy during the Vietnam War, when he was stationed in California. Sara's father, Stan, fought in Vietnam when he served as part of the Army. The grandfathers of both Sara and Dave served as well.

"Our families are rooted that way. Chain of command, respect, and understanding that our freedom isn't free is something we were raised with," Doeren said. "I don't take that for granted."

Application of Experience

Oct 11, 2025; South Bend, Indiana, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren walks on the field against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during the second half at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

With that context, it's not hard to see where Doeren's no-nonsense approach to coaching came from. Discipline, another standard principle for NC State football, also stems from the coach's life experience.

"It's ingrained, not just for me and my upbringing, but with what we do programmatically to bring these guys in," he said. "Obviously, football is not life or death, but football involves command presence, leadership, getting guys to learn how to be leaders, getting guys to be able to grow in leadership, and to speak accountability. There's a lot of carryover between what they do training their troops and what we do training our team."

Dave Doeren and NC Stat — Oct 4, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren with his team prepare to run out prior to the first half of the game against Campbell Fighting Camels at Carter-Finley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

Doeren laid out that there at 95,000-plus troops stationed in the state. During his 13 years in Raleigh, he made efforts to meet and befriend many current and former members of the military. Beyond those friendships, the coach utilized the presence of the armed services to help his program.

Mike Erwin, a former member of the United States Airborne and current veterans advocate, spent time with NC State during the offseason and still aids with motivation and advising. Doeren spent time learning at the United States Marine Forces Special Operations Command (Also known as MARSOC) headquarters at Camp Lejune as well.

By establishing those relationships, Doeren learned more about the highest levels of military leadership and applied them to his own program. Many of those lessons helped him to turn NC State into one of the more stable and consistent programs in the ACC over the last decade. They've also taught him to deal with adversity, like the boatloads of it in 2025, without panic.

"I have the utmost respect, and I think anytime we can, as coaches, grab onto things that are parallel and use those things to help our guys learn, it's great," Doeren said.

Friday's game gives Doeren and his program a chance to show gratitude toward the armed forces and apply some of the knowledge gained from all of those connections.

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