Dave Doeren: 'Last year’s teams don't win this year's games'

NC State head coach Dave Doeren wrapped up another practice Tuesday and spoke with the media afterwards. He discussed UConn, the challenges its rushing attack could present to the program’s defense and more. 

The Wolfpack officially kicks off the 2023 season against the Huskies Aug. 31 at 7:30 p.m. EST, and Doeren shared his thoughts on a few key topics leading up to that matchup. 

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NC State head coach Dave Doeren’s UConn preview press conference

What did you see out of Davin Vann that warented him earning the No. 1 jersey? 

Dave Doeren: “His daily strain, and the way he plays the game. He plays really, really hard. The impact he has on the line of scrimmage, the disruption that he creates, the way he led in the weight room, he got the summer program award for being the hardest worker, strongest player. 

“So, it’s off the field, and then just the way he’s grown as a leader. He’s similar to how [Bradley Chubb] was here. He’s a high spirited guy, plays with that edge, and sometimes that’s a double-edged sword for guys. He has learned how to use that the right way, so I’m really proud of his growth on and off the field. To wear that, you have to be dominant in many ways, and he’s the right pick.”

How have Chris Toudle and Trent Pennix bounced back from their injuries last year?

Dave Doeren: “Chris Toudle had a really good camp. He has been very consistent. You can see he trusts his body now. He’s using his arms, using his shoulders. He’s done some good things in the run game. That is progress for him. He’s always been a ball catcher for us in that position, but he’s really improved himself as a blocker.

“Trent has been in and out of camp with some minor things. He’s been great this week, so it’s good to have him back in there, but he hasn’t been able to go through the entire thing like Chris Toudle has. Should have both of them going into the first game, and we will kind of build on it as we go.”

Where are you at as far as your mindstate 48 hours before opening up the season, those emotions that you’re kind of going through and what concerns you might have? 

Dave Doeren: “There are a lot of unknowns. You think you know what you have going into the first game, but, under the lights, there are gamers, sometimes guys emerge, and sometimes guys shrink. So I’m anxious to see the guys on game day, I’m excited to see them play. They worked hard. It’s a really close-knit team. For me, it’s more anxious. I just kind of want to see it, putting it out there with them on the grass, and once we know how they are and kind of get the jitters out of some of the younger guys that are playing, we know it’s going to get better as it goes.”

Is there anything correlated at all that it was 31-0 at halftime last year now that this is a different UConn team this year?

Dave Doeren: “Last year’s games don’t mean anything. Last year’s teams don’t win this year’s games. We know UConn is a better football team. We know they’re a different football team. We’re also a different football team, so we’ve got to go prove, whatever the score is, we’ve got to earn that. We know they’re probably talking about it, right? They want to play better than they did, and I know they will [after] watching their film. They were a much better football team.”

Are there any significant differences or challenges to opening up on the road as opposed to playing your first game here at home?

Dave Doeren: “There’s always home field advantage. They were 5-1 at home last year. We’ve been a really good home team. When you go to someone else’s environment, you have to get used to it, a foreign locker room, the stadium is different, the sidelines may be tighter or looser as far as the space down there, you’re in a hotel instead of your own bed, so there are some different things about playing on the road. 

“Once you start the game, it’s the same, right? But it’s all the things that lead up to it. Sometimes, guys can lose focus, so it’ll be a good test to get on the road and see how mature we are.”

How was the process to watch Maine play football games from last year? What do you guys kind of go through to get that done?

Dave Doeren: “I mean, we have everybody’s games. Everyone in college football, doesn’t matter what level, each week, we get everybody’s film. We get every NFL game too, so you don’t have to struggle to find film like you used to when you had to get it sent to you in the mail on a VHS. It’s all online, so yeah, we’ve watched all that film and obviously had a chance to see him compete against a lot of people.

“He’s a good quarterback. He knows their offense. He’s got good size, poise in the pocket, he is a guy that can move around. He’s not necessarily a guy who is going to run all day on you, but he runs well enough to hurt you. He and the offensive coordinator have a history together, so there’s some similarity there, certainly similar to what we have with [quarterback Brennan Armstrong] and [offensive coordinator Robert Anae], where they’re going to be able to work back on games they’ve coached and played in together and have some recall in their game planning.”

You mentioned seeing UConn’s growth as the year went on. What did you see that makes them more dangerous, and how do you think that will translate to what they have this year?

Dave Doeren: “They’re a really good running football team. They’re a physical team on offense that doesn’t turn the ball over, they rushed the ball well, they had really talented tailbacks. I think those two backs could play in our league for anybody. They’re really good players. 

“Defensively, they got better and better as the year went on, and they returned 10 of 11 starters. You can see they just got used to what [head coach Jim Mora] wants in a team, and they’re a physical football team. It’s like any coach that takes over. It’s hard at the beginning to get everybody on the same page and, over the course of the year, you can see that those kids started to believe, and they were sick of losing up there and they started listening and doing the right things.

“They’ve got a good team. They really do. You can see there’s a reason they won five of their last seven games, beat Boston College, beat Liberty, so it’s just a good football team.”