RED - Football Preview (08/29/13)

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RED • Fall 2013

What’s inside RED

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2013 season schedule

DOEREN LEADS WOLFPACK INTO NEW ERA

Date: Aug. 31

Date: Sept. 7

The first-year head coach at N.C. State looks for success in his first season at the helm of the Pack

Opponent: Louisiana Tech

Opponent: Richmond -

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Military Appreciation Day Location: Raleigh, N.C.

THOMAS AND MITCHELL VIE FOR STARTING QB JOB

Transfer-student-athletes Pete Thomas and Brandon Mitchell are splitting time with first team offense

JOHNSON READY TO LEAD NEW-LOOK SECONDARY

Tony Creecy and Shadrach Thornton return to carry the load for the Pack again this season

Opponent: Clemson

Opponent: Central Michigan

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

- Parents and Families Day Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Date: Oct. 5

Date: Oct. 12

Opponent: Wake Forest

Opponent: Syracuse

Location: Winston-Salem,

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Date: Oct. 26 Opponent: Florida State

RECEIVER TRIO EXCITED FOR UP-TEMPO OFFENSE

RUNNING BACKS SEARCH FOR SUCCESS IN 2013

Date: Sept. 28

N.C.

Dante Johnson is the only returning cornerback from last season’s squad

Quintin Payton, Rashard Smith and Brian Underwood look to put up big numbers again this season

Date: Sept. 19

Date: Nov. 2 Opponent: North Carolina -

Location: Tallahassee, Fla.

Homecoming

Date: Nov. 9

Date: Nov. 16

Opponent: Duke

Opponent: Boston College

Location: Durham, N.C.

Location: Chestnut Hill,

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Mass.

Date: Nov. 23

Date: Nov. 30

Opponent: East Carolina

Opponent: Maryland

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Location: Raleigh, N.C.

Pack to face challenges, new and old foes in 2013 season Rob McLamb Staff Writer

The 2013 football schedule for N.C. State will be a return to preexpansion days– at least for one season–and will not see the team log many frequent-flier miles, as only two of the 12 games are outof-state. The Wolfpack will face four in-state schools in the fall: UNC-Chapel Hill, Duke, Wake

Forest and East Carolina.

“Being able to say that you are a ‘state champion’ is a pretty neat deal,” first-year head coach Dave Doeren said.

Before State can battle its local foes, the Pack will have to deal with three non-conference bouts and a Thursday night tilt with Textile Bowl rival Clemson, all at Carter-Finley Stadium. The season opener is Saturday against

Louisiana Tech in Doeren’s debut as head coach at N.C. State.

While cognizant of the importance of winning rivalry games, Doeren said he is not ready to turn his complete focus on his neighbors just yet.

“Everything we are doing is based on Louisiana Tech,” Doeren said. “That is our sole focus.

You just take it step-by-step.”

The Bulldogs are coached by

Skip Holtz, son of former N.C. State head coach Lou Holtz.

Louisiana Tech finished the 2012 campaign with a 9-3 record and is entering its first season as members of Conference USA. The other non-conference games will be versus the Richmond Spiders on Sept. 7 and the Central Michigan Chippewas on Sept. 28 in Raleigh. The Wolfpack will not travel away from home

until its fifth game of the season on Oct. 5 against Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C. While State travels away from Raleigh only four times and will fly to road games only twice, Doeren said the performance on its travels that keeps the Pack from entering elite status as a football program.

RED • Fall 2013

Doeren leads Wolfpack into new era Rob McLamb Staff Writer

When N.C. State takes the field at Carter-Finley Stadium for its season opener against Louisiana Tech on Saturday, it will not only mark the beginning of an era, but also the end of a process where first-year head coach Dave Doeren has bonded with his team, school and community. Doeren accepted the job as head coach at State on Dec. 1, 2012—two days before his 41st birthday—and in doing so gave up the chance to coach Northern Illinois in the Orange Bowl for an opportunity to take the Wolfpack to greater heights. The acclimation to major conference football began as Doeren prepared for the Kay Yow Spring Game. The adjustment to life in North Carolina and at N.C. State started even sooner, and Doeren said he and his family are both happy with the decision to head south to Raleigh.“We love it,” Doeren said. “It is a great place, and the people are

friendly. There is a lot to do, and we love to be outdoors and do things—whether it is at the beach, on a river or at the lake.

Here there are a lot of those oppor tu nit ies.”Doeren has worked hard to ingrain (I’m not sure “ingrain” is the word you’re looking for here–might you replace “ingrain himself with” with “truly become a part of”) himself with the N.C. State community.

Whether it is making the rounds with the other sports at State with his “Dare Coach D Challenge,” riding to different cities on the Coach’s Caravan, or performing for students and faculty at the recent Packapalooza street festival, there have been few stones left unturned. The first-year coach likes what he has seen from Wolfpack Nation, both on campus and beyond.

“It has been outstanding here,” Doeren said. “The other athletes I have been around with the ‘Dare Coach D’ thing, the different professors I have been able to greet and meet, everybody is excited and supportive. The campus itself, I think, is a really beautiful campus. It has been fun so far. I look forward to future dealings I have over there.”

As Doeren was getting familiar with the student-athletes during the spring and in the summer practices, he and his staff were most pleased with their attitude and demeanor, both on and off the field.

“They are a really good bunch of guys,” Doeren said. “They like to work hard. They’re also polite and well-mannered.”

As the season approached, Doeren was also happy to point out at his first game-week press conference that there were no academic casualties over the summer. The head coach said he was

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JOANNAH IRVIN/TECHNICIAN

N.C. State head coach, Dave Doeren, speaks to the media on Sunday, Aug. 4. Coaches and players gathered at the Murphy Center to be interviewed and photographed in preparation for the 2013 season.

also thrilled with the conviction and the comprehensive manner with which his players conducted their community-related activities.

“The team is about a 2.80 [GPA] for the summer,” Doeren said. “That has helped raise our team GPA, and it puts us in a position to have success in the fall.

There are no players on the roster academically ineligible going into the fall, which coming into the summer I could not say to you that was going to happen. A lot of guys battled to stay here. I am thankful not only for the work our players did, but for all of the academic support people who worked hard and make our guys did things the right way.”

“We did over 1,100 hours of community service as a team this summer,” Doeren added. “I asked our players to do 10 hours per person, per year. They did that in one summer. I think that says a lot about the way we are

DAVE DOEREN’S COACHING HISTORY YEAR

SCHOOL

POSITION

RECORD

2009

Wisconsin

Defensive Coordinator/ Linebackers Coach

10-3

2010

Wisconsin

Defensive Coordinator/ Linebackers Coach

1-2

2011

Northern Illinois

Head Coach

11-3

2012

Northern Illinois

Head Coach

12-1 SOURCE: N.C. STATE ATHLETICS

approaching things here and the way they give back to a city that gives them a lot in return.”

With the amenities that N.C. State and Raleigh have, the large student body and fan base, and the central location within the state, Doeren said he’s certain that he’s at a school that has the wherewithal to compete for conference and national honors.

“There are a lot of great things that can happen when you play in the state capital,” Doeren said.

“There are internship opportunities there. There are media opportunities there. Those things don’t exist in smaller places.

We’ve got eight miles to an airport where we can fly guys in on direct flights from all over the country. I think it is an outstanding place that has the potential to be a conversation piece in the ACC. I would not have come here if I did not feel that way.”

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RED • Fall 2013

M itchell, Thomas vie for starting QB job Andrew Schuett Deputy Sports Editor

The N.C. State quarterbacking competition is down to a twohorse race between graduate student Brandon Mitchell and redshirt junior Pete Thomas.

Mitchell, who transferred to State from Arkansas this summer, played last season at receiver after spending his first two seasons backing up Tyler Wilson, who now plays in the National

Football League. The Amite, La., native looked for a school that could help prepare him for the NFL, something the Wolfpack has a history of doing.

“I wanted to play for team that would be good and also help me get better as a quarterback, not just a team that would run a spread offense,” Mitchell said.

“Somebody that I felt like could develop my skills and help me get better and better for the next level, which is something I want

RYAN PARRY/TECHNICIAN

N.C. State football hosts their first practice of the 2013 season Friday, August 2, 2013 at Dail Practice Facility next to Carter-Finley Stadium.

to pursue.”

Mitchell became used to success while at Arkansas and hopes his teammates can benefit from his experiences.

“I know exactly what you have to do to be top-10 in the country, to be top five in the country and go to a BCS bowl game,” Mitchell said. “That’s what I’m trying to bring to the team, the leadership and accountability that it takes to win.”

The graduate student knows that being a leader isn’t easy, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the playbook. That’s why the first thing he did after officially transferring was start learning State’s play calls.

“I got into the playbook as soon as I signed,” Mitchell said. “The next day I was asking for the playbook, and the staff said ‘Ok, hold up. We’ve got to get it together for you.’”

“I knew I was going to have to step in and be a leader. The only way to be a leader is to know what you’re talking about. I spent a lot of time in the playbook so I could know what guys are doing.”

Mitchell’s competition isn’t backing down from the challenge.

Thomas, who transferred to the Pack from Colorado State after the 2011 season, said he and Mitchell are doing everything they can to make the team successful this season.

“We’re all competing for the starting job,” Thomas said.

“We’re just trying to do the best we can: get completions, taking what the defense gives us and be young leaders. We want to be the best team we can be.”

