Advertisement

What NC State football coach Dave Doeren said about his future with the Wolfpack

CHARLOTTE — NC State football coach Dave Doeren is already thinking about his future with the Wolfpack.

“Honestly hope that they let me finish here,” Doeren said Thursday at ACC Kickoff.

“That's my goal is to retire here one day the winningest coach in school history and be able to kind of go to the parking lot and tailgate myself and have some fun.Maybe not have as much stress and get a vacation every now and then.”

Doeren enters the 2023 season with the second-longest tenure in the ACC and the seventh-longest among coaches in Power 5 conferences.

WOLFPACK'S TOUGHEST GAMES: Who will be NC State football’s toughest opponents in 2023? Ranking all 12 by difficulty

'YOU SUCK': Why Duke football's Riley Leonard wears a bracelet with harsh words

“For me it's a blessing to be at this school this long. Really in my life I've never lived anywhere this long. Even as a child, moving around,” Doeren said.

“. … I came to NC State for the same reason I'm still there. I think it's a great fit. It's a bunch of blue-collar, tough, hard-working people that enjoy good food, good music. The state of North Carolina, fishing, mountains, beach, lakes.”

Over the course of his 10 seasons in Raleigh, Doeren has led the Wolfpack to 72 victories, just five wins shy of matching the program record. Eight of Doeren’s teams have qualified for postseason bowls, including a 2022 squad that dealt with injuries but finished with an 8-5 record.

Doeren remains focused on bringing NC State its first ACC championship since 1979. The Wolfpack starts the 2023 season on Aug. 31 at UConn.

“How do you get over the top? That's a great question,” Doeren said. “I say this to the team. It's one more play sometimes or one more player sometimes or one more play-call. It's a very little thing that takes place. Sometimes you have to have some luck, too.”

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: NC State football coach Dave Doeren wants to retire with Wolfpack