Most programs have a multi-week Spring camp and end it with a scrimmage. Wake Forest went in a different direction this year. There were two full practices this week after last Saturday’s Fan Fest/Spring scrimmage.
Wake Forest Ends Spring Camp
Head coach Jake Dickert wanted to have time to review the film from the scrimmage and still have some practices left to work on some of the elements. There are 15 practices allowed during the Spring window. Dickert had the team working on post-scrimmage elements with practices #14 and #15.
Dickert joked that he had tried this once before (when he was head coach at Washington State). “I’ve done this one other time, and it was one of the worst practices I’ve ever seen. I lost my sh*t, my cool. You know what I mean. You guys have seen that before.”
Where Does the Team Stand?
The idea does not come without risks. The Demon Deacons came out of Spring with no season-crippling injuries, compared to three from last Spring. Dickert stayed away from full-contact practices this week to protect the health of his team.
“I was a little bit nervous about doing these last two practices after the Spring game. But we identified a bunch of things that we needed to get better at,” Dickert told the media on Wednesday. He said he was happy with the work ethic the team showed over the course of the 15 practices. “The one word I would use, is that this team is very competitive.”
Offense/Defense
As we have been reporting throughout camp, the defense is ahead of the offense. “I think the defense, they’re exactly where we want them to be.” He said they have been aggressive and hungry. Most of the camp was without starters Davaughn Patterson and Langston Hardy, and Aiden Hall missed all of camp. Patterson came back to full speed for the last two weeks. Everyone is expected back at full speed by the time Fall camp starts the first week of August.
The offense is another story. “Let’s just be honest. We’ve got three guys with a ton of game experience at this level,” Dickert said. “As an offensive staff, we’ve got to go back and figure out what these guys do really well. That will be the magic from the coaching staff this Summer.”
Dickert said it has been a process as to when to push the players and when to take the foot off the gas just ever so slightly. “These guys are what I call beneficially drained. We have pushed them. We’ve been extremely physical. They’re to that point where they need a little reset.”
Leaving with Some Laughs
That also explains the last 10 minutes of camp. Wake has a new machine that simulates punts by distance, angle, and style. We previewed the machine, called The Matador, during our coverage of the AFCA convention in January.
The team, which has had group [First in the Forest] competitions all Spring, had various players trying to catch these 50+ yard punts. They had freshmen, coaches, and the big men up front, all competing. “The Monarch also throws it too nice. It’s like having Ray Guy kicking it back there,” Dickert joked. Of course, he was also quick to point out that he successfully made his catch off the machine. “You’ve got to reward them for hard work.” The Monarch, by the way, costs around $40,000 per year for lease and software licensing.
Next
The team now gets four weeks off before Summer workouts begin after Memorial Day weekend. Players can still be in the facility, with the knowledge that it is still a 100% working environment. The weight room and training facilities are still for them. But Dickert said he also wants them to have time off. “When you’re away from the building, you’ve got to get away from football,” he said. “These guys grow up in the age of their trainers and all this type of stuff. But they’ve got to be college kids, too. Go take a break.”
Last Word will have more coverage from the last week of Spring camp over the next week.
Main Image: Tony Siracusa
