Coach Dave Doeren's Postgame Press Conference
NC State football coach Dave Doeren was understandably happy with his team's performance Saturday in a 38-21 win at Virginia.
The Wolfpack came out strong, finished strong and got contributions in all three phases of the game, with a 100-yard rusher and a quarterback that threw two touchdown passes on offense, four turnovers and a goal line stand from the defense and a blocked punt on special teams.
Doeren was especially pleased with the performance of his defense, which debuted a new reward for players recording a takeaway.
Here's what he had to say in his virtual postgame conference with the media:
"I’m very proud of our guys and our staff. To come play on the road again for the third straight week and play the ACC Coastal defending champs the way we did, I thought the defense was really stellar today (with) four takeaways, a defensive touchdown, we blocked a punt. I’m really proud of their effort.
"Offensively, we just kind of hung in there. I thought in the first half we did some good things, got us off to a lead. (UVa) was a very good defense. It was good to see Bam (Knight) run the way he did. It was a 100-yard game for Bam. Emeka (Emezie) made a couple clutch catches. Devin (Leary’s) stats aren’t great, but I thought he did some good things taking care of the football. We (only once turned) the football over on the road. When you are plus-(three) in turnover margin and you block a punt, you ought to win every game.
"I’m really proud of the effort of the guys. I hope that their quarterback is okay. It looked like he got dinged pretty good. Lindell Stone came in and I thought played a gutsy game for them. It was a good football game, a physical game. I’m proud of the team. I look forward to coming back to Raleigh and having some games back in our hometown."
How big was it for freshman Joshua Pierre-Louis to come back and have a strong game, with an interception, after he cost the team a pick six and was ejected for targeting last week at Pittsburgh?
"Josh is a good player. Really, it was just a teachable moment for him on the strike zone as we call it, where you can’t hit the quarterback. He’s so protected now that you have to understand the rules and play within them. You learn from it. We showed it to the entire roster so that everybody could learn from it. I’m proud of him.
"We dropped three interceptions (today). We could have had a bunch more. Jakeen (Harris), we’ve got to get him on the JUGS machine or get his eyes checked. I know he’s going to be mad watching the film. But it was fun to see the guys out there flying around and making plays. Josh Pierre-Louis is just one of them."
Are we seeing the defense start to grow up over the past couple of games?
Yeah, I think you are. I think Coach (Tony) Gibson and the defensive staff are dealing with a lot of young guys. We are going to be a defense that grows and improves as the season goes on. They do have a lot of confidence. I think that comes from the way they are being coached, and the kids are buying into the system.
"They’re playing fast. It’s fun. We brought out the dog bone today and we got four takeaways. The guys were signing it on the sideline. I think that gave them a little bit of motivation over there.
So what's up with the dog bone?
"They did a really nice job creating that. We had some artistic work done to it. The guys were fired up about it. These millennials love stuff like that. Whatever it takes to get turnovers, we are willing to do it. There’s definitely some blood in the water."
One of the takeaways was Alim McNeill's pick six. How big was that?
"That was a great play by him and we needed a play. We had just blocked a punt the previous series and didn’t score any points. Our punter did a nice job of pinning them back there. It was a helluva a play by Alim. It was awesome to see him get a touchdown. It’s a lineman’s dream for sure."
How good was it to see all the young players in the secondary stepping up with so many veterans out right now?
"They’ve got their hands full back there coaching these guys with all the freshmen. Devan Boykin had to play the whole second half with Tanner (Ingle) being ejected. Aydan White got some snaps at corner, another true freshman. We had to play a lot of guys in that game. It’s going to be a really good group. Each week they just have to keep getting better because, as you know, there’s really good receivers in this league, and they’re going to be tested each week."
How much of an emphasis was put on creating turnovers this week at practice?
"We emphasize it every week. It’s something that their quarterback in the first half really struggled with the coverages we were running. I mean, he was just throwing it to us. I think that was more of them doing a poor job and us taking advantage of it. I thought Josh Pierre-Louis’ play was an exceptional play. That was a really good catch by him.
"It’s emphasized every week, and I think it’s just a confidence thing. When you play fast you make more of those plays. Like I said, the motivation of the bone on the sideline, maybe that was part of it. That’s how you win on the road. If you can go on the road and win the turnover margin, you’re going to win a lot of games.
How long has the bone been a thing?
"It was the first time out today. It had four signatures on it. It’s a competitive thing and Coach Gibson and his staff did a nice job with that. It was a great game, other than how many times the officials felt like they had to throw flags. I thought it was a lot of fun out there."
How important is it to have come away with two wins on this three-game road trip?
"Anytime you can win on the road it’s a big confidence builder for the team. We finish the season with four of five at home. It’s going to be nice to have that stretch when we get into that phase of the season.
"Looking at our schedule when it came out, if you would have told me that we would be 3-1 going into the stretch that we’ve got coming up, I’d be really happy with that. Not that I don’t want to be 4-0, but I’m very pleased with where we are sitting right now, and I look forward to the next opportunity."
What was the inspiration for the dog bone?
"It was just one of those creative moments we had as a staff. Sometimes you sit in there and just try to find inventive ways to motivate these young men. I don’t know whose brilliant idea it was, but we’re not just meathead football coaches. There’s some creativity in there. So guys came up with it and our artistic folks in the building did a nice job designing it. It definitely brought some enthusiasm to the guys."
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