Wake Forest Athletics
Defense Scores Twice In Second Scrimmage
8/18/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 18, 2005
Scrimmage No. 2/Practice No. 16:
In a continuous, sometimes heavy rain on Thursday morning at Groves Stadium, sophomore safety Aaron Mason returned two interceptions for touchdowns to highlight Wake Forest's second scrimmage. In all, the defense forced four turnovers, including three interceptions and one fumble.
Redshirt freshman Eric Berry caught a tipped pass for one interception. He later broke into the backfield and hauled down a ballcarrier behind the line. Late in the scrimmage, true freshman John Russell recovered a fumble.
The biggest hit of the scrimmage came after sophomore De'Angelo Bryant broke into the secondary for a nice gain. But junior Patrick Ghee took a good angle and knocked Bryant off his feet for the tackle.
Willie Idlette's 63-yard touchdown catch and run was the best highlight for the offense. Idlette caught a pass at the line of scrimmage from Benjamin Mauk, got a couple of downfield blocks and weaved his way to the sideline, outrunning the secondary for the score. Aside from that, the offense didn't have too many highlights as penalties and dropped passes halted drives. The offense's first drive might have been its best and Idlette caught a would-be touchdown pass that was called back for holding. Then, a high snap on the ensuing field goal attempt forced the offense to come away empty handed.
Quoting Head Coach Jim Grobe:
On the team's performance: "We're making some mistakes with the ones and the twos on both offense and defense that we can't make if we have a chance to be a good football team. It's time to start paring back some of those reps for the guys we think can help us against Vanderbilt."
On the decision-making process about which freshmen might play this year:
"It depends a lot on the older guys and injuries. So far, Chris DeGeare is the only freshman who is most likely to play."
Quoting Safety Aaron Mason:
On the defense:
"The defense as a whole came to play today. After the first scrimmage, we felt like we had something to prove. We treated today like a Saturday game."
On his two interception returns for touchdowns:
"Football isn't a one-man game. We've got a lot of talent on this team. In the secondary, we've got the talent to win games. We just need to step up and play."
On The Sideline:
A number of players sat out the scrimmage due to minor injuries, including Chip Brinkman, L.J. Flintall, Josh Gattis, Chris Griebel, Michael Lockett, Eric Minor, Robert Simmons, Zach Stukes and Chip Vaughn.
Upcoming Practice Schedule:
Practice continues Friday with a morning and afternoon session and a Saturday morning practice before taking Sunday off.
Friday, August 19: 9:30-11:45 4:00-6:15Saturday, August 20: 9:30-12:00Sunday, August 21: Off
Preseason Coverage:
Visit www.WakeForestSports.com for the latest information on the Deacon football team. In addition to all press releases and practice reports, fans get an inside peek into Wake Forest football with the "Preseason Postcards From Josh Gattis" series. The popular feature "Inside the Deacon Huddle With Stan Cotten" continues each Wednesday leading up to the season opener.
