The fourth-longest tenure in FBS ended on Saturday afternoon in Raleigh.
NC State announced it has parted ways with head coach Dave Doeren, less than 24 hours after a 31-28 loss at Stanford dropped the Wolfpack to 3-4 overall and 1-3 in ACC play. The school made the announcement in a release on Saturday, October 24.
"I want to thank Coach Doeren for his service and contributions to NC State," athletic director Boo Corrigan said in the release. "I appreciate his leadership during his 14-year tenure and the passion he brought to this role. We wish Dave, Sara and his family the best in the future."
Last October, Corrigan told the Raleigh Sports Club, "I don't believe in firing coaches mid-year," and he referenced a "loss of dignity" in midseason firings during a radio appearance around the same time. A 3-4 start changed that.
The Wolfpack opened the season with a 34-8 loss at Virginia, dropped a last-second game at Vanderbilt and got blown out at home by Wake Forest. Coming off a bye week on Friday night, NC State fell behind 14-0 at Stanford, rallied to tie it, then gave up a 90-yard drive in the final two minutes of the first half.
"The guys didn't play well enough, which means I didn't have them ready," Doeren said afterward, per 247Sports. "They gashed us wherever they wanted to."
On the pass rush, Doeren said, "It's not execution. It's that guy blocking you. It's fundamentals." Of the late offensive push, he added, "But it wasn't good enough. Not even close."
A year ago, NC State sat at 4-4 and 1-3 in the ACC heading into Halloween weekend after a 53-34 loss at Pitt. The Wolfpack won four of their final five, including the Gasparilla Bowl, to finish 8-5. There was no similar bye-week turnaround this time.
Doeren arrived in Raleigh in December 2012 after two seasons at Northern Illinois, where he went 23-4, won back-to-back MAC titles and led the Huskies to the Orange Bowl, a game he did not coach after accepting the NC State job. Before that, he spent five seasons at Wisconsin (2006-10), the last two as defensive coordinator, and four at Kansas (2002-05), where he was co-defensive coordinator in 2005. Earlier stops included Montana, where he was part of the 2001 national championship staff, a graduate assistant stint at USC and three seasons at Drake.
At NC State, Doeren took over a program that went 3-9 in his first year and built it into a consistent bowl team. The Wolfpack made 11 bowl trips under his watch, finished ranked in the final AP poll in 2017, 2021 and 2023, and posted four nine-win seasons. In November 2023, he passed Earle Edwards to become the winningest coach in program history with a 20-6 win over Miami.
Fourteen years at a place that often gets viewed as the third or fourth best job in its own state is a long run, and nobody won more games there than Doeren did. That deserves a mention on the way out the door.
Doeren's 2026 compensation was $6.375 million, and his buyout if fired without cause before January 1, 2027 is more than $9.75 million, according to Yahoo Sports. He was under contract through the 2029 season.
NC State hosts Cal on Halloween with six games remaining. The school had not named an interim head coach as of publication.
The opening in Raleigh becomes the second Power Four opening this cycle, joining Maryland who parted ways with Mike Locksley earlier this week.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest on the search in Raleigh.