Deacon Football Hosts Connecticut In Non-Conference Tilt
11/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 10, 2003
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WFU FOOTBALL NEWS & NOTES
Game #11/Nov. 15, 2003
Connecticut (8-3) at Wake Forest (5-5, 3-4 ACC)
Groves Stadium (31,500)/Winston-Salem, NC
Kickoff: 3:30 pm
Television: No local broadcast. The game will be shown in Hartford, Conn. on WFSB-TV.
Radio: Broadcast by the Wake Forest ISP Sports Network, heard on 16 stations across North Carolina and in Virginia. Voice of the Deacons Stan Cotten calls the play-by-play with former WFU great Ed Bradley serving as color analyst.
On the Internet: With the purchase of a paid subscription, the radio broadcast can be heard live over the web via WFU's athletics homepage: www.WakeForestSports.com.
The Series: Saturday's game marks the first meeting between Wake Forest and Connecticut.
Records: WFU returned to .500 for the season (5-5) and fell to 3-4 in conference play with a loss at North Carolina last week. Connecticut improved to 8-3 with a win over Rutgers.
Rankings: Neither team is ranked.
The Coaches: Wake Forest head coach Jim Grobe owns a 18-16 mark in his third season with the Deacs. Now in his ninth season as a head coach, Grobe's career record stands at 51-49-1. Connecticut's Randy Edsall owns a 23-33 record in his fifth season as a head coach, all with the Huskies.
Deacs Go Out Of Conference To Host UConn
The Wake Forest football team closes out the regular season at home, returning to Groves Stadium for two final games (with an open date in between). First up is a non-conference tilt with the Connecticut Huskies on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 3:30 p.m.
The Demon Deacons (5-5, 3-4 ACC) had a disappointing day last Saturday in Chapel Hill. In its final road trip of the season, Wake could not become bowl-eligible against the Tar Heels, who had gone nearly two years without a home victory. Blocked kicks and fumbles doomed the Deacs, who lost 42-34 to UNC.
Connecticut (8-3) closes out its regular season on Saturday in Winston-Salem. The Huskies enter Groves Stadium on a four-game winning streak, with its last loss coming in the state of North Carolina -- at NC State on Oct. 11.
The Deacons, trying to become bowl eligible for the third straight season, face UConn for the first time in school history and look to improve its record to 3-1 versus non-conference opponents this season. For more information on the Huskies and the WFU-UConn series, see page 11.
Scouting the Huskies
Wake Forest will face Connecticut for the first time in school history this weekend. The Huskies, which are in their fourth year of Division I-A football, are an impressive 8-3 in 2003. It is already the most wins for UConn in a season since going 10-3 and advancing to the I-AA quarterfinals in 1998.
Head coach Randy Edsall, a former defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech (1998), is in his fifth season as UConn's head coach.
The Huskies enter Groves Stadium on Saturday on a four-game win streak. After losing to NC State in Raleigh on a last-minute defensive touchdown by the Wolfpack on Oct. 11, UConn has rattled off four wins over Kent State (in overtime), Akron, Western Michigan and Rutgers. Saturday's tilt with Wake Forest is the last regular season game for the Huskies.
Five of UConn's games this season have been decided by a 10 points or less, and four of the last five outings have been determined by a touchdown or less. The Huskies are 3-2 in those close games.
UConn junior quarterback Dan Orlovsky has thrown for nearly 3,200 yards and 31 touchdowns this season, completing over 58 percent of his passes (255 of 437). In fact, he has more completions that WFU quarterback Cory Randolph has attempted this season (195). Orlovsky ranks 30th nationally in pass efficiency (136.8) and 13th in total offense (284.5).
Orlovsky's favorite target, senior Shaun Feldeisen, has caught 55 passes for 731 yards and seven touchdowns. But eight different receivers have caught at least 11 passes for the Huskies this year, and 10 have the endzone at least once.
UConn's ground game took a hit when leading rusher Terry Caulley, who had 607 yards through five games, went down with a season-ending knee injury at Virginia Tech. Tailbacks Chris Bellamy and Cornell Brockingham have stepped up in Caulley's absence, as Bellamy has 589 yards and three touchdowns on 110 carries and Brockington has 461 on 99 carries to go along with six scores.
On the defensive side of the ball, junior linebackers Maurice Lloyd and Alfred Fincher lead the team with 109 and 108 tackles, respectively. Defensive end Uyi Osunde became UConn's all-time tackles for loss leader and has 21 such stops in 2003. Cornerback Justin Perkins ranks 18th nationally with six interceptions on the season and has 13 pass break-ups.
