Now that his first Spring camp as head coach of the Demon Deacons is over, Jake Dickert will look at the tape from Saturday\u2019s scrimmage and, in short order, get a reset for Wake Forest. How big or how small those changes are is what remains to be seen.<\/p>\n
The month-long Spring session ended Saturday with a scrimmage at Allegacy Stadium featuring some creative, if not hard to follow, scoring. The defense was given pre-assigned points for forcing a punt or a missed field goal. They got points for any takeaway\/turnover they forced, and for any turnover on downs. The offense got points by, well, scoring.<\/p>\n
The bottom line was, while virtually no program does a full speed\/full impact scrimmage for four quarters anymore, there was a lot on the line Saturday for some. There are players still trying to push their way to the top of the position room. Others are looking at where they are in the pecking order for their position group and will determine in the coming days if their future is still at Wake Forest or if they think there are better options<\/a> elsewhere.<\/p>\n Dickert was mostly pleased with what he saw on the field Saturday. But he also made it clear that he does not believe the roster, in its current iteration, is the final product they will have when they go into the Summer. \u201cWho can bring the right value to our team,\u201d Dickert said Saturday in explaining what he would be looking for in portal players over the remaining week of the window.<\/p>\n He said he knows tight ends will be on the shopping list. \u201cWho can add special teams. Who can add starting depth? And who can come in and compete? That\u2019s ultimately what college football is about.\u201d Since none of the additions would be in school before Summer, it lends a sense of urgency to filling certain position needs.<\/p>\n One position that remains a work in progress is quarterback. Transfers Robby Ashford and Deshawn Purdie both played at levels that were emblematic of their Spring camp. They showed flashes of being able to run the offense at a high pace, mixed in with moments of inconsistency.<\/p>\n With only unofficial stats to work from, the eye test says Purdie had the better day between the two. He engineered a couple of scoring drives utilizing receivers Sterling Berkhalter and Sawyer Racanelli. Ty Chandler and Tate Carney each finished off drives with short touchdown runs. Dickert called the exhibition Purdie\u2019s best day, \u201cIn a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n With Jeremy Hecklinski having entered the transfer portal, it is clearly a two-player race for the quarterback position, by design. \u201cWe had to get it down to two,\u201d Dickert said after the scrimmage. \u201cWe needed more reps. And I think with both Deshawn and Robby, you can see a very distinct and different skill set.\u201d Dickert said what comes next during the Summer is formulating an offensive scheme that fits the skill sets of his top two quarterbacks. He did not rule out going into the season using both quarterbacks in a game.<\/p>\n True freshman quarterback Steele Pizzella also put together a scoring drive that ended with a 10-yard sprint out to his left for the touchdown. Dickert commenting on the early enrollee said, \u201cHe\u2019s really, smart, sharp, and has taken to the offense.\u201d He added, \u201cYou\u2019ve got to be a dual threat if you want to play in our offense. I think we\u2019ll recruit to that, and I think Steele\u2019s gotten off to a really good start.\u201d<\/p>\nQuarterback Room Is Set, Just Not The Pecking Order<\/h3>\n
Energy<\/h3>\n