On Saturday, North Carolina State Wolfpack suffered a disastrous loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores at FirstBank Stadium. The defeat did not go down well with the NC State fans because of how it came in the very last second.
Dave Doeren's NC State had a three-point lead when Vanderbilt's edge rusher Mile Capers forced a fumble near the end zone of NC State. At the time, less than a minute of the fourth quarter was left. But what happened in that time not only resulted in giving away the lead but also losing the match altogether.
After the forced fumble, the Vanderbilt cornerback recovered it and rushed for a touchdown at the other end of the field with one second remaining on the clock. The win was so clutch that Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea admitted being left "speechless."
Deep Dive
What caused NC State fans to call for Dave Doeren's firing after the Vanderbilt game?
How has Dave Doeren's coaching performance been viewed amid the team's poor start to the season?
Why do some analysts believe that this loss may lead to Dave Doeren losing his job?
But for his counterpart in NC State, things were less than pleasant. Following the 35-31 victory, NC State fans started calling for NC State coach Dave Doeren to be fired.
Fans Calls For Dave Doeren To Be Fired
{{/usCountry}}But for his counterpart in NC State, things were less than pleasant. Following the 35-31 victory, NC State fans started calling for NC State coach Dave Doeren to be fired.
Fans Calls For Dave Doeren To Be Fired
{{/usCountry}}Hundreds of NC State fans, unable to digest the last-minute loss, called for the sacking of head coach Dave Doeren. The fact that the team has started the season 1-2 is not helping its case.
“This should be the end of the Dave Doeren era at NC State,” wrote CBS College Football Analyst Brad Crawford. “Simply unacceptable after one of the biggest gaffes in CFB history. Wolfpack led throughout. Disastrous.”
“Dave Doeren should be fired before getting on the plane,” a popular college football podcaster wrote.
“After an epic collapse today against Vanderbilt, North Carolina State head coach Dave Doeren is now on the hot seat. If NC State is unable to recover from this, Doeren is very likely to lose his job at season’s end,” college football reporter Evan Sidrey wrote.
“Dave Doeren should be fired tonight. That’s the most unbelievable loss I’ve ever seen in sports,” wrote another.
“This is the kinda s*** that should probably get the coach fired, and Doeren’s seat wasn’t exactly cold to begin with,” added another.
What Dave Doeren Said About The Last-Minute Lost
Dave Doeren interacted with the media after the disastrous loss on Saturday, calling the loss "a very sad ending."
"We fought really hard, controlled the football game, and responded when we needed to respond multiple times," he said. "They're a good program; they fought back and got some momentum, and we'd get it back, all the way down to the end when we intercepted a pass. It's a shame it came down to that play where that should never happen. Obviously, it’s a play that breaks your heart more than anything.
"I was proud of how our guys played for 59 minutes and 59 seconds," he added.
The NC State Wolfpack play the Appalachian State Mountaineers next on Saturday, September 27.