Story perspectives

NC State Fires Coach Dave Doeren After Stanford Loss

By Drooid · Oct 25, 2026, 2:07 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

NC State Fires Coach

NC State fires head coach Dave Doeren after 31-28 loss at Stanford.
NC State will pay Doeren about $9.75 million as a three-year buyout.
Athletic director Boo Corrigan names running backs coach Todd Goebbel interim head coach.
Former Wolfpack quarterback Philip Rivers is mentioned as a possible replacement despite no college coaching experience.
Doeren left with a 98-74 record, most wins in program history, though he never won an ACC championship.

Summary

NC State LateKickoff

NC State has been outscored 115-53 in second halves of its first five FBS games.
Eight starters, including RB Duke Scott and WR Jojo Trader, missed the Stanford game because of injuries.
A 10:30 p.m. PT kickoff pushes NC State’s fourth quarter past midnight Eastern, complicating preparation.
Stanford RB Micah Ford became the first Cardinal since Bryce Love (2017) to rush 150+ yards in back-to-back games.

History

Historical Context

After a 15-22 record, Michigan dismissed Rich Rodriguez on Jan 4 2011, ending the program’s longest bowl-streak and sparking a rapid coaching search. The move reflected a growing national college-football trend of costly buyouts and instant performance demands, a significant pattern repeated again when NC State fired Dave Doeren in 2024, the later.

1 of 3

NC State Fires Coach

NC State fires head coach Dave Doeren after 31-28 loss at Stanford.
NC State will pay Doeren about $9.75 million as a three-year buyout.
Athletic director Boo Corrigan names running backs coach Todd Goebbel interim head coach.
Former Wolfpack quarterback Philip Rivers is mentioned as a possible replacement despite no college coaching experience.
Doeren left with a 98-74 record, most wins in program history, though he never won an ACC championship.

1 / 3