Wake Forest Signing Day Quotes
2/3/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 3, 2010
Wake Forest Head Coach Jim Grobe
Opening statement...
"Just to start off, I think we're - as most coaches are this time of year -- pleased with the class that we're bringing in. From my perspective as head coach, I think this is a class that I like because it's pretty balanced. I think we have 11 kids on the offensive side of the ball and nine kids on defense. What we got into when we first came to Wake Forest a little bit is we were always catching up on one side of the ball or the other; we were always trying to have an offensive recruiting class or a defensive recruiting class. Over the past few years, we've been trying to get that balanced out as much as possible. I've been trying to allow each position group to have at least one kid a year so we didn't have a void at any one position. And I think we've been able to do that. I like this class. I think it's a very athletic class. I think we've added some good speed and a couple of big guys in there that will help us out front. But, overall, I like the attitude of this class. I've really enjoyed getting in these kids' homes and meeting their families. I think they're the kind of kids who will fit well at Wake Forest. And, obviously, we're hopeful that they'll play really well for us on Saturdays. It's a class that I think has some players in it that could contribute pretty quickly. There could be some kids in this class that will play in a hurry so we'll see how that works out. But, overall, I'm really pleased with the way our class balanced out and there's not a kid on this sheet that I don't feel pretty good about as far as having a chance to play for us."
On how many true freshmen might see action...
"I think secondary's a concern. We took four defensive backs. All of them are fliers; they can all run really well. Desmond Cooper's a pretty physical kid as a safety; he's a really good tackler, and the other corners can really run. I think our secondary was a major concern for us in this class and I think we've got four pretty good players that any one of those four could contribute - or more than one of them - in a hurry. Obviously, our quarterback situation is up in the air with Riley [Skinner] who has taken literally almost every snap for four years. I think that's a deal where Tanner Price, who knows? I like some of the kids who are here right now but that's a position that probably won't be settled for a while. We'll compete for it really hard this spring but we'll give Tanner a chance to compete when he gets here. One of our concerns, obviously, is losing John Russell, Boo Robinson and Michael Lockett as a defensive line so I would have to think that Antonio Ford and Duke Mosby would have chances in there at defensive tackle. And then we're really thin at the offensive line. Russell Nenon had shoulder surgery so he won't go through spring practice but that leaves us with nine offensive linemen. We took three so we'll have [12] in the fall. I really would not anticipate an offensive lineman playing as a true freshman but it has happened with Joe Looney and a couple of kids who have had a chance to come in and play right away so we'll see. I don't know that that's going to happen with these guys but that's certainly a need for us. We need some depth on the offensive line."
On recruiting...
"I think our key is we start in North Carolina but there's so much competition in-state with Duke, North Carolina, [NC] State, East Carolina -- not to mention the SEC schools that come in and the Big Ten schools that come down. We want to bring in as many local kids as possible but once we've expended those possibilities then we're out-of-state. And we're chasing academics - that's the thing. Not only trying to find a kid who can win in the ACC but trying to find a kid that may not be the top student in his class but we feel like he can come in and leave with a degree from Wake Forest. When you start looking at character and academics, and then football, you've got to go a little further to try and find it."
