Wake Forest Athletics
Football Prepares for ACC Battle With Virginia
9/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 23, 2002
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WAKE FOREST FOOTBALL NEWS & NOTES
Game #5
Saturday, Sept. 28
Wake Forest (2-2, 0-1 ACC) vs. Virginia (2-2, 0-1 ACC)
Groves Stadium (31,500)/Winston-Salem, NC
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m.
Television: None
Radio: Broadcast by the Wake Forest ISP Sports Network, heard on 20 stations across North Carolina and in Virginia. Full station listing is on page five of this package. Voice of the Deacons Stan Cotten calls the play-by-play with former Deacon great Ed Bradley serving as color analyst.
On the Web: The radio broadcast can be heard live over the internet via WFU??s athletics homepage: www.WakeForestSports.com.
Records: Both teams have identical 2-2 records and both are coming off wins last week. Wake Forest won at Purdue, 24-21, while the Cavaliers defeated Akron at home, 48-29. Both teams are searching for their first ACC victory, as both are 0-1 in league play.
The Series: Saturday??s game marks the 44th meeting between the conference rivals, with UVa leading the series 31-12. Last season, Wake halted a 17-game UVa win streak by defeating the Cavaliers in Charlottesville. The Deacs have not won two in a row over Virginia since the 1969-70 seasons.
Rankings: Neither team is ranked.
The Coaches: Wake Forest head coach Jim Grobe is in his second season in Winston-Salem, posting an 8-7 record with the Deacs. Entering his eighth season as a head coach, Grobe??s overall career record stands at 41-40-1.
Virginia??s Al Groh is 7-9 in his second year with the Cavaliers. In his eighth season as a head coach, his career record stands at 33-49, which includes a 26-40 record in six seasons as WFU??s head coach (1981-86).
Tickets: Contact the WFU Ticket Office at 336-758-3322 or 1-888-758-DEAC.
Wake Returns Home With 2-2 Record; Hosts Virginia in Battle for First ACC Victory of Season
After picking up an impressive victory on the road at Purdue last week, the Wake Forest football team returns to Winston-Salem to kick off six straight weeks of conference contests. First on the slate is a home date with Virginia on Saturday, Sept. 28. Kickoff is set for 6:30 pm at Groves Stadium.
Virginia, like the Demon Deacons, brings a 2-2 record into Saturday??s contest and is looking for its first ACC win of the year. The Cavaliers, also led by a second-year coach - Al Groh - started the season 0-2 with losses to Colorado State and Florida State. UVa has since rebounded, winning its last two outings over then nationally-ranked South Carolina and Akron.
Wake also improved to 2-2 with a 24-21 victory at Purdue last Saturday, in a game which featured five lead changes and two ties. The Demon Deacons capitalized on five Boilermaker turnovers and three missed field goals in the fourth quarter. True freshman Chris Barclay rushed for three touchdowns and kicker Matt Wisnosky booted a career-long 41-yard field goal to help the Deacs escape West Lafayette for their first victory in the fourth meeting between the two schools.
Wake Forest Leads Nation in Turnover Margin
Wake Forest ranks first among NCAA leaders in turnover margin (+12 overall/+3.0 per game). Through four games this season, the Deacons have forced 16 turnovers while committing just four of their own.
The WFU offense did not commit a turnover until the third game of the year at NC State, when James MacPherson lost a fumble and Cory Randolph threw an interception, both in the second half. The offense opened the season with 10 straight quarters without a turnover, as the first miscue of the season occurred on a fumbled punt attempt in the fourth quarter versus East Carolina.
At Northern Illinois, Wake intercepted two passes and recovered two fumbles. Versus ECU, the Deacs picked off four Pirate passes and forced another fumble. At NC State, WFU recovered two Wolfpack fumbles. At Purdue, Wake had five takeaways with just one lost fumble of its own.
The numbers so far are an improvement over last year, as the Deacs finished the 2001 campaign ranked 72nd nationally in turnover margin with -3 overall (25 to 22), -.27 per game.
A Balanced Rushing Attack
After leading the ACC in rushing last season (221.6 ypg), the Deacon ground game continues to pace the league in that category this season (230.5 ypg). However, it??s not the ??usual suspects?? putting up the big numbers so far this season. Last year??s leading rusher, Tarence Williams (1,018 yards) is gradually returning to action after suffering a broken foot this summer. His top backup in 2001, Fred Staton (583 yards), is sitting out this season for academic purposes.
Instead, the Deacons have employed a ??running back by committee??, as five different players have lined up in the backfield so far this year. Junior Nick Burney is the starter and is averaging a team-best 56.2 yards per game and 5.1 yards per carry on 44 attempts. True freshman Chris Barclay has emerged as a force, carrying the ball 37 times for an average of 45.0 yards per game. Barclay broke out for three touchdowns at Purdue. Redshirt freshman Cornelius Birgs has 142 yards and three touchdowns. All-purpose threat Fabian Davis, a senior, has 18 touches for 180 yards, averaging an impressive 9.6 yards per carry.
Senior fullback Ovie Mughelli perhaps was the earliest surprise of the season. After recording no rushing stats last season, Mughelli scored four touchdowns at Northern Illinois - tying a school record - and finished the night with 74 yards. He added another TD versus East Carolina.
The committee approach has worked well so far. In addition to leading the ACC, the Deacs rank 14th nationally among team rushing leaders. Wake recorded 344 yards on the ground at NIU, its highest single-game rushing total since tallying 396 versus Maryland in the 1993 season.
Individually, Burney ranks ninth among ACC leaders in rushing. Mughelli ranks fifth in scoring.
Barclay Breaks Out
True freshman Chris Barclay enjoyed a breakout game versus Purdue last week, scoring three touchdowns in a 19-carry, 70-yard performance. He scored on rushes of 18, 11 and five yards. His final TD late in the third quarter was the go-ahead score that proved to be the game winner for WFU against the Boilermakers.
Barclay??s 18-yard touchdown in the first quarter was his first career TD, and with it he became the first true freshman to find the endzone for the Deacs since Anthony Young scored three touchdowns (all passing) in the 2000 season.
Barclay??s three rushing touchdowns were the first by a Wake Forest true freshman since the 1988 season, when Anthony Williams scored three against Appalachian State. Since then, there have been 11 other games when a Deacon back has rushed for three touchdowns, including two this season. In addition to Barclay??s performance at Purdue, Ovie Mughelli tied a school record with four TDs at Northern Illinois in the season opener.
"Cardiac Deacs" Still in Effect
Although the streak was halted on Sept. 14 with a 32-13 loss to NC State, Wake Forest owns an ACC record with nine consecutive games decided by seven points or less.
The streak stretched from last year??s NC State game (Oct. 6, 2001) to the East Carolina game this season (Sept. 7, 2002). Over that stretch, Wake Forest posted a 5-4 record in games that were collectively decided by 36 points (an average of 4.0 per game).
Bookending the streak are losses to two nationally-ranked teams -- No. 15 Florida State (48-24) on Sept. 29, 2001 and last Saturday??s loss to No. 19 NC State (32-13).
The Deacs may have started a new such streak last week with their three-point victory over Purdue.
In the 15 games played during the Jim Grobe era at Wake Forest, 12 have been decided by a touchdown or less, including six decided by three points or less.
Despite all those close games, only one had to be decided in overtime. Wake Forest played just its second-ever overtime game at Northern Illinois in the 2002 season opener, losing 42-41. The first overtime game in school history was a 30-27 loss to Appalachian State at home in 1998.
Scouting the Cavaliers
Virginia coach Al Groh, in his second year at the helm, returns to Groves Stadium for the first time since he was the head coach of the Demon Deacons from 1981-86.
Groh brings with him a very young Cavalier squad that includes 42 freshman on its 91-man roster. Groh and his staff have sent 13 true freshmen into action this season, and 17 freshmen (seven of them starters) appear on the depth chart heading into this weekend??s contest.
UVa true freshman Wali Lundy leads the team and ranks seventh in the ACC in rushing (59.5 ypg) while also tallying a team-high 125.8 all-purpose yards per game. Tight end Heath Miller, a redshirt freshman, leads the team in scoring with four touchdowns in 2002.
Turnovers and defense may dictate the outcome of Saturday??s tilt. Virginia and Wake Forest are tied at No. 1 in the nation (with Oregon State, San Jose State and Wisconsin) with 16 total takeaways this season. The Deacs, however, fare better in turnover margin, giving up just four compared to the Cavs?? 11.
Both teams have allowed some high-scoring affairs so far this season. The Deacs rank sixth in the ACC in scoring defense (29.2 ppg), while Virginia ranks seventh (31.2 ppg).
The Series With Virginia
* Wake Forest and Virginia will play their 44th game on the gridiron on Saturday, with the Cavaliers owning a 31-12 lead in the series.
* The Deacons have actually fared better in Charlottesville than at home, winning eight games in the Cavs?? stadium and four on their own turf. Wake??s last win in Groves Stadium was a 38-34 decision in 1983, the Deacs?? last win before Virginia started its 17-game win streak.
* Virginia owned a series-long 17-game win streak from 1984-2000, which was snapped by the Deacons?? 34-30 come-from-behind victory in Charlottesville last season. It marked Wake??s first win in Charlottesville since the 1981 season.
* Last year??s four-point Deacon victory was the closest margin since a 30-28 UVa win in 1986 -- when Al Groh was Wake??s head coach.
* Virginia has put up at least 20 points against Wake Forest in each of the last 22 meetings, dating back to a 14-0 Deacon shutout in 1978. On the flip side, Wake??s 34 points scored against UVa last season were the most since since its 38-34 win in 1983.
Coaching Connections
Wake Forest??s Jim Grobe??s alma mater is Virginia and the Deacon head coach will face his alma mater for just the second time in his coaching career (last year??s 34-30 Wake victory was the first). Grobe was a two-year starter for the Cavaliers, playing middle guard in 1973 and linebacker in 1974, and was also an Academic All-ACC selection.
Grobe transferred to Virginia from Ferrum Junior College in 1972. At that time, Al Groh was working at Virginia as head freshman coach and defensive line coach for the varsity squad. Before Grobe made his debut in a Cavalier uniform, Groh departed to become an assistant coach at North Carolina.
In 1981, Groh was named head coach at Wake Forest. He coached the Deacons from 1981-86, producing a 26-40 overall record.
WFU-Virginia Connections
* Virginia assistant head coach Dan Rocco played at Wake Forest in 1982 and ??83 and earned his degree from WFU in 1984. Rocco began his coaching career as a Wake Forest graduate assistant coach in 1984 and ??85 before being promoted to defensive line coach in 1986.
* Prior to the 2001 Wake Forest victory at Virginia, the last time a Deacon squad defeated UVa was 1983, when Al Groh was Wake??s head coach and Dan Rocco was serving as one of WFU??s team captains.
* Virginia radio play-by-play announcer Mac McDonald previously served in a similar capacity at Wake Forest.
* Wake Forest has nine players on its roster from the Commonwealth of Virginia.
* Virginia has six players on its roster from North Carolina including two -- senior Angelo Crowell and sophomore Isaiah Brandon -- from Winston-Salem.
* Virginia freshman Willie Davis played at Wilmington??s Laney High School -- the same school that produced Wake??s R.D. Montgomery, Recorian Stukes and Tarence Williams.
* WFU linebacker Mike Hamlar and Virginia punter Tom Hagan were teammates at Cave Spring High School in Roanoke.
MacPherson Still Interception-Free
Wake starting quarterback James MacPherson enters Saturday??s game with Virginia with no interceptions to blemish his stats so far this season. The senior??s last interception was in the first quarter of the 2001 season finale versus Northern Illinois. Since then, he has gone 15 quarters and thrown 89 passes without a pick.
For the first time in his career, MacPherson entered the 2002 season knowing the starting job was in his hands. In 1999, he served as a backup QB whose only game action was at punter. Coming off a knee injury in 2000, MacPherson was called to action much sooner than expected after starter C.J.Leak suffered a season-ending knee injury.
MacPherson split time with true freshman Anthony Young that season. Both players returned in 2001, with the starting job up for grabs. Again, the duo split time until a foot injury sidelined Young. MacPherson responded well to being Wake??s only healthy QB in the second half of the season, leading to Deacs to thrilling, come-from-behind road wins at Virginia and North Carolina.
With the move of Young from quarterback to wide receiver, MacPherson entered the 2002 season as the Deacs?? starter. Through four games, MacPherson has completed over 53 percent of his passes (41 of 73) for 547 yards and two touchdowns. He also reached a milestone in versus ECU on Sept. 14, passing the 3,000-yard career passing mark. MacPherson is just the 10th quarterback in school history to achieve that feat and the first since Brian Kuklick (1994-98). He reached that milestone in his 21st overall game at quarterback and just his 12th career start at the position.
Coming Up Next
Wake Forest hits the road again next week, traveling to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech on Saturday, Oct. 6. The Deacons and Jackets will be featured on ABC in a 3:30 pm kickoff.
