Exclusive Q&A: NC State head coach Dave Doeren, part II
In the past few weeks, The Wolfpacker has rolled out exclusive interviews with NC State defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Tony Gibson and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tim Beck.
Head coach Dave Doeren also did a one-on-one Q&A with The Wolfpacker, and here is part II of highlights from that interview.
Are there some good competitions you look forward to seeing on offense?
“I think so. There’s really good competition at various position groups.
"Tight end and O-line rooms have some good competitive depth. We kind of know who our receivers are, it’s who is going to be the next. Getting that young group to step up, Anthony Smith, Julian Gray, [Joshua] Crabtree, Keyon Lesane, all those guys who have not necessarily made plays, getting that group ready to replace what we have veteran wise.”
On defense, what are the areas of emphasis for improvement you are seeking and prioritizing after last season?
“I think the biggest thing is just, while we did take the ball away more last year, continuing to make that a strength of our defense. I think we missed some opportunities. We dropped some interceptions. We need to be a little bit more opportunistic. We weren’t bad, but we want to be top three in the league in takeaways, and that’s an area we can improve.
"I felt like for the most part our issues we had defensively were more personnel-based than anything, where we had the injury bug. Hopefully, won’t have them with the transfers we have coming in, in the secondary and getting Chris Ingram and Teshaun [Smith] back [from injury].
"That competitive depth is required to build on what we want to do week in and week out.”
Last year safety depth was a big concern and it ended up being your most injury-riddled position. Does it feel like the injury bug finds you where you least could afford it?
“It’s hard to explain. Every year it seems like there is one position that is a little bit lighter than another, and if you get hurt in those position rooms you can have issues. We did.
"Two years ago it was a lot of positions. Last year it was in the safety room. Hopefully we won’t have that. We do feel like we have built our roster to handle whatever comes this year unless you have an epidemic in one room.
"Hopefully we won’t have that.”
Did you feel like your defense was figuring it out by the end of the year?
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