RALEIGH — State won a game its coach had to have Saturday night.
The 38-22 rout of Florida State surely didn’t scream must-win in the lead-up. After all, this isn’t your father’s — nor Bobby Bowden’s — Seminoles of legend.
That’s precisely why Dave Doeren had to win. Florida State departed Carter-Finley Stadium 1-6 in the ACC, 2-6 overall, and a long distance from rebuilding a program that is a three-time national champion and 15-time ACC champ.
Had the Wolfpack lost, well … there would have been plenty gnashing of teeth with unbeaten No. 22 Liberty coming to town.
To put those Seminoles titles in perspective, State hasn’t won a league title since 1979. Florida State didn’t join the league until 13 years later.
Doeren is in his eighth season, and his athletics director is in his third. And though there’s no reason to believe Boo Corrigan is itching for a search or to tap “his guy,” whoever that might be, the fact is Saturday night only moved Doeren to 26-38 in ACC play.
Of the 25 bullet points State puts on his bio sheet, that’s not one of them.
His 4-2 bowl record is, along with having the third-most wins (52) in school history. Those mean something, too. He’s had time, he’s won more than he’s lost overall, but the Wolfpack is no closer to contending for the league title than it was when he arrived. Arguably, they’ve been closer than now.
He’s good with a settled quarterback situation, bad without — and that’s no different than a lot of coaches on any level.
“Anytime your quarterback is playing well, I don’t care what level you’re playing, you’ve got a chance to win,” Doeren said, referring to the improved play of Bailey Hockman.
He started the opener, was benched, then started in relief of an injury, was benched, and now is back again. Last week he couldn’t push the Pack through despite a 10-point fourth quarter lead on Miami.
Predecessors at State who didn’t win in the ACC didn’t last. Tom O’Brien was 22-26 in the league, former Wolfpack playing great Chuck Amato 25-31 and Mike O’Cain 26-30. Dick Sheridan a quarter century ago, from 1986-92, was the last over .500; he went 31-18-1. Everybody else since Bo Rein’s 1979 champion has failed to break even.
With a comparable 50 to 60 games range, Doeren is significantly behind each of the last three. And it begs, how much longer does State wait?
Save the divisional play arguments for another day. The Tigers and Seminoles alone haven’t put his ACC ledger 12 games below .500. There’s not a program in the league State dominates. Soft nonconference schedules have boosted the overall mark.
Florida State and Clemson have ruled the Atlantic for a decade, no doubt about that. But State holds dubious distinction with Syracuse and Louisville as the only programs of 14 never to have made any of the 15 ACC championship games — the Orange having joined the league in 2013, the Cardinals in 2014. State’s been here the whole time.
Florida State brought a program in shambles to Trinity Road on this fall evening. The Seminoles started their fourth quarterback in eight games, had two possessions and one first down in the first quarter, and bumbled their way to the house after that.
“There were quite a few things different in that game for Florida State,” Doeren said.
State, meanwhile, did what it was supposed to do with an inferior opponent. It built a 35-9 lead and cruised.
That’s a win for the coach and his team.
On this night, they had to have it.
Alan Wooten can be reached at 910-247-9132 or awooten@bladenjournal.com. Twitter: @alanwooten19.
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November 15, 2020 at 11:42AM
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Wooten: Wolfpack, Doeren win a game they had to have - Elizabethtown Bladen Journal
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