Wake Forest Athletics
Game Program Feature: The Deacon Air Lift
10/17/2011 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 17, 2011
This article was originally published in the Oct. 15 edition of Kickoff, the official gameday magazine of Wake Forest football.
By Brendan Bergen
Wake Forest's wide receivers don't have any special nicknames for each other. But the way they complement one another, you might as well call them the "Fantastic Four."
Led by a much-improved sophomore quarterback, Tanner Price, who was off to the fastest four game start in school history with his 1,119 passing yards, the Demon Deacon aerial offense is ranked in the top-20 nationally and has consistently come up with big plays during a dramatic early season turnaround.
"Last year it didn't always click," said Price, who mostly credits another year's experience for his vast improvement. "But deep down inside we knew we had what it takes to be a great passing unit."
On the flanks, the quartet of Chris Givens, Michael Campanaro, Danny Dembry and Terence Davis are all off to blazing starts, each bringing a unique "superpower" to the gridiron.
"That receiver corps has molded together into a unit," said head coach Jim Grobe. "A lot of times you hope to have one good receiver that you can throw the football to and we've developed to where we've got four or five guys that Tanner feels comfortable with. There's just a good feel right now with that group."
Givens, a redshirt junior, has spent his career mimicking Flash. He's fleet of foot and, so far in 2011, averages about a broken-record-per-week. Capable of turning short passes into big plays, Givens is one of only two receivers in school history to have multiple 75-plus yard plays and has led the Deacs in all-purpose yards for the past two seasons.
"Speed is the number one thing with Chris, but he's doing everything better this year," said Grobe, who admits he'd rather run the ball first and throw the ball later but has had to adjust that approach slightly for this group. "He's just developed into a better receiver. There's a million guys out there with his speed who aren't great receivers, but I think it's more of an attention to detail."
Givens attributes his improved focus to new receivers coach and passing game co-coordinator Lonnie Galloway, who joined the Deacs' coaching staff this year and has demanded perfection from his pass catchers. With another year of eligibility remaining and some tough love from his new coach, Givens is just now starting to come into his own.
"Coach [Lonnie] Galloway came in this spring and sat me down," said Givens, who is 10th all-time at Wake Forest in career receiving yards. "He told me I had an opportunity to do some great things here if I just pushed myself and got my mind right."
The psychology major from Wylie, Texas hasn't wasted any time accepting Galloway's challenge. Already this season, Givens became the 23rd Wake receiver to make 100 career catches and his 599 yards through five games has set a school record for the fastest start ever by a receiver - surpassing Ricky Proehl's 470-yard start in 1988. With his name already being bandied about in the mix with some of Wake's all-time greats, Givens has no hesitation about how he would like to go down in the annals of Wake Forest football.
"I want to be the best wide receiver to ever come through Wake Forest," said Givens. "That's what I'm working towards."
Givens' glitz and showmanship is foiled by the cagey Campanaro, who's toughness is reminiscent of The Thing. He fills the classic slot receiver role with aplomb and, according to Price, is the jokester of the bunch. He's an undersized yet sturdy target, possesses astonishing quickness and is fond of freely flowing across the flat to make take passes in traffic.
"We get portrayed as the `softy' guys, but I love going across the middle and taking hits," Campanaro says. "Coming up with a big play in the middle is big for the team's momentum."
Another dimension has been added to Deacs' aerial assault when Campanaro employs his arm out of the backfield. It's been a game-changer on multiple occasions this season, as the versatile former high school running back has completed all three of his pass attempts for 106 yards and two touchdowns.
"He's making me a little nervous," Price joked after learning of Campanaro's 616.8 pass efficiency rating. "It sounds like he's coming for my job a little bit."
Campanaro maintains his production speaks for itself - in the NC State game he was the first Deacon to throw and catch a touchdown since Marshall Williams - and kids that he wouldn't mind taking a few snaps if his number was called.
"I told Tanner and the coaches I want to start running the two minute offense if I keep this up."
The rugged Clarksville, Md. native calls to mind a number of prototypical slot guys, and says he takes exception to the Wes Welker comparisons he gets all the time - as a loyal Redskins fan he would prefer to be likened to Santana Moss.
In contrast to, "Camp," Davis and Dembry are tall, high-leaping athletes that Price says are a joy to throw the ball to because they're such big targets.
Dembry lacks the bombast that normally accompanies a playmaker, and spent his first couple years almost invisibly waiting in the wings before making eight catches and appearing in 12 games as a redshirt junior.
This season, his breakout game came against the Wolfpack when he caught and ran for a touchdown. A week later, against Gardner-Webb, Dembry set career-highs with eight catches for 126 yards, significant numbers for a player who entered the season with 10 catches and 118 yards for his career.
Like Givens, Dembry credits Galloway with the lion's share of his early success.
"My confidence was built during the spring. Coach Galloway came in and I knew he was going to stay on me because I was a senior," said Dembry. "I knew this was my last chance to prove myself, and he told me it was going to be my turn. He was going to let me play. He's doing it and I'm just coming through with catches and helping the team out the best way I can."
Davis has resembled the mercurial Human Torch on a couple plays this year. Against Boston College, he came down with a homerun 44-yard catch down the right sideline to sustain a Deacon drive in the fourth quarter. Last week against Florida State, he was on the receiving end of a 30-yard trick touchdown pass from Campanaro before hauling in an eight-yard TD strike from Price later in the game.
"He's always making the big play," said Price. "Even in practice."
On the same drive as Davis' dynamite grab at BC, Campanaro fired a 36-yarder to Givens to set up a 22-yard field goal and preserve the 27-19 win, which ended a four-game Wake Forest losing streak in ACC road contests.
It's that type of quick-fire offense that could lead this year's football Deacs to a memorable finish.
"I think it's just a really close group of guys that all believe in each other," Price said. "And we know, at any given moment, one of us will step up and make a play for our teammates. I think there's just a great chemistry between our offense right now."
With superhuman efforts, even more experience and each big play they make as the season rolls along, the receiver corps continues to fashion itself into an even more potent weapon for the Wake Forest offense.
Now, if only they'd figure out some cool nicknames for each other.
