Wake Forest Athletics
Game Program Feature: Making the Grade
10/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 4, 2010
This article was originally published in the Oct. 2 edition of Kickoff, the official gameday magazine of Wake Forest football.
By Evan Lepler
As a fifth-year senior, Russell Nenon's classroom days are waning. Like most of his veteran teammates who redshirted their way through the remarkable success of 2006, his heaviest academic burdens have passed. This fall, he is simply playing football, tending to his new puppy, a golden retriever named Cooper, and handling one independent study on corporate strategy.
But even though the late nights in the library are largely a thing of the past, the anxious collegiate moments of receiving critical test results remain a common thread in the skillful lineman's weekly routine.
As an offensive lineman for the Deacs on the verge of his 30th career start, Nenon has become well-accustomed to the maniacally-detailed grading system that accompanies every single game.
Yet familiarity has not necessarily bred comfort or a feeling of security.
"It's a very nerve-wracking process," Nenon says about the weekly evaluations that offensive coordinator Steed Lobotzke orchestrates. "I have a lot of high-anxiety walking into the meeting room come Monday."
The procedure of grading the linemen is much simpler than one might think. After each game, Coach Lobo spends about three hours re-watching every offensive snap and gives each of his players a separate grade per play.
"The first thing I want to see is their assignment," explains Lobotzke. "Then I want to see their technique and physically finishing the block. The best thing they can do is get a plus, and that scores two points. If they go to the right guy, but don't really get it done the way I like, I give them a plus-zero, which is one point. And if they get their butts whooped, I give them a zero.
"And then we count knockdowns."
The goal of a knockdown is direct: force a guy on his keister. For Wake's offensive scheme, an added emphasis is placed on this tactic.
"We do a lot of low blocking," says Lobotzke. "We're kind of famous--or infamous--for it. It's perfectly legal, but people don't like it, so we take a lot of pride in it."
The knockdown statistic is also the basis of a weekly competition that Nenon and his blocking brethren participate in. After the grading percentages are handed out, a more substantive prize goes to the Saturday knockdown king. Believe it or not, the winner earns ownership of an ax, spray-painted black and gold, representing the workmanlike effort needed to grind out football success in the trenches.
Redshirt junior offensive tackle Dennis Godfrey conjured the idea in the days before the 2009 season because he "wanted to start a new tradition and [create] a new attitude at Wake Forest." He purchased a $34 ax from Home Depot, performed the paint job himself, and the tool immediately became a symbol of the hard-nosed spirit that Coach Lobo has perpetually instilled in the O-line.
"It's a nice trophy to have for the week," says Nenon, "And you get the bragging rights. It's a friendly competition. Guys always want to have the highest grade."
Having finished second on the team in total knockdowns in both 2008 and 2009, Nenon frequently finds himself in possession of the coveted ax, a tribute to both his ability and his dependability. Head Coach Jim Grobe has continuously praised Nenon for his grit and toughness, particularly when he started every game last year despite a labrum injury that would require surgery in the offseason.
"Playing all year and doing the things he did with a really bad shoulder, that's as impressive as anything I've seen," says Grobe. "It shows his commitment to the team and his love for the game and all those intangible things that make you a really good player."
Nenon admits that 2009 was a strenuous season, bothered by bone chips in his left shoulder that made pass blocking, as he calls it, "an event". After undergoing surgery on January 6, he is now pain-free.
"It's nice, I can actually sleep on my left side again," jokes Nenon.
While his status as a premier offensive lineman has been established for quite some time, the toughness and consistency that Nenon has steadily brought to the Deacons has vaulted him into a leadership role in 2010. Prior to the season, Grobe announced that his teammates had voted him and fellow fifth-year seniors Josh Adams, Hunter Haynes and Marshall Williams as captains, the first time in Grobe's tenure at Wake Forest that the Deacs' captaincy will not fluctuate week-to-week.
"It's pretty cool," says Nenon. "I really enjoy being kind of the guy in charge. I'm happy to take the heat for anybody. I'll stand up for anybody on the team because this is a special team, a special group, and we really bonded well. That's the exciting thing about this year. We're a really close-knit group...It was definitely gratifying [to be chosen as captain]. To see Hunter's, Josh's, Marshall's and my hard work pay off, it means that guys appreciate me on the team."
He takes his role seriously but still is able to kid about the pregame choice of heads or tails, a decision that is always in the purview of the team leaders.
"When I walk out [for the coin toss], I'm just like `please don't trip, please don't trip,'" he says with a laugh.
His ability to joke and poke fun at himself--he says as a youth football player, he was not allowed to touch the ball because he always had an overweight sticker--has enabled him to bring a unique style of leadership to the practice fields and the locker room.
While not the most boisterous or animated among his teammates, Nenon carries confidence, experience and a habit of doing things the right way, according to Grobe.
"I think the thing that makes Russ comfortable is he's not afraid to say what needs to be said, but he's not a stand up on the soapbox and beat everybody over the head [kind of guy]," Grobe explains. "I think the reason he's able to lead is because he's doing everything that he would ask the team to do. That's the whole key. A lot of people like to run their mouth and try to be a vocal leader, but they don't have a good work ethic in the weight room, on the practice field, or they don't overcome injuries; they spend a lot of time in the training room with chapped lips.
"With Russ, he's walked the walk. He's showing them how to do it. And when he says something, they say, `that guy deserves my respect.'"
Though Nenon made his first career start at the guard position during his sophomore season, an injury to Trey Bailey thrust him into the center spot. Having been recruited as a center, the adjustment was seamless, and he has started every game since at the position Grobe calls "the bell-cow of your offensive line."
"I hope he's all-league this year," Lobotzke says. "I think he's definitely a guy who's going to get NFL looks because he's a combination player, center and guard. He's really smart, and NFL teams like the centers to make all the calls, and he can do that, so he fits NFL systems really well."
When asked about forwarding his playing career at the professional level, Nenon acknowledges that he would love to play in the NFL, but at the same time, recognizes that any Sunday opportunity will be a byproduct of experiencing Saturday success this year.
Basically, before he can worry about any combine grades, he must first battle for the best blocking average among his Wake Forest peers. Perhaps an NFL team would be impressed if he arrived at a pre-draft interview with a black and gold ax.
