Dec 28, 2024; Annapolis, MD, USA; *East Carolina Pirates tight end Desirrio Riles (6) catches a bobbled pass during the first half of the Go Bowling Military Bowl against the North Carolina State Wolfpack at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Importance of Week One For NC State

Originally posted on NC State Wolfpack on SI
By Tucker Sennett | Last updated Aug 10, 2025 1:30 PM ET

Head coach Dave Doeren and the North Carolina State Wolfpack want nothing more than to turn things around in 2025 on the football field. The program's season opener is just a few weeks away with the Wolfpack working hard in fall camp to prepare.

The opener has NC State matched up against a familiar opponent: the East Carolina University Pirates. ECU and NC State met in the 2024 Military Bowl, where ECU pulled out a win that ended NC State's disappointing season.

The opening matchup is massively important to North Carolina State for a number of reasons.

Extending the Streak

Opening a season with a win has become something of a tradition for Dave Doeren and the Wolfpack. Doeren's consistency has long been a point of praise from those within the college football world and that consistency starts in the opening week of the season.

The Wolfpack has owned openers for the last few years. With a win over ECU on August 28, NC State will extend its season opener win streak to eight games. The last opener Doeren and the Wolfpack lost came in 2017, when the team played South Carolina in Charlotte.

While the expectation each year is to compete for a title, starting the season off with a win is the first stepping stone in reaching that goal. Keeping the streak going just gets the Wolfpack an inch closer to ACC glory.

Exorcising Demons

The 2024 Military Bowl was ugly in many ways. Disaster struck late for the Wolfpack when ECU's running back, Rahjai Harris, ran for an 86-yard touchdown to put ECU up 26-21 with just over a minute left in the game.

Then, the notorious brawl broke out and ended with many players from both sides ejected. Doeren spoke about the embarrassment the event caused.

"I told our team in the locker room that’s the most embarrassed I’ve ever been as a coach — not because we lost but because of how we behaved at the end of it," Doeren said. "I’m not going to be part of football like that. So they can change or they can find a new coach because I’m not going to do it anymore. To me, it’s disrespectful to the game of football. It’s disrespectful to the staff and the fans. And they understand. And they understand what this game is about. It’s about winning the football game."

A win over ECU in the opener will clear the air for a program trying to forget what happened back in December.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @WolfpackOnSI and @SennettTucker and never miss another Wolfpack story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.

This article first appeared on NC State Wolfpack on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: