NC State emerges from open week looking to replicate last year’s end of season success

NC State entered its open week last season off an “embarrassing” 24-3 loss at Duke. That break from the season after seven straight weeks of playing helped the Wolfpack win five straight games to close the 2024 campaign, which culminated in a Pop-Tarts Bowl berth. 

Now, as the Pack emerges from its first of two open weeks with Stanford visiting Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday afternoon, NC State is in a similar position. The Wolfpack is 4-4, but instead of coming off a deflating loss, NC State spent its idle week after a 24-23 comeback win at Cal to pull within two wins of bowl eligbility. 

That, in a way, has the Wolfpack in a better position this time around, coach Dave Doeren thought, though they are looking for the same results from a year ago moving forward. 

“It’s similar and it’s not from last year,” Doeren said Monday evening. “This year, it’s more coming out of a win with back-to-back 300-yard games for a young quarterback. He’s gaining confidence and momentum, so it’s building on that and looking at the things that we’ve done with him. … Not just him, but the guys around him. How can we take advantage of them as well.”

“… But there’s a lot more momentum coming into this year’s bye week than there was last year,” Doeren later added. “That piece is different, but you’re hoping for the same results, which is a better football team coming out of the break.”

Freshman quarterback CJ Bailey, who will be NC State’s starter for the rest of the season after graduate Grayson McCall announced his retirement from football last week, was a key piece of the Pack’s open week. 

The Miami, Fla., native is coming off a pair of 300-yard passing games, making him the only true freshman in the country to reach the feat and the first to do it at NC State since Philip Rivers in 2000. 

Doeren was pleased with Bailey’s performance over the past couple of weeks as he has consistently grown in each game. The Pack hopes that continues over the final four games.

“I can’t say enough about CJ Bailey and his improvement,” Doeren said. “How he’s grown, not just as a player, but as a leader. [He’s] finding chemistry with his guys, you can see it with different players. … Giving guys chances to make plays down the field with balls that the defense can’t make plays on.”

Doeren mentioned junior tight end Justin Joly, junior wideout Wesley Grimes, sophomore wide receiver Kevin Concepcion, and freshmen wideouts Terrell Anderson and Keenan Jackson all continuing to build chemistry with Bailey as he grows as the team’s signal-caller. 

The Wolfpack’s 12th-year coach also touched on NC State’s inconsistent run game, which has struggled to find its rhythm through the first eight games. Sophomore running back Kendrick Raphael is the team’s leading rusher with 287 yards and three touchdowns on 54 attempts, while graduate Jordan Waters has 260 yards and two scores on 66 carries and redshirt freshman Hollywood Smothers added 157 yards and a touchdown on 33 attempts this fall. 

“It’s interesting when you look at it,” Doeren said. “We have three backs averaging over four yards a carry, but when you look at our total run game numbers, they’re not good because of the negative yard plays we’ve had. It’s inconsistent. It’s not where we want it to be yet, but it’s not a failure either.”

Doeren did add that the Pack’s rushing numbers are slightly misleading since Bailey has been able to complete passes on run-pass option plays that were expected to be handed off to a tailback. Although that has been the case, Doeren is focused on improving the run game moving forward. 

“I like the physicality of football. I do enjoy being balanced and being able to run the ball and we’re not there,” Doeren said. “We’re not, and it’s something we need to get better at.”

While the offense was able to grow on the week off through coaching in the film room, the same could be said for the Pack’s defense and special teams. 

Doeren spent time breaking down NC State’s third phase of the game, its specialists, as he discussed how the open week progressed. He called it a “weird year” for the Pack’s special teams, which has usually been a difference maker for NC State over the past few years. 

The coach thought the kickoff return unit’s seven total returns have not allowed that to get rolling, while the kickoff coverage team has only seen one kick taken out of the end zone (it went for 40 yards at Cal). Doeren thought the team needed to be more consistent in its punts with Caden Noonkester, who has dazzled at times, but has had multiple punts travel less than 40 yards this season. 

“How we can gain an edge in the special teams part of the game, that’s been a big factor for us over the years to win games,” Doeren said.

As all three phases of the Wolfpack’s team were evaluated and pushed to grow moving into the final four-game stretch, Doeren was pleased to have a week off to allow his commonly-used players an opportunity to rest. NC State has played with multiple banged up players, while sophomore cornerback Brandon Cisse has missed the last three games with an undisclosed injury. 

Doeren said that it appears Cisse is on track to play this weekend against Stanford, while some “sore” players are rejuvenated to play the Cardinal. 

Now, as NC State prepares to begin the home stretch of its schedule, Doeren hopes his team can pull from its experience last season of finishing the regular season on a high note. That would not only help the Pack reach at least eight wins for the eighth time in Doeren’s tenure — possibly the fifth year in a row — but it would also provide even more momentum for the program moving into the 2025 campaign.