While the Wake Forest offense has spent Fall camp trying to find its rhythm and flow, there has been one position that is a known producer. The Wake Forest running back has both skill and depth.
The Wake Forest Running Back Room
Everyone already knows all they need to know about Demond Claiborne. He made Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List. He made the Doak Walker preseason watch list. Claiborne was also the top personnel priority for new head Jake Dickert. It only took a couple of hours after his introductory press conference for Dickert to make sure he met with Claiborne to convince him to stay in Winston-Salem.
With new quarterbacks and a revamped offensive line, Claiborne is expected to be the focal point of the new “power spread” offense. He has joked that he will carry the ball as many times per game as Dickert will let him.
But he is going to have a lot of help available to him this season. Dickert said the depth of the running back is going to allow for diversity in the schemes on offense.
Beyond Demond
Tate Carney is entering his redshirt junior year at Wake Forest. He has appeared in 12 games each of the last two seasons. In 2024, he had 83 carries for 339 yards and six touchdowns, mostly short yardage.
There is also Ty Clark III, who showed flashes of potential in his last two training camps, despite only getting 13 carries over 11 games last season.
And now Wake Forest fans are getting introduced to Jamario Clements, the transfer from Duquesne. Clements, a redshirt senior, was an all-conference running back with 986 yards on the ground and six touchdowns. He has been a highly notable addition to the offense during this camp.
Who Does What
Offensive coordinator Rob Ezell said the depth at the position is key to what Wake wants to do and needs to do on offense. “It’s going to be a long season. And that does allow us to do some things, maybe with different personnel groupings and really keep guys a little fresher as the season goes on,” he said earlier this week. And he was among those impressed with Clements. “He has exceeded our expectations. Just a downhill, physical runner.”
Fresh legs were an issue at running back last year. The offense took a toll on Claiborne. There were more than a few games where the gas tank was low late in the fourth quarter. Claiborne recommitted to his conditioning during the off-season. As noted in Feldman’s Freaks List bio, Clairborne can now squat 500 pounds.
Claiborne himself confirmed the numbers and the off-the-field workload, and he credits the new strength and conditioning staff, headed by Ben Iannacchione. “They actually allowed me to get even stronger than what I was with the previous staff,” he said. “I also was able to cut down on some body fat.”
The Bigger Picture
Head coach Jake Dickert analyzed the talent level he has in the backfield. “Demond’s carries need to be in certain ways. Jamario’s carries need to be in certain ways. Ty Clark has had an amazing camp so far,” he said. “Those are all different runners. So let’s give them the ball in a way that they succeed.”
Dickert added that there was intentional work to remake the room from previous years.
Claiborne looks at the bodies in the running back room as a help to him. “Having a room that is so competitive, but also so elite, helps keep me on my toes and keeps me going,” he said this week. “I’m just excited to see who gets the chance to split carries with me.”
The quarterback spot can best be defined, to this point in camp, as a mix of inconsistent and unknown. Having a running back position that can be diverse in schemes and strong enough to handle a high number of carries is going to be critical to Wake this season.
Main Image: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
