It was only a couple of weeks ago that Wake Forest had won three of its last four games and could entertain thoughts of a bowl game. Now that the Demon Deacons have lost two consecutive very winnable games, it is more about getting through the end of the season feeling better than they did after last year’s 4-8 debacle. But Wake Forest has to face the real college football storm on Saturday as it travels to Miami to play the Hurricanes.
Facing the Hurricanes
Miami is 9-1 overall and eighth in the college football playoff rankings. The Hurricanes are number one in the country in total offense, averaging 544.8 yards per game. Quarterback Cam Ward is number one in the country in total passing yards with 3,494. That of course makes him number one in the country in passing yards per game, He also is eighth in the nation in passing yards per completion, (14.50), and fourth in passing efficiency.
All of this coming Saturday against a Wake Forest defense that is 129th in the country in passing yards allowed, and 118th in the country in total defense.
It has all the makings of the worst-case scenario you can think of.
Strangely enough, it is the first time Clawson has faced off against Miami in his 11 years of coaching at Wake Forest. Miami joined the ACC in 2004. “And I thought about all those years they were struggling,” Clawson joked. “And then the year we get them, they’re 9-1.”
The Deacs’ Effort
Wake Forest lost to Cal 46-36 earlier in the month after throwing an interception on a drive that could have tied or won the game. Last week, it was three second-half turnovers that led to a seven-point loss to North Carolina.
Wake head coach Dave Clawson said there is a distinct difference between this year’s 4-6 team and last year’s 4-8 team. Clawson said, unlike last year, this team has not quit in any game.
“I love the fight that we consistently show week after week after week. But that’s enough to win football games against football teams,” he said at his weekly press conference. “As I told the team on Monday, I appreciate how hard they play and their effort. And I never ever want to take those things for granted. But to beat good football teams requires a level of detail and execution that we did not have against North Carolina.”
A Veteran Team and a Lack of Fundamentals
Part of the challenge is undisciplined play by a very experienced team. Wake Forest had five first-half penalties against UNC and four of them were against the offensive line. That is a starting line that is stocked with fourth- and fifth-year, and even sixth-year players. So the false starts and snap infractions are confounding. He was asked after the game Saturday how these penalties happen with such an experienced group. It took a moment of reflection before he answered.
“Obviously we’re not…I don’t know,” he said. It really is that inexplicable. “Those are guys that have played a lot of football.”
After having time to break down the game film and assess what he and the coaches saw, the determination was that there is plenty of blame to go around for the drive-killing penalties. “When your sixth-year guys and fifth-year guys are doing that, you’ve got to take a good hard look in the mirror,” Clawson said. “Part of the value of experience is those are the guys that shouldn’t make those penalties.” He went on to say that since they are all his recruits going through his practices, he is responsible for their play, good and bad.
The Devil is in the Deac Details
Clawson said it is the fine details in the game that are not getting done. “We have a sixth-year receiver that has a post route and he stops running. And if he just keeps running, maybe that’s a touchdown.” The next play was a pick-six thrown by backup quarterback Michael Kern. It was Kern, a sixth-year quarterback, who was credited with all three Wake turnovers, even if they weren’t all his fault. He came into the game early in the third quarter for Hank Bachmeier who had injured his non-throwing shoulder.
“When it’s a one-score game, you always go back to those individual plays and those individual penalties,” Clawson explained. “It’s not for a lack of caring or effort or desire. But in those critical times, we have to be more disciplined. Those penalties were made by guys who are usually our most disciplined guys. When that happens, you’ve always got to look at yourself first.”
Wake Forest is 107th in the country in turnovers lost. It is up to 18 now, and teams are putting up points with the new possessions against Wake. When you are losing the turnover battle every week, there is plenty of responsibility to go around. It extends from the players to the assistants, to the head coach. “We go through it every day,” Clawson said when asked how to correct ball protection issues and penalties at this point in the season.
The Attitude
One of the few upsides is the clear distinction between last year’s team and this year’s team. “They are kind of the same group every day,” Clawson said of this year’s team, drawing the comparison to last year’s team, which saw a drop in effort from some as the record got worse during the season. “You’re always worried, are you going to start losing guys, and it hasn’t happened. “Last year after the Florida State game and the NC State game, I don’t think I could go to the press conference and watch the film and say, ‘Geez, our guys gave everything they had.’ I don’t feel that way this year. Our guys are playing really hard. As the head coach, I’ve got to get them to play with more detail and with a higher execution level.”
All of that will be needed over the last two games of the regular season, starting with Saturday. The Miami defense has been playing with fire every week. The offense is so potent, it makes up for whatever downside there is for the defense. Wake’s margin for error is pretty much zero.
