We said this game would be different, and it was. This was no FCS opponent or bottom-of-the-rung Power 5 school. Old Dominion challenged Wake Forest all afternoon at S.B. Ballard Stadium in Norfolk, VA Saturday. And for the Demon Deacons, it was as bad as it could get. Until it wasn’t. Wake Forest with an epic comeback, pulls out the improbable 27-24 win.
Wake was down 17-0 at the half. Old Dominion was imposing its will, particularly on defense. And everything Wake tried blew up on them like an ACME stick of dynamite on Wile E. Coyote.
Boom Goes the Dynamite
The first quarter had all the compelling action of a poorly played Pop Warner game. It was 0-0 at the end of the period and the two teams had combined for four first downs and 104 yards.
Then Wake took delivery of the ACME dynamite. ODU quarterback Grant Wilson found a wide-open Javon Harveywho was a good three yards past Wake defensive back Jamare Glasker. The result was an explosive 68-yard touchdown play and a 7-0 Monarchs lead.
On the other hand, Wake quarterback Mitch Griffis had little breathing room for most of the first half. And when he did, the decisions were not always phi beta kappa material. The Demon Deacons had the ball at the ODU six-yard line. Griffis was under pressure as he was much of the day. Instead of throwing the ball away and saving the field position, he ran for his life, got hit, and fumbled. LaMareon James scooped up the loose ball and ran 80 yards untouched for the ODU score and the 14-0 lead.
ODU added a 49-yard field goal in the last two minutes of the half for the 17-0 lead. The Demon Deacons offense managed all of 127 yards of total offense, (to 277 for ODU) in the half. Wake averaged just over three yards per play and Griffis was 10 of 22 for 110 yards and an interception. Griffis was back to extending plays when there was nothing there. Part of the pressure in his face was due to some poor edge blocking. And some of it was due to his refusal to ditch the ball when it was the smart thing to do.
Needing Answers
Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson said after the game that there was no frenzy of emotions at halftime. He called his tone, “Matter of fact.” He said he told the team not to panic and just focus on play-by-play in order to get back into the game.
Get back into the game they did. On Wake’s first series of the third quarter, from the ODU 27-yard line, Griffis saw that defensive back Tahj Ra-El fell down, leaving Taylor Morin wide open. Griffis threw across his body and across the field to the wide-open Morin for the touchdown capping a 75-yard drive.
The first half Griffis was still hanging around though. Later in the quarter, again under pressure, he threw off his back leg and got hit hard as he delivered a ball that just floated downfield. James was there for the 66-yard pick-six, (and his second turnover touchdown of the game). Wake was back to being down 24-7.
Taking What ODU Gave
On Wake’s next drive, Griffis lucked into what could have been a game-ending play. ODU defensive back Terry Jones had the interception right in his midsection in the end zone but dropped the ball. It saved Wake from another huge turnover as the Demon Deacons settled for a 36-yard Matthew Dennis field goal to cut the deficit to 24-10.
Another Dennis field goal, also from 36 yards out, cut the Monarchs lead to 24-13.
It was the Old Dominion offense that was stagnant at that point. The Monarchs had lived off Wake Forest mistakes, and now those sticks of dynamite weren’t as readily apparent in the Demon Deacons offense.
In the fourth quarter, Griffis completed passes twice on third down. Then he connected with Morin, who had split two defenders over the middle caught the ball at the six, and ran it in for a 48-yard touchdown. It was 24-20 with 9:45 left in the game and the Wake Forest offense was bearing no resemblance to the one in the first half.
The Defense is the Thing
The defense took center stage. It was what had kept Wake Forest within striking distance all day. Out of ODU’s three touchdowns, only one was given up by the defense. Now, with the game inconceivably within reach, linebacker Jacob Roberts flattened Wilson, forcing a fumble. Jasheen Davis picked it up and ran 14 yards down to the ODU six-yard line. Two plays later, Griffis rolled to his right and hit Jahmal Banks with a four-yard touchdown pass. The PAT put Wake up 27-24.
With 6:48 still to play, the Demon Deacons’ defense, which had been the anchor all day held ODU to a net negative three yards on the Monarchs’ last two series to seal the win.
After the game, Clawson said of his offense, “Technically and execution-wise, it was probably one of the poorer games we have played in the last few years.” He gave credit where it was most obvious. “Our defense just played their tails off.” As for Griffis, making his fourth career start in four years at Wake Forest, Clawson said this was still part of his growth experience. “You’ve just got to learn at times to give up on a play. I think at times, we’re still holding the ball a little too long.”
It’s Still Griffis’ Team
Despite Griffis’ struggles, and having to be helped off the field by trainers in the third quarter, Clawson said they never wavered on keeping the first-year starter in the game, as long as he could take the physical part of it. “Mitch is our quarterback. If he’s your guy and you believe in him, you’ve got to let him play through that stuff.”
Griffis, after the game, could be mistaken for a guy who just lost a heartbreaker, as opposed to the winning quarterback. He admitted to feeling physically beat up with all the hard hits he took. “I’m happy. I’m just exhausted,” he told the media.
“I played horrible, but I just kept telling the guys, ‘Just don’t quit. Don’t stop the fight.’” By all accounts, Griffis struggled with decision-making and turnovers. Yet, he finished the game 25 for 42 for 312 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.
He said the thing that was making him feel better, amidst the physical pain, was what he called the lack of quit in the Demon Deacons. “You can teach assignments. You can fix mistakes. But you can’t teach heart. You can’t teach toughness. You can’t teach balls. And you can’t teach grit.”
He said in the second half he went back to just doing his job as proscribed and quit trying to do much. “I was just trying to do my job, and nothing too special.”
Next
Old Dominion falls to 1-2 with the loss, with both losses coming against ACC teams, while they remain 1-0 in the Sun Belt.
The now gritty Griffis and his teammates are 3-0 heading into next weekend’s home game against Georgia Tech.
Photo courtesy: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports
