Postgame Notes

8/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football

Game Captains: D.J. Boldin, Aaron Curry
Coin Toss: Wake Forest won and elected to defer; Baylor received and defended the North goal.
Attendance: 30,633

With the Wake Forest Win
• Wake Forest posted its first-ever win over Baylor, having dropped the first four meetings.
• The Deacons improved to 2-11 all-time against Big 12 teams.
• The Deacons have won their season opener for the second straight year.
• Jim Grobe evens his record in season openers to 4-4.
• Wake Forest has beaten a team from Texas for the first time in school history. The Deacons were 0-14-1 vs. Lone Star state institutions.
• Wake Forest won its first-ever game played in Texas, ending an 11-game slide.
• This is win number 399 in school history (against 581 losses and 33 ties).
• Wake Forest owns a four-game winning streak dating back to a win over NC State on Nov. 17, 2007.
• Jim Grobe's record at Wake Forest improves to 47-39, eight games over .500.
• Wake Forest is now 49-55-3 in season openers.
• The Deacons are now 15-13 all-time in games in which they were natonally-ranked.
• Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner won his 19th game as a starter, the most wins ever by a starting QB in school history.
• Wake Forest is now 20-19 in road games under Jim Grobe.
• The Deacons improve to 23-7 vs. non-conference opponents under Grobe.
• The Deacons have won five straight games against non-conference opponents.
• Grobe improves to 8-2 in road games against non-conference foes.
• Wake Forest is now 4-2 in games played in August.
• The Deacons improved to 39-13 under Grobe when scoring 24 or more points.

Season-Opening 28-Point Victory
• Wake Forest's 28-point win was its largest margin of victory in a season opener since defeating Maryland, 34-0, in 1958 in Winston-Salem.

True Freshmen in Action
• Wake Forest used three true freshmen in the game. TE Andrew Parker was in on Wake's second offensive series, while OG Joe Looney played on the PAT/FG team and at left guard in the first quarter. C Chance Raines saw time on Wake Forest's last offensive series of the game.
• This marks the first time since 2002 that Wake Forest has played three true freshmen in a season. RB Chris Barclay, WR/KR Chris Davis and P Ryan Plackemeier all saw time as true freshman in 2002. All three former Deacs have spent time in the NFL.

Alphonso Smith
• Smith had two pass breakups and an interception in the first half.
• The interception was the 15th of his career. He is third in Wake Forest history in career interceptions, just two behind Ronnie Burgess (1981-84) and A.J. Greene (1985-88), who share the mark at 17 picks apiece.

Sam Swank
• Sam Swank, Wake's career scoring leader, scored 11 points to increase his career scoring total to 297. He is now 96 points away from the ACC record of 393, set by Maryland's Nick Noval from 2001-04.

Wake Forest 3, Baylor 0
• Sam Swank connected from 40 yards out on his 61st career field goal to give Wake a 3-0 lead with 12:19 to play in the first quarter.
• It marked the fifth consecutive field goal Swank has converted dating back to last season.

Wake Forest 10, Baylor 0
• Chip Brinkman caught his first career touchdown pass, a 12-yard pass from Riley Skinner.
• For Skinner, it marked his 22nd career TD pass.
• Sam Swank converted his 107th consecutive PAT.

Wake Forest 17, Baylor 0
• Brandon Pendergrass scored his first career TD on a three-yard run with 14:23 remaining in the second quarter.
• Sam Swank converted his 108th consecutive PAT.

Wake Forest 20, Baylor 6
• Sam Swank's 42-yard field goal with 0:53 to play in the half was his sixth consecutive field goal made.

Wake Forest 27, Baylor 6
• Chip Brinkman caught his second career TD catch with 7:36 to play in the third quarter.
• Brinkman became the first Deacon with two TD catches in a game since Kenneth Moore had two scoring receptions at Navy last year.
• Sam Swank converted his 109th consecutive PAT.

Wake Forest 34, Baylor 6
• Skinner hit Ben Wooster on a 43-yard touchdown reception with 3:04 to play in the third quarter.
• Sam Swank converted his 110th consecutive PAT.
• Riley Skinner recorded his first three-touchdown pass game.
• It was Skinner's 24th career touchdown pass, moving him into eighth place on the career TD pass list.

Wake Forest 41, Baylor 6
• Josh Adams scored on a four-yard touchdown run with 4:38 to play in the fourth quarter.
• The Deacons benefited from a Baylor miscue when Sam Swank's punt bounced off a Bear player and Chantz McClinic recovered the ball at the 10-yard line. Three plays later Adams punched it in for the score.

First Action

These Deacons took the field for the first time as collegians:

• LB Gelo Orange
• WR Marshall Williams
• WR Devon Brown
• RB Brandon Pendergrass
• S Cyhl Quarles
• S John Stamper
• LB Gelo Orange
• OT Doug Weaver
• C Trey Bailey
• OG Joe Looney
• TE Andrew Parker
• DE Kyle Wilber
• OT Michael Hoag
• RB C.J. Washington
• C Chance Raines
• DE Tristan Dorty

Firsts
• RB Brandon Pendergrass recorded the first carry of his career, as well as his first touchdown.
• WR Devon Brown made his first career reception.
• WR Chip Brinkman caught his first career touchdown
• S Alex Frye had his first interception of his career.

Career Highs
• D.J. Boldin had a career-high seven receptions.
• Ben Wooster had a career-high six receptions and a career-high 90 receiving yards.
• Riley Skinner threw a career-high three TD passes.