Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Football Kicks Off Thursday
8/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 30, 2000
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest, coming off its first winning record and postseason bowl appearance since 1992, kicks off the 2000 football season Thursday at Groves Stadium against Appalachian State (7:30 p.m./no TV).
The game will mark the season opener for both teams.
The Deacons, 7-5 a year ago, return 41 letterwinners - but just five starters - from a team that beat Arizona State, 23-3, in the 1999 Jeep Aloha Bowl.
Appalachian State, 9-3 last season, returns 17 starters off a team that advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs last season. The Mountaineers are a consensus top 10 pick in the national preseason I-AA polls.
A crowd of 25,000 is expected.
The game will mark the 21st meeting between the longtime rivals. Wake Forest leads the series, 13-6-1, but the Mountaineers won the last meeting (in 1998), 30-27 in overtime. The two teams did not meet last season.
A Quick Look At The Deacons
Wake Forest's youth and inexperience has been well-documented. The Deacs have just 12 seniors on the roster and it's not out of the question that just two seniors will start tonight. Wake returns just five starters off of last year's Jeep Aloha Bowl champion team including just one on defense.
What the Deacons do have is speed, athleticism and youth-laden talent. On offense, two key starters on the offensive line return - juniors Michael
Collins (tackle) and center Vince Azzolina. Those two candidates for All-ACC honors will protect sophomore quarterback C.J. Leak, who played sparingly last season as a true freshman.
Gone from the backfield is workhorse back Morgan Kane, so look for the Deacons to use tailback-by-committee. Sophomores Tarence Williams and Jamie Scott and true freshman Fred Staton have all had impressive preseason camps. Returning as the starting fullback is sophomore Ovie Mughelli, one of the nation's top blocking backs.
A host of talented receivers include Ira Williams, Fabian Davis, John Stone and Jimmy Caldwell.
Senior defensive end Bryan Ray, an All-American candidate, is Wake's only returning starter on defense. Ray anchors a small but quick line that includes sophomore end Calvin Pace and veteran junior Nathan Bolling. Perhaps Wake's biggest question marks come at linebacker, where outside linebacker Ed Kargbookorogie has loads of potential. Junior Marquis Hopkins and senior Nick Bender will handle the other linebacker spots. The secondary is solid with junior safeties Michael Clinkscale and Tehran Carpenter and junior corners Adrian Duncan and Chris Justice.
Junior Tyler Ashe, known for his booming kickoffs, has been an accurate field goal kicker in the preseason. Sophomore Matt Brennie was the starting punter much of last season. Stone returns as a kickoff returner after ranking third in the nation last season.
A Quick Look At The Mountaineers
Appalachian State had to replace very little in the way of starters from a team that finished 9-3 and won six of its last seven games in 1999. Nine starters return on offense including all five starters on the offensive line. ASU will have new faces only at one wide receiver position and at tight end.
At quarterback, the Mountaineers have three capable signal-callers. The duo of Daniel Jeremiah and David Reaves return after sharing the starting duties each of the previous two seasons. Running back Neil Cornatzer is a scoring machine with 18 career touchdowns on just 151 carries.
Eight starters return on defense and ASU's only concern may be in the secondary, where it lost talented Chuck Payne to graduation.
