NC State coach Dave Doeren reflected Monday about how his seniors could feel like sand going downward on a hour glass.
The agenda is simple. The Wolfpack are 5-5 and if the seniors want to play in a bowl game, it will need to either defeat Georgia Tech on the road at 7:30 p.m. Thursday on ESPN, or the regular season finale at North Carolina on Nov. 30. Win both of the games and a shot at an eight-win season could be on the line for the bowl game.
Three of NC State's seniors met with the media Thursday, each with a different background. NC State senior middle linebacker Devon Betty has been a true program guy, sticking with the Wolfpack for five years.
Senior left tackle Anthony Belton attended Georgia Military Junior College his first year, and then missed a season due to COVID in 2020. Belton arrived at NC State in Jan. 2021, and will finish as a three-year starter.
Senior safety Donovan Kaufman has spent the least amount of time in Raleigh, arriving late last spring after playing at Vanderbilt and Auburn. He feels completely welcomed in his one season with the Wolfpack.
All three players understand the assignment that looms ahead.
"When you look at it, it's like 11 days left to practice and play a game," Betty said. "It is running out and it's quick too. The closer we get to it, the faster it goes.
"It's kind of sad, but it's a happy one. I enjoy myself here and I don't regret anything at all."
Betty said he just wants to play his best ball and get to his fifth bowl game in five years.
"I want to give this team everything I got in my last two [games]," Betty said. "I've been here since 2020 and it's only right I go out with a bang. It's only right I go out playing my best ball, with my best effort the whole game for the last two."
Kaufman grew up in New Orleans, La., and he's finding out new things in the Triangle area, such as the restaurant Where's the Jerk? In Durham. Even if his time at NC State has been short, it will prove long lasting.
"Obviously, we're trying to get a bowl game, but even the next level [pro football], that's not promised, not guaranteed," Kaufman said. "Just going out with a bang. The biggest thing is just really going out with no regrets."
Kaufman said the preparation and energy will remain the same the next two weeks, but he has a deep love for football, even though he admitted he doesn't watch games during his free time.
Part of Kaufman's love for football is that it almost was taken away from him due to a heart issue while at Vanderbilt in 2020.
"It made me more grateful," Kaufman said. "I was young. I came in, true freshman, starting. I'm on top of the world. [Then] I wasn't playing at all. They told me, I'd never know if I'll play again. That was big for me because I was out there in Nashville by myself. No family. It was during COVID. I'm handling all this. First time away from home, it was a lot."
The experience became life-changing for Kaufman. He changed his diet and eliminated pork and added vegetables, and somehow after three months, he was cleared by an MRI."
"I literally was just out there," Kaufman said. "I was just eating and sleeping. That's really it.
"I went back, got another MRI three months later. They said the inflammation had gone down. It was good from there."
The joke some have about incoming transfers is will they do enough to be invited to future tailgates at NC State home games. Kaufman's play this season will make him an invited guest.
"From the moment I got here, it felt like home," Kaufman said. "I'm happy I made this decision. I appreciate the coaches, my teammates, everybody."
Belton is most likely going to get the chance to be drafted high in the upcoming NFL Draft. He knows his imminent future could rest with how the Wolfpack execute in the red zone Tuesday.
"They're valuable," Belton said. "If we want to win football games, we've got to score every time we're in the red zone, whether it's field goals, whether it's with a touchdown. The past couple games, we had a lot of mental errors within just a unit as an offense, so we've got to really finish in the red zone."
Belton has come a long way from his senior year at Florida State University School in Tallahassee, Fla. The 6-6, 336-pounder is known for having fun with his teammates on the football field, but there is nothing happy-go-lucky about being 5-5.
"I know stuff's going to come with its ups and its downs, but I can't let that affect me from the other games," Belton said. "Just changing my habits.
"Really buying in with my preparation and just going out there and applying the details that it's been showing. I'm just going to continue to show the last two games."
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