NC State fires Robert Anae, promotes QB coach Kurt Roper to offensive coordinator
N.C. State football will have a new offensive coordinator for the 2025 season, head coach Dave Doeren announced Monday.
Robert Anae was fired after two seasons with the Wolfpack. He served as the team’s offensive coordinator and inside wide receivers coach. N.C. State went 15-11 over the past two seasons running Anae’s offense.
“I want to thank Robert and wish him and his family the best,” Doeren said in a statement. “I have great respect for him and appreciate the work he has done.”
Anae had one year left on his contract, and N.C. State is responsible for a $900,000 buyout.
The Wolfpack is replacing Anae internally, promoting quarterbacks coach Kurt Roper to offensive coordinator. Roper has been with the program since 2019.
“Kurt has done a great job for us and knows what we need to do to take the next step forward as a program,” Doeren said. “He has a great relationship with our players, a great knowledge of college football and the ACC, and I’m looking forward to seeing him as a play caller.”
“I’m grateful for this opportunity and appreciate Coach Doeren’s faith in me,” Roper added. “My family and I love N.C. State, and I’m excited about the future.”
N.C. State also promoted alumnus and offensive quality control coach Gavin Locklear to tight ends coach.
Anae’s hire in 2023, along with former quarterback Brennan Armstrong’s transfer, was met with excitement. Anae guided Armstrong to one of the best careers in Virginia Cavaliers history, recording 9,034 passing yards and 10,301 yards of total offense — but that success did not translate in Raleigh.
The Wolfpack finished 2023 ranked No. 74 in the nation for scoring offense (26.1 points per game) and No. 91 in total offense (350.4 yards per game).
The Pack never fully found its footing offensively in 2024, either. It finished the season ranked No. 64 in the nation for scoring offense (28.5 points per game) and No. 77 in total offense (377.8 yards per game).
N.C. State also experienced uncertainty in the backfield during both seasons. First, MJ Morris replaced Armstrong in 2023 as the starting quarterback after a Wolfpack loss to Louisville, but was back in the lineup four weeks later after Morris opted to redshirt and enter the transfer portal. This year, CJ Bailey stepped into the starting role after Grayson McCall’s two head injuries and subsequent retirement from football.
N.C. State struggled with consistency, even after Bailey took over, much of its season predicated on one- or two-possession games.
Star receiver KC Concepcion’s efficiency dropped in his sophomore season, as well, one year after he was named 2023 ACC Rookie of the Year. Concepcion went from 839 yards on 71 catches for 64.5 yards per game in 2023 to 460 yards on 53 receptions and 38.3 yards per game in 2024. He scored 10 receiving touchdowns last year and just six this season.
Concepcion entered the transfer portal and recently committed to play for former Duke head coach Mike Elko at Texas A&M.
Despite challenges on offense, Armstrong set the N.C. State single-season rushing record by a quarterback (554 yards), and Bailey thrived under Roper in his first season.
The rookie ranks No. 2 in program history for the most passing yards by a freshman (2,413), surpassing Russell Wilson’s 1,955 yards in 2008. He is behind only Philip Rivers, who threw for 3,054 yards as a freshman in 2000.
Bailey also ranks No. 2 for pass attempts (302), completions (196) and total offense (2,692) by a freshman, behind Rivers, and leads the program with a freshman completion percentage of (64.9%), surpassing Morris’ previous record of 61.1% from 2022.
Bailey tied Wilson for the number of touchdown passes by a freshman (17) in the Wolfpack’s bowl game against East Carolina. He also the season ranked seventh in program history for quarterback rating (143.97), joining Rivers, Wilson, Devin Leary, Dave Buckey and Ryan Finley.
Bailey has credited Roper all season for his ongoing improvement.
“It’s good that that other people have interest in me, but this is where my heart’s at. This is where my head’s at,” Bailey said earlier this month. “I love coach Rope. I love coach Doeren. This is where I want to be.”
Roper’s resume spans three decades and includes work with multiple SEC teams, and he was the Ole Miss quarterbacks coach from 1999-2004, where he led Eli Manning to 2003 SEC Player of the Year honors. Manning went on to become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft and is a finalist for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Roper’s other stops include Duke under David Cutcliffe (2008-13), Tennessee, Colorado, South Carolina and the Cleveland Browns of the NFL.
Roper has experience coaching running backs, as well.
“I really like being a college football coach. I really appreciate every day I’m allowed to coach quarterbacks and meet with them and am given that responsibility,” Roper told the News & Observer last season. “I’m very appreciative of that.”
Locklear, meanwhile, played at N.C. State from 2015-17. He started his career as a walk-on wide receiver and played 38 games. He earned a scholarship in 2016.
He started his coaching career as a volunteer assistant in 2018, served as a graduate assistant in 2019 and became the offensive quality control coach in 2021.
N.C. State expects to have the majority of its offensive contributors back in 2025, including running back Hollywood Smothers and tight end Justin Joly, giving Roper and Locklear plenty to work with.
“I am very grateful to coach Doeren and coach Roper for giving me this opportunity to coach for the university that I love,” Locklear said.
N.C. State is also on the hunt for a new defensive coordinator after Tony Gibson was hired as the Marshall head coach.