Technician: In what ways has offensive coordinator Steve Logan opened up the offense for you?Ryan: There’s more freedom for the quarterback in our offense this year. There’s a lot of plays we call at the line of scrimmage and change out of what we were in and put ourselves in a better position. At the same time, there’s some more down-the-field passing calls, some more aggressive pass plays. It’s been fun to work in this offense thus far.
Technician: So you have more play-calling responsibility this year?Ryan: Yeah, there’s a number of times throughout the game where the coaches call upon myself to go out there and change the play or call the play at the line of scrimmage, and it’s something I feel comfortable doing.
Technician: What’s your reaction to being a ACC Player of the Year candidate?Ryan: It’s a great honor to be mentioned in that light at the beginning of the year. Obviously there’s a lot of great players in the ACC, and to be mentioned amongst those names is pretty special. But at the same time, it doesn’t mean much at the beginning of the year, and ultimately all that matters is how we do as a team this year and how we compete and win games.
Technician: What do you think about the way your schedule opened up this year? You had Wake at home, then an emotional game against N.C. State, and then you’re on the road at Georgia Tech?Ryan: We’re starting pretty fast with three conference games and three games with big implications for what we want to do as a team this year. It’s an exciting start. We’ve got one win under our belt. We’re trying to get another win this weekend, and we’ll work really hard this week to try to do that.
Technician: What do you think you’ll say to coach O’Brien after Saturday’s game?Ryan: I just want to say “hello,” wish him luck for the rest of the year and wish him the best down at N.C. State. Kind of check up and see if his family’s doing OK. I got to know them well. That’s pretty much it, and just make sure everything’s well and tell him I look forward to catching up with him in the future at some point.
Technician: Have you gotten to talk to any of the staff members much since they left?Ryan: I spoke with Tom O’Brien down at the ACC Media Kickoff in Pinehurst in July, and it was a good chance to catch up. It was very good to see him. I feel like I have a great relationship with him. I played for him for four years and got to know him pretty well and have a lot of respect for him. It was good to catch up with him when I saw him during the summer, and it’ll be good to see him after the game.
Technician: Are you relieved that you’re getting the N.C. State game out of the way early on in the season?Dunbar: It’s one of those things to put behind us. It means just as much as the last game we played. They all count the same in my book. I’m definitely glad we’re getting this out of the way early so we don’t have to worry about N.C. State.
Technician: What was it like to find out that the defensive staff was going to stay in place, for the most part?Dunbar: I was very excited to hear that our defensive staff was staying intact for the most part with coach Spaz[iani] and coach McGovern coming back. I feel very comfortable with coach McGovern. He’s basically been my linebacker coach since I got here. I’ve been very comfortable with coach McGovern, and I understand what Spaz wants, and what they want as defense in general, and what they expect out of me. It’s definitely a comfort zone there with those guys coming back, and you get the sense things are going to happen.
Technician: Is there anybody on the team that was upset that coach O’Brien left and is using this as extra motivation going into Saturday?Dunbar: I’m sure there are guys — I don’t know anyone personally who’s really upset about it — but I’m sure some guys feel some animosity about it. But for the most part, guys have moved on past that. We like coach Jags, and coach Jags has done a great job here. He’s our leader, and we’re going to follow him.
Technician: I’m sure there are some fans who are going to show their displeasure Saturday, right?Dunbar: Yeah, I think the fans are going to take it more personally than we are. We know that we’re out there playing N.C. State, not coach O’Brien. They have a bunch of talent across the board — Andre Brown, Dunlap, Blackman — they have a bunch of talent. So we know what to expect from those guys, and we know we’re playing N.C. State, not coach O’Brien or coach Bible and their staff.
Technician: When asked if you thought there should be extra security along the State sideline this year, and you said, “No, but he might need some earmuffs.”Dunbar: Yeah, I think he might need some earmuffs. I don’t think he needs any security. Our fans are pretty good about that. And I know they respect him. He’s done a lot for our program, so I’m sure they respect him. But, you know, fans say the darnedest things, so you don’t really know what’s going to happen. So he might need some earmuffs. I don’t think he’ll need the security, though.
Technician: Well I told him about that, and he said he wears headphones the whole game anyway, so he’ll be fine.Dunbar: You know what? He does, to be honest with you. He wears them the whole game — so he’ll be perfectly fine. OB’s a strong guy. He can barely hear anything you have to say anyway. He’s focusing on the game.
Technician: What’d you think of his first game against Central Florida? Did you see film of that one?Dunbar: I watched the game a couple of times. It was another typical coach O’Brien game. He has his team come out ready to play. I think they came out slow. Obviously they proved they were a better team in the second half. But I think that’s how they’re going to start the game this upcoming week. Coach O’Brien, he’s always about 60 minutes of football, from the beginning to the end, and that’s exactly what they played. They maybe struggled in the first half, but he had those guys out there playing their hearts out. And I’m sure that’s how he’ll have them this week — that’s just the type of guy he is.
