CHARLOTTE — Addressing a slew of reporters in the grand ballroom at the Westin Charlotte on Thursday, N.C. State’s Bradley Chubb didn’t shy away from questions about the Wolfpack’s expectations this season.
“We want to be that team that you don’t want to play because you know we’re going to hit you hard in the mouth,” Chubb said during the opening day of the Atlantic Coast Conference preseason media event in Charlotte.
“We just want to be that team that you don’t want to play because you know we’re going to play as hard as we possibly can, and you’re going to get the best from us every week.”
The 6-foot-4, 275-pound defensive end ranked tied for fourth in FBS with 22 tackles for loss last season and tied for 19th with 10.5 sacks. After flirting with entering the NFL draft, Chubb opted to return to Raleigh and is set to anchor a veteran front that looks to be one of the toughest in the nation.
Coming off a 7-6 season that ended with a victory over Vanderbilt in the Independence Bowl, the Wolfpack is looking to improve its record in close games. N.C. State lost four games by seven points or less last season, including an overtime loss to Clemson, the reigning national champions.
Like Chubb, N.C. State head coach Dave Doeren, who enters his fifth year at the helm, embraced the high expectations surrounding the Wolfpack ahead of the new year.
“You want expectations and you have to earn them,” Doeren said Thursday. “That’s the one thing I told our guys. Be proud of people talking nicely about you, but also understand that changes quickly when you don’t live up to those things. And so the bottom line for me and our program is we don’t look at where you want us to end up. We all want to be champions in college football. There isn’t a coach that won’t tell you that. Our focus is on the daily grind.”
Taking that next step starts with Chubb and Jaylen Samuels, the Wolfpack’s do-everything player whose abilities prompted the ACC to create an additional all-purpose back position on the preseason All-ACC team.
“I mean, that’s crazy just to think about that,” said Samuel, who ranks sixth in Wolfpack history with 31 career touchdowns and has led the team in receptions each of the past two years. “But that means something special to me, and I’m going to keep working hard to prove people wrong.”
Lining up all over the field in 2016, Samuels paced the team with 55 catches for 565 yards and seven touchdowns. He was third in rushing with 189 yards and six scores.
Using last season’s close losses as motivation, Samuels hopes to cap his college career with his best season yet.
“I’m just trying to leave a mark for myself as a player on and off the field,” he said. “You know, just at night I think about the plays that I could have made last year, but I don’t try to think about it, I just try to move forward. … every day just trying to push myself to be better so I know I can do better than what I did last year.”
With Chubb and Samuels leading the way as the faces of the Wolfpack program, Doeren feels the team is heading in the right direction.
“To me the best teams always have the most recognized players,” he said. “That’s what we want to have at the end of the season.”
With a vaunted defensive front and returning starters across the board, including quarterback Ryan Finley, N.C. State is experienced throughout the roster with the exception of the running back position.
With Matt Dayes, who finished with 1,166 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 249 carries last season, in the NFL, Doeren said he’s “excited to see” the running back competition play out in August.
“I think it’s opportunity for Dakwa Nichols, for Reggie Gallaspy, for Nyheim Hines, for Jaylen Samuels,” he said.
“Those four guys are all very skilled players that deserve chances at the football, and that’s what fall camp will be about. I think the positive of the unknown is that there’s options in it, and so I’m looking forward to seeing that room compete. … We’ll just see how it plays out.”
Doeren emphasized the importance of his team taking a daily approach and playing with a “one more” mentality.
And no, he hasn’t forgotten about the close losses last season.
“I think any time you have a game that really exaggerates the importance of one play, it helps your program because you can go to that and say, hey, when we work out today, guys, this last rep, it matters because every rep matters,” Doeren said.
“And when you have those tight games like that where it goes one way or the other, it’s quick to point to a play and say, that could have changed it.”
For Chubb, the setbacks are simply a stepping stone.
“It’s a new year. We’re striving to be the best that we can possibly be, on and off the field, and when you’ve got guys that are going to go out there and play their hearts out for each other and for one another, I just never know what’s going to happen,” he said.
“I feel like if we all just continue to play for each other, then the sky’s the limit for this team, and those close calls won’t be close anymore, and those games that y’all say we should have won, I feel like those games are going to be won.”