The California native said he likes the versatility and the speed State’s new offense offers.

“One of the great things about

RYAN PARRY/TECHNICIAN

N.C. State football hosts its first practice of the 2013 season Friday, August 2, 2013 at Dail Practice Facility.

BRANDON MITCHELL YEAR

COMPLETIONS

YARDS

TD

INT

2010

1

16

0

0

2011

22

241

2

1

2012

2

45

1

0 SOURCE:: ESPN

PETE THOMAS YEAR

COMPLETIONS

YARDS

TD

INT

2010

253

2662

11

13

2011

161

1607

7

8 SOURCE:: ESPN

these coaches is that they can adapt to what these players can do,” Thomas said. “Coach [Matt] Canada and the other offensive coaches did a great job of coaching us. The up-tempo [offense] can be an advantage to us during games.”

The competition between Mitchell and Thomas should benefit the Wolfpack by making both players better. Wolfpack fans will get to see firsthand this Saturday exactly how much better.

RED • Fall 2013

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Johnson ready to lead new-look secondary Luke Nadkarni Staff Writer

Last season, the defensive backfield was an area where N.C. State didn’t h ave m a ny que s t ion marks. This time last year, the Wolfpack secondary featured three returning starters, cornerback David Amerson and safeties Brandan Bishop and Earl Wolff, with cornerback Dontae Johnson rounding out the group.

What a difference a year makes.

Amerson, Wolff and Bishop have all moved on and are battling to make National Football League rosters. Meanwhile Johnson, now a senior, finds himself as the elder statesman of a Wolfpack secondary loaded with underclassmen. The Pennington, N.J., native did not record an interception last season, but he did notch a careerhigh nine solo tackles on Nov. 3 against Virginia.

He will likely be tasked with shutting down the opposition’s top receiving threats this season.”I’m ver y excited to watch Dontae Johnson’s senior season,” first-year head coach Dave Doeren said.

Johnson is not the only senior of the defensive back.

Jarvis Byrd, who played in just four games last season due to injury, will move to safety from cornerback to help offset the loss of Wolff and Bishop. As the depth chart stands now, redshirt sophomore Juston Burris will cover the corner spot

opposite Johnson, while another redshirt sophomore, Hakim Jones, will line up opposite Byrd.

Coincidentally, Johnson, who began his State career as a safety, made the opposite move last season that Byrd is making this year.

“We definitely talk about that,” Johnson said. “We’re always bouncing different things off of each other.”

Other players who figure to get into the mix include redshirt freshmen Niles Clark and Marchez Coates at cornerback, and redshirt sophomores Tim Buckley and Josh Stanley at safety.

Buckley, a transfer from Penn State, and Stanley, a recruited walk-on, played only sparingly last season, leaving the Wolfpack with little experience in the secondary behind Johnson and Byrd. “[Dontae’s] the old man back there,” Doeren said.

“He went from being with all those talented older guys to being the oldest guy, and he’s done a great job in that role.”

At times last season, the Wolfpack defensive backs struggled even with the wealth of experience they had. In the season-opening loss to Tennessee, Volunteers quarterback Tyler Bray shredded State’s corners for 333 yards and two long touchdowns. Four weeks later at Miami, the Wolfpack gave up a mindboggling 566 yards and five touchdowns to Hurricanes field general Stephen Morris. Clemson’s Tahj Boyd posted 426 yards and five

scores in a win over State toward the end of the season.

And at other times, the Wolfpack’s pass defense looked first-rate. On Nov. 10 against Wake Forest, State limited Wake quarterback Tanner Price to 113 yards on 18 completions. In the season-defining win over then-No. 3 Florida State, the Wolfpack held FSU’s E.J. Manuel to 218 yards, a little below his season average, and intercepted Manuel once in the upset.

In State’s seven wins last season, no opponent broke 300 yards passing. By contrast,

four of State’s six losses featured the opposing team exceeding 300 yards passing, the exceptions being the Nov. 3 loss to Virg inia a nd

the Music City Bowl loss to Vanderbilt.

The Wolfpack’s pass defense ranked 83rd in the country last season even with an experienced group of players.

“It’s definitely going to be a challenge for us,” Johnson said. “We have to stay motivated.”

DONTAE JOHNSON: 2012 Tackles: 70 Solo: 52 Games played: 13 Tackles for loss: 6 Sacks:1 Forced fumbles: 1 SOURCE: N.C. STATE ATHLETICS

RYAN PERRY/TECHNICIAN

Dontae Johnson, Cornerback.

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Contact harold_trammel@ncsu.edu for additional information.

This is a great opportunity for male & female athletes who enjoy lifting weights, attending NC State games & being involved in a competitive team sport.