The Series With Connecticut
* Saturday's game marks the first meeting on the gridiron between Connecticut and Wake Forest.
* The Deacs and Huskies have faced a pair of common opponents this season. Both teams played Boston College and NC State, with WFU going 2-0 against those teams and the Huskies posting an 0-2 mark. UConn fell to the Eagles, 24-14 on Sept. 13, and lost on a late defensive touchdown to the Wolfpack, 31-24, on Oct. 11. UConn has not lost since that game, currently riding a four-game win streak.
* WFU and UConn have met in other sports in recent years. The Deacon women's basketball team had a home-and-home series with UConn in 2000 and 2001, suffering a pair of losses to the top-ranked Huskies. The WFU men's soccer team owns a 3-0-1 record against UConn, including a 2-0 victory earlier this season. The women's soccer teams played to a scoreless tie in their initial meeting this fall.
Deacon-Husky Connections
* Wake Forest freshman Chris Griebel is the only Deacon from the state of Connecticut. Griebel is from Weatogue and attended Northwest Catholic High School.
* Connecticut has no players on its roster from North Carolina.
* Wake Forest's Louis Frazier and UConn's Chris Meyer both attended Clearwater (FL) High School.
* Wake fullback Nick Burney and Husky linebacker Darius Leak both attended Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy.
* Connecticut head coach Randy Edsall is familiar with the ACC after serving as defensive coordinator at Georgia Tech in 1998.
* Wake Forest baseball coach George Greer graduated from UConn in 1969.
* Deacon assistant soccer coach Bobby Muuss graduated from UConn in 1999.
* WFU women's basketball coach Charlene Curtis served as an assistant at UConn before coming to Winston-Salem.
Getting Defensive
Wake Forest has scored five defensive touchdowns this season -- one more than the number of such scores in the previous eight seasons combined. In fact, WFU scored more defensive touchdowns versus Clemson this year (two in the second quarter) than in all of the 2001 and 2002 seasons (zero in 2001, one in 2002).
In fact, Wake Forest's first touchdown of the 2003 season was scored by the Deacon defense, when Jamaal Argrow caused a QB fumble and Warren Braxton picked it up and had 53 yards of open field into the endzone at Boston College.
Braxton's TD was the first defensive score since the Duke game on Oct. 12, 2002, when Kellen Brantley had a 29-yard interception return for a TD. It was the first fumble recovery for a TD since Bryan Ray fell on the ball in the endzone versus UNC in 2000.
Brantley added the Deacs' second defensive touchdown of the season when, for the second straight year, he returned an interception against Duke. Eric King (85-yard interception return) and Jyles Tucker (forced fumble, 12-yard fumble return) tacked on the team's third and fourth defensive TDs against Clemson, while Brad White had an 11-yard pick for a score at North Carolina.
Prior to the Clemson game, the last time Wake Forest scored two defensive touchdowns in a game was Oct. 10, 1992 at Vanderbilt, when George Coghill returned both a fumble and interception for scores.
Barclay Approaching 1,000-Yard Season
With 908 yards on the season and four 100-yard performances over the last five outings, sophomore running back Chris Barclay looks to notch just the ninth 1,000-yard season in school history.
Barclay currently ranks second in the ACC with 90.8 yards per game, but is first among all rushers in conference games only, putting up 116.4 yards per outing against league opponents.
Only seven Demon Deacons have recorded 1,000-yard seasons James McDougald had two -- 1976 and '79. The last player to reach 1,000 was Tarence Williams with 1,018 yards in 2001.
After gaining 703 yards and nine touchdowns behind Williams last season, Barclay was expected to get the lion's share of carries this fall. A sprained ankle suffered in the first quarter of the season opener at Boston College slowed him down, however. He didn't miss any games, but just wasn't able to put up the expected numbers over the next few outings.
Although the Georgia Tech game on Oct. 11 was one of the team's most disappointing offensive showings of the last three seasons, Barclay was the bright spot -- recording his first 100-yard game with 124 yards on the ground and scoring the Deacs' only touchdown. In that game he also passed the career 1,000-yard mark. He followed that up with a career-best 163-yard performance at Duke. After carrying the ball seven times for 71 yards on the Deacs' opening drive (including a 12-yard TD run), Barclay went over the 100-yard mark in the first minute of the second quarter and tacked on to that total with a 47-yard touchdown later that quarter (his third of the game).
Barclay's 163 yards were the most since Morgan Kane tallied 224 against Georgia Tech on Nov. 20, 1998. It was also the second time in his career that he's scored three touchdowns in a game (also at Purdue last season).
Over the last two outings, Barclay tied his career high with 163 versus Clemson and tallied 160 yards at North Carolina. He's also scored seven touchdowns over the last five games.
Rushing Game Returns To Form
In 2002, Wake Forest led the ACC with 408.1 yards of total offense and 241.2 rushing yards per game. Wake Forest outgained its opponents in total offense in seven of 13 games and out-rushed them in all but four contests.
This year, the Deacs are averaging over 53 yards less in total offense (354.9 ypg). WFU's opponents have outgained it by an average of 83 yards per game. All but two opponents (Clemson and UNC) have put up more yards of offense against the Deacs.
The hallmark of WFU's offense the last two years, its ground game, is averaging 198.8 yards per contest -- an average of over 42 fewer yards than a year ago.
Wake Forest's impressive 2-0 start in 2003 (its best since 1999) with wins at Boston College and over NC State may have diminished the fact that eight offensive starters graduated off last year's team. And the Deacon ground game took an early hit when all three running backs went down with injuries in the season-opening first quarter at BC. Chris Barclay and Cornelius Birgs both sprained ankles, while Dominic Anderson suffered a season-ending leg injury.
The running game has come back, however. After recording just 56 rushing yards against Purdue on Sept. 13 (the lowest rushing total of the Jim Grobe era at WFU), the Deacs have averaged 264.5 yards on the ground over the last four games. The Deacs also now lead the league and rank 21st nationally in rushing yards per game.
Turnover Margin Still In Deacs' Favor
One telling statistic that has carried over from last season is WFU's success in turnover margin. The Demon Deacons currently rank first in the ACC and 12th nationally with a +0.90 advantage in turnovers per game. WFU opponents have committed 24 turnovers (12 interceptions, 12 fumbles) while the Deacs have lost 15 (seven picks, eight fumbles).
Of the 290 points scored by Wake Forest this season, over a quarter (73 points) have been the direct result of an opponent turnover Comparatively, 20 percent of WFU's opponents' points (51 of 255) have been the result of Deacon miscues.
Wake's advantage in turnover margin could have been even higher. In the two-game set with Purdue and East Carolina in September, the Boilers and Pirates combined to fumble the ball 11 times, but lost just three of those.
Wake Forest's losses to Georgia Tech and UNC are the only games this season in which the Deacs have not been even or held the advantage in turnover margin. WFU had two turnovers while Georgia Tech committed none, and the Deacs lost three at UNC while the Tar Heels had one. Carolina was also able to capitalize on WFU's miscues, scoring touchdowns on all three turnovers.
Wake Forest also led the ACC and ranked fifth nationally in turnover margin a year ago with a +1.38 advantage.
Odds & Ends
* Over the last four games, quarterback Cory Randolph has completed 40 of 59 passes, a .678 completion percentage.
* Only two true freshman have seen action for the Deacs this season -- defensive end Jyles Tucker and running back D'Angelo Bryant ... Tucker is the only true rookie to earn a starting nod in 2003, starting the last two games.
* Wake Forest is riding a streak of 67 games without being shutout, dating back to a 42-0 loss at Air Force in 1998.
* Free safety Quintin Williams recorded his 200th career tackle versus ECU ... Williams (247) and linebacker Kellen Brantley (247) are the only current Deacon defenders with at least 200 career stops.
* Jason Anderson ranks fourth among active ACC receivers with four 100-yard games (NC State's Jerricho Cotchery leads the league with 12.) ... Anderson's 1,657 career receiving yards also ranks fourth among active players in the league.
Anderson A Big-Play Guy
Wide receiver Jason Anderson is another Deacon underclassman who is putting together an all-star type of season. Consider these points:
* Anderson entered the year as one of the nation's top returning receivers in terms of yards per catch. Anderson averaged 23.3 yards per reception last year, a figure that ranked second nationally behind Houston senior Brandon Middleton (24.1 ypc) coming into this fall.
* Anderson has caught five of the team's seven touchdown passes so far this season -- four of them 38 yards or longer. He had six of WFU's eight touchdown tosses last year.
* For his career, Anderson has 90 catches for 1,670 yards -- averaging 18.6 yards per catch. He ranks first on WFU's career average per reception chart, surpassing Todd Dixon's previous school record of 17.2 yards per catch from 1990-93.
