The consistent rain on the opening day of Wake Forest Fall camp did nothing to dampen the anticipation of a fresh start for the Demon Deacons. It is going to take a lot of success to get rid of the taste of last year’s 4-8 season. And Wake by no means has an easy path to get there. But it has to start somewhere and that was Monday.
No one is going to attempt to read too much into one day of camp. But there were a few things that made this camp different than the Spring version. The biggest was the return of receiver Donavon Greene. He missed all of last season with a torn Achilles.
He then sat out the Spring camp on a decision from head coach Dave Clawson. The move was to protect him, and his medically repaired ankle from any unnecessary work. It’s not like he has not had plenty of career snaps already. But now he is back and getting into his rhythm again.
Managing the Weather
One thing that Clawson did learn on day one was whether or not his team could handle the wet weather. The rain varied from slight drizzle to downpour over the nearly two hours of the workout. “When it first started raining I was thinking about coming inside [moving practice indoors]. But I was like, ‘You know what, we’re already out here. It’s already wet,’” he told the media Monday. He said the chances are good that there will be a game during the season where they are going to have to play in wet conditions.
Clawson was happy with the way his team handled the inclement weather. “You just don’t want it to be sloppy,” he said. “And then you throw the weather in there and they have every excuse for it to get sloppy, and it didn’t get sloppy. I thought our ball security was decent.”
The Quarterback Battle
One of the leading topics for Fall will be the quarterback battle. Portal transfer Hank Bachmeier and sixth-year Demon Deacon Michael Kern are vying for the starting spot at the position. Both took reps with the “ones” and both took snaps with the “twos” during the live scrimmaging.
“We’re going to play the long game with this one,” Clawson said. “I think 2021 might have been the only year here that we didn’t have to start different quarterbacks. And now we have two guys in their sixth year,” he added. “And I hope we can keep those guys healthy. But certainly, the odds are that we’re going to need both of them. And so for us at any point to make a premature decision or just anoint somebody, I don’t think it’s good for them. I don’t think it’s good for the team.”
Clawson is hoping Bachmeier and Kern step up to play their way into a decision. “We play a game at the end of next month. At some point, we’re going to have to make a hard decision on who the starter is and who the backup is. But there is no point in making that decision until we have to.”
The Greene Factor
Having Greene back on the field is an upside for whichever one of them is the starter. “It’s good to see him out and moving well,” Clawson told the media. “The goal is to keep him out here and moving well. Even today when he was out here, he looks different. He’s a high-end player.”
It was a new opportunity for Bachmeier to connect with the physically gifted receiver. The transfer quarterback who played last year at Louisiana didn’t get the chance in Spring with Greene being held out. “Look at this guy,” Bachmeier said as Greene walked through our interview. “He wakes up and he’s got a six-pack and is jacked,” Bachmeier said he has watched Greene on tape, so he knows what he has to work with in the receiver. “It’s nice to have that experience with older, mature guys that you’re throwing the ball to.”
Thursday is the only day off from training camp this week.
Photo from Tony Siracusa