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RED • Fall 2013

Receiver trio excited for up-tempo offense Daniel Wilson Staff Writer

Though who will start behind center for N.C. State Saturday is still a mystery, t he Wolf-

pack’s quarterback will have plenty of reliable targets for the contest against Louisiana Tech.

State has three veteran wide receivers returning who contributed much to

the Pack’s offense last year with now-Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Mike Glennon at the helm.

Redshirt senior wide receiver Quintin Payton led the team in receiving yards

RYAN PARRY/TECHNICIAN

with 798 as he reeled in 51 receptions and two touchdowns, finishing ninth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in receiving yards.

Redshirt senior wide receiver Rashard Smith returns as the team’s punt returner after fielding 34 punts for 316 yards and a touchdown. Smith also caught 19 passes for 315 yards and five scores.

Redshirt junior wide receiver Bryan Underwood returns as the team’s leading scorer with 10 touchdown receptions, second in the ACC only to former Clemson Tiger DeAndre Hopkins’ 18 touchdowns.

Underwood recorded 44 catches for 620 yards in the 2012 season. “[Leading the team in scoring] lets me know that I can be successful in college football,” Underwood said. “It’s something to lean toward and something I can use to help me get better for the next season.”

State also has graduate student tight end Asa Watson returning for the 2013 campaign. The Rock Hill, S.C., native caught 24 passes for 282 yards and one score last season.

All of the Pack’s receivers combined for 330 receptions, for 4,031 yards and 31 touchdowns, placing second behind Clemson in all three categories for the conference.The receiver corps, whose consistency varied from week to week, is looking forward to flourishing under head coach Dave Doeren’s new

RYAN PARRY/TECHNICIAN

Recievers Bryan Underwood, Quintin Payton, Rashard Smith return after a successful 2012 campaign.

play style, which will be at a higher tempo than former head coach Tom O’Brien’s offensive style.

“Last year was pretty slow, but this year is going crazy,” Underwood said.

“The main term we call it is controlled chaos, so if we can control it, it will work very well.”

“Coming in with a new staff, all we are worried about is being consistent,” Smith said. “We are making sure that we go out there and win the games we are supposed to. We’re taking everything one step at a time.”

One glaring hallmark of the receivers’ struggles last year is the dropped passes.

The veterans said the issue will be resolved for the upcoming season. “[We have been working on] repetition and better ways to catch the ball and

focus better,” Underwood said. “We know we can do it. We know we can run routes and get open, but the drops have hurt us a lot.”

Despite the speculat ion about who w i l l start at quarterback, the new spread offense will highlight each receiver’s strengths in the upcoming campaign.

“It gives you more opportunity to make plays as a wide receiver,” Smith said. “It gives you more chances to get the ball in your hands.”

“We can’t go wrong with having five receivers,” Underwood said. “It lets us showcase our own abilities a lot more. It gives us a lot more room to run around and make a lot of defenders miss. There will be a lot of guys getting a lot of touches this year.”

RED • Fall 2013

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Running backs search for success in 2013 Daniel Wilson Staff Writer

The Wolfpack’s three-pronged running attack that showed much promise at the end of the 2011 season was cut down to one last year, as injuries to James Washington and the legal troubles of Mustafa Greene left State’s backfield with now-redshirt junior Tony Creecy. He was sidelined with an injury going into the team’s third game of the season against the Citadel.

From that injury, however, there was one who stepped up and momentarily banished the specter of an abysmal Wolfpack rushing attack.

Sophomore Shadrach Thornton, who was originally set to redshirt the year, was activated and dominated over the Citadel, solidifying his role as a platoon back alongside Creecy. The Hinesville, Ga., native ended the season leading the team in rushing yards with 694 and scored three

touchdowns, while Creecy rushed for 476 yards and five scores.Now, with a new fasttempo offensive scheme in place for the Pack, State should be able to capitalize on the running game and use it to help power the team to victory.Even so, the Pack will be playing without its leading rusher in the season opener against Louisiana Tech.

Thornton, who was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge in June, was issued a one-game suspension by head coach Dave Doeren, leaving the backfield thin once again.But another freshman running back has entered the mix, as running back Matt Dayes is listed second on the depth chart behind Creecy. The Weston, Fla., native rushed for 1,864 yards and 31 touchdowns at Cypress Bay High School last year, earning him the Broward County Player of the Year award. If Dayes lives up to his promise, he could prove to be a dangerous threat to opposing defenses.

After placing 108th out of all the Football

JOHN JOYNER/TECHNICIAN

Sophomore running back Shadrach Thornton evades a Citadel defender.

Bowl Series teams with only 1,444 yards on the ground last year, State has to claw its way back to success. With Creecy, Dayes

and eventually Thornton, the Pack could be stepping in the right direction.

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