* Anderson also appears on the ACC's career average per reception list, ranking tied for sixth all-time among ACC receivers.
* Anderson had a streak of 14 straight games with at least two receptions -- a streak that was snapped at Duke when he caught just one pass for 44 yards. With no receptions versus Clemson, his streak of 16 straight games with at least one catch was halted.
* Anderson's 79-yard touchdown catch against ECU was the third-longest in school history. In fact, he has caught six passes of at least 52 yards in his career -- all touchdowns.
* With 137 receiving yards at UNC (Wake's only 100-yard receiving game of the season), Anderson has recorded four such outings. Only six players in school history have had more 100-yard games.
* He reached an impressive milestone in the 2002 Seattle Bowl, recording his 1,000th career receiving yard in just his 51st reception.
Plackemeier Ranks Second Nationally
Punter Ryan Plackemeier is averaging an impressive 46.9 yards per punt, a figure that ranks first in the ACC and second nationally. Central Florida's Matt Prater currently leads the country, averaging 47.7 yards per punt.
Though just a sophomore, Plackemeier has certainly proved that he deserves a spot on the preseason watch list for the Ray Guy Award, annually given to the nation's top punter.
He also received first-team preseason All-ACC kudos from Lindy's magazine going into the fall and should be the favorite to be named first-team All-ACC later this month, as he is averaging over three yards more than any other punter in the league.
Plackemeier has put 10 of his 48 punts inside the 20 this season, including three against Georgia Tech. He booted a career-long punt of 67 yards at Duke (the longest by a WFU punter since 1988) and he's recorded nine punts of 55 yards or longer.
At Florida State, Plackemeier punted 10 times for a 48.3 average -- a new WFU single-game record.
Plackemeier earned ACC Specialist of the Week honors for his NC State performance in which he punted just twice but averaged 49.5 yards per boot and put both inside the 20.
Thrown into action as a true freshman in 2002, Plackemeier showed steady improvement over the course of last season. His punting average of 43.2 yards in 2002 would have ranked first in the ACC had he attempted just a few more punts to meet the minimum qualifying standards.
Nichols On The Pick
Defensive end Jerome Nichols is the first Demon Deacon defensive lineman to record two interceptions in a season since a pair of ends, David Braxton and James DuBose, each grabbed a pair of picks in the 1988 season. That season, in fact, was the last time any WFU defensive lineman recorded an interception.
Nichols intercepted both of the ACC's preseason Heisman candidates, NC State's Philip Rivers and Virginia's Matt Schaub.
Idlette's All-Purpose Attack
Redshirt freshman Willie Idlette has quickly made his mark in several facets of Wake Forest's game -- recording rushing, receiving, punt return as well as kick return stats this season. Although Chris Barclay's rushing numbers vaulted him into the team lead this week, Idlette had been leading the Deacs in all-purpose yardage all season long.
In fact, by the middle of the season, Idlette has already set a new WFU class record for redshirt freshman in all-purpose yardage. Morgan Kane set the record with 596 yards in 1996. So far this year, Idlette has 900 all-purpose yards (90.0 ypg).
Idlette ranks 12th in the ACC and is the league's top rookie in all-purpose yardage. He also the second-leading freshman (and fourth overall) among ACC punt return leaders.
On This Date in WFU History
Wake Forest will look to reverse its fortune on Nov. 15, as it has won just one game in 11 tries on this date ... the Deacs' lone Nov. 15 victory was a 65-0 pasting of Guilford College in 1919 ... Wake is actually appearing at Groves Stadium on this date for the second time ever and first since 1969 ... WFU did not score a point on Nov. 15 from 1935 to 1958, suffering four shutouts during that span ... the Deacs are 0-3 in ACC games on this date, with losses to FSU, Duke and South Carolina ... the Deacs had four straight Nov. 15 dates with the Gamecocks from 1969 to 1986 ... WFU is also 0-2 versus ranked opponents on this date.
Game Captains
Seniors Tyson Clabo and Quintin Williams have served as game captains in every game this season. Other game captains include Kellen Brantley and Mark Moroz (Clemson), and Obi Chukwumah and Josh Warren (North Carolina).
The Big Picture
The 2003 campaign marks the 102nd season of Wake Forest football. WFU owns an all-time record of 371-558-34 with a record of 97-242-5 in ACC play.
Coming Up Next
Wake Forest will take the second of its two open dates this season on Nov. 22, before returning to action against Maryland in the regular season finale on Nov. 29 at Groves Stadium. Kickoff time is TBA.
