RALEIGH — There’s a different sense of confidence with NC State football as the team steams through its spring practices ahead of a closed-door scrimmage to wrap up the first portion of the offseason. For head coach Dave Doeren, a lot of the shift stems from the fact that there is more stability within the program in 2026 than there was a year ago.
Now in his 14th season, Doeren feels like there’s meat on the bone in his Wolfpack career. The way this group has practiced, as well as the strong contribution from returning quarterback CJ Bailey, has given the veteran coach reason to believe that this team could be capable of more special things than usual at NC State.
Alignment between coach and quarterback
Bailey’s decision to return to NC State didn’t seem to surprise Doeren all that much. The pair grew tight throughout the quarterback’s freshman and sophomore seasons, building a sense of trust and shared values during that time. Bailey indicated that his return was largely built on a reciprocal love between himself and the Wolfpack as a whole, as well as Doeren. That feeling was shared by his coach.
“He’s a special young man for a lot of reasons,” Doeren said about Bailey. “He and I have very similar thoughts on this. He came here to leave this place better than he found it, so for him, there’s meat on the bone. I feel the same way.”
The familial culture established by NC State is something Doeren takes great pride in helping build. There is a sense of home for current and former Wolfpack players when they come to Raleigh, which Bailey embraced wholeheartedly over the last two seasons with the program…