Notable Quotes From Dave Doeren's Pregame Press Conference

Doeren's Press Conference

On CJ Bailey's Leadership after the 2024 Military Bowl

"There's a reason he was voted captain as a sophomore. How he carries himself, what he stands for, what he speaks about, actions and words. CJ is way more mature than his age. I'm proud of him for standing up and saying what needed to be said as a leader and the guys follow him. It's good to see that and that's what you need. Great teams have internal leadership in that locker room away from the coaches."

Thoughts on the team's traits during fall camp

"It's been a really fun, refreshing, enjoyable fall camp with this group of young men. It's a team and staff that has a chip on its shoulder and a lot to prove, and I like how they interact. It's a group that wants to get better, very coachable, which I've mentioned many times, meaning that they take constructive criticism well, and they want to get better. They want to be the best versions of themselves. And on top of that, you see a lot of players holding each other accountable to their goals."

On growing after the Military Bowl brawl

"It started minutes after the game in that locker room and has been continuously talked about with this football team. Obviously, it's going to be brought up the week of the game, but it's something that's been going on a long time. The standards and the culture of this football program on and off the field are to do things a certain way, and how you react versus respond is part of maturity

Two wrongs don't make a right. It doesn't matter what somebody else does. It's how we respond to what happens. And in a game in life, it's all the same. And so just having the maturity, the leadership, obviously, as coaches, doing our part to educate, but yeah, it's an ongoing topic, that it's not just college football.

We met with Troy Vincent from the NFL as an ACC head coaches group, and he talked about the same thing, you know, they were disappointed with how their guys reacted at times in the league last year, and a lot of the things that you saw penalized in the NFL were penalized in college football."

On the importance of starting strong in the home opener

"It always helps ... Momentum is great but it's a four-quarter game. We'd love to start fast, jump out of the gates, get the fans going and all of those things. That's always helpful in any football game, but you also have to keep it going."

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