NC State Owns the Rivalry: Doeren’s Wolfpack Sets the Standard in North Carolina
Five straight wins. Eight of the last ten. Seventeen since the turn of the century.
Pick your stat - they all tell the same story: NC State has taken control of its rivalry with North Carolina, and under head coach Dave Doeren, that dominance is no longer a pleasant surprise. It’s the expectation.
While the Tar Heels still lead the all-time series, recent history paints a very different picture. In Raleigh, beating Carolina isn’t just a goal anymore - it’s the baseline. And Doeren, now in his second decade at the helm, has made sure of it.
“To me, losing to them is unacceptable,” Doeren said after the latest win. “I take a lot of pride in that rivalry game.
Nine out of 13, eight of the last ten - that sounds pretty good, feels good. I’m gonna enjoy it.”
And he should. Doeren’s Wolfpack has turned this once back-and-forth matchup into a one-sided affair.
The current five-game win streak over UNC ties the longest in NC State history, and it’s not just the volume of wins - it’s the consistency. Whether the Pack is chasing nine wins or grinding through a tough season, the finale against Carolina keeps ending the same way: with the Wolfpack on top.
That kind of stability in a rivalry game is rare, and the players know what it means. Senior linebacker Caden Fordham, who’s never lost to UNC during his time in Raleigh, summed it up simply.
“It means everything,” Fordham said. “When you come here, this school, this culture - it’s something that’s talked about all the time.
It’s awesome to go out like that with a win. There’s nothing more I could ask for.”
Doeren’s 9-4 record against the Tar Heels is more than just a stat - it’s a statement. After splitting his first eight meetings with UNC, he’s now reeled off five straight, and the momentum doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
For a program that hasn’t cracked the College Football Playoff or lifted an ACC championship trophy, this rivalry has become its proving ground. And Doeren has owned it.
“It was a dominating performance,” he said. “To win five straight against that school says a lot. It’s been done three times in school history, I was told, so I’m really proud of that.”
In a state where NC State and UNC are the two biggest names in college football, this rivalry has always carried weight. But now, the Wolfpack isn’t just competing - it’s controlling the narrative. That shift has been years in the making, and it started the moment Doeren arrived.
“It goes back to my first day here on the job,” he recalled. “I can’t tell you how many people welcomed me and then said, ‘Whatever you do, beat them.’ That really resonated, and our kids understand what it means to this fanbase.”
That message has clearly stuck. NC State has turned its annual matchup with Carolina into the biggest football game in the state - and more often than not, it’s walking away with the win. The latest chapter only reinforced that dominance, and this time, the Wolfpack didn’t just win - they made a statement.
Despite UNC bringing in legendary NFL defensive mind Bill Belichick to lead the program, the Tar Heels didn’t look like a threat. If anything, they looked overmatched. What was supposed to be a marquee coaching matchup turned into a blowout, with NC State looking like the more prepared, more physical, and more motivated team from the jump.
“I just wanted to make a statement coming into this game,” said sophomore quarterback CJ Bailey. “We did.
We put up 42 points as an offense. It’s good to back up what I was saying, but that’s not really a big factor - as long as we won, that’s all I care about.”
That kind of poise from a young quarterback speaks volumes. Bailey’s performance was just the latest example of how NC State has built a culture that thrives in this rivalry. While Carolina is dealing with roster turnover and instability under a new regime, the Wolfpack has something that’s harder to quantify but easy to see: identity.
Toughness. Grit.
Consistency. Those aren’t just buzzwords in Raleigh - they’re the foundation of what Doeren has built.
And while every program goes through changes, NC State’s direction feels clear. The coaching staff is intact.
The locker room is united. And the results on the field speak for themselves.
Meanwhile, Chapel Hill’s outlook is murky. The Belichick era hasn’t brought the spark many hoped for, and with the Tar Heels still searching for answers, NC State continues to set the tone.
For the current senior class, the message is simple: they never lost to Carolina. Two of those wins were blowouts, and all four were defining moments in their college careers.
“Never losing to them is something I’ve always dreamed of,” Fordham said. “Coming here to NC State, it’s something that’s emphasized every year. So it was awesome to go out like that with a bang.”
That’s the new standard now - not just competing with Carolina, but beating them. Repeatedly.
Convincingly. And with the kind of swagger that comes from knowing you’ve earned it.
Dave Doeren has turned NC State into a program that doesn’t just talk about being the best in the state - it proves it every year in the biggest game on the schedule. His decade of dominance over the Tar Heels isn’t just a chapter in the rivalry. It’s the new benchmark.
And for the Wolfpack, that’s a legacy worth building on.