Wake Forest Athletics
Weekly Press Conference Video & Quotes: Sept. 19
9/19/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeFB)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson, tight end Cam Serigne and quarterback John Wolford me with the media Tuesday to preview the Demon Deacons' Saturday contest against in-state foe Appalachian State.
Head Coach Dave Clawson
Opening Statement...
"Just wrapping up Utah State, it was a good win, especially when you look at it from the big picture. That was a team that really dominated us three years ago. When things like that happen you feel like you are making progress. Our defense played very well. That first interception was a great way to start the game. We did a good job of defending the run and really made them one-dimensional. Our offense continues to start fast. John (Wolford) is playing really well right now and is in a good rhythm. Our offensive line is protecting well. We are making more explosive plays. Certainly, Arkeem Byrd, Greg Dortch and Tabari Hines are guys who made explosive plays for us. Special teams was a little bit of a mixed bag. The Jessie Bates punt return was really good and our kickoff coverage is doing a nice job. I don't like that we had a punt blocked and we had three penalties in the kicking game. As the competition picks up, those are things we have to get squared away.
"Appalachian State is a really good football team. Just doing my early research on them, in their last 35 games, they are 29-6. Their six losses are to a Georgia team that is undefeated this year, a nine-win Tennessee team in overtime, a nine-win Miami team, a 14-win Clemson team, a 10-win Troy team and an Arkansas State team that went undefeated in the Sun Belt. When you are that consistent, it is incredible. All their losses have been to really good Power 5 teams or teams at the top of their conference.
"Their quarterback, Taylor Lamb, will be making his 40th start. He is the son of a coach, Bobby Lamb, who was the head coach at Furman and Mercer. He is just a winner. He can make plays with his arm and his speed and manages their offense extremely well. They are really good on offense. They know exactly what to do against what you do defensively. Their back, Jalin Moore, was the player of the year in the conference a year ago. When the ball gets on the perimeter, they have guys you can run. The offensive line is really well coached. Against Georgia, they had two or three plays where they got untouched to the edge and were running for 30 or 40 yards.
"Their defensive coordinator, Nate Woody, is excellent. I remember when I was at Richmond, going up against him when he was at Wofford. They are just so fundamentally sound. They are based out of a three-down, but their linemen do a good job of disengaging blocks. They don't give up big plays. When you look at a team, you try and find the weakness. There is no obvious weakness with this football team. They are well-coached and have really good players. Half their team was all-conference a year ago. These guys are used to playing in big games and this will be a really good challenge for our guys."
On the potential rivalry with App State: "I wanted this game. In-state rivalries are good for college football. At a certain point, it can't just be about the number of eyes on the tube, it must be about people at games. My understanding is they're sold out this week. Fans want to see these in-state games. There is a buzz in the air this week on both campuses because of the proximity and history of the two programs. With all the talk about us having nothing to gain, I believe that every time you play a game, you have something to gain and something to lose. I don't think people just view App State as a Sun Belt team, they view them as a really good football team. They've done a lot of good things since they beat Michigan 10 years ago."
On preparing the team during the week: "Every week is a new week. We always talk about trying to go 1-0 every single week. The Utah State season was over Sunday night. As a team, we put that one to bed and get ready for the next one. The next one has to have our attention because they're a good team. If we show up and don't play our best, we will not win this game. It starts with our Sunday night practice and continues with our Monday practice. We've had a lot of guys coming in to watch film on their own. We start our practices off with a tempo period and our guys are ready to go today. Our theme for the year is we want to keep building."
On similarities and differences between the teams' zone-read offenses: "We certainly have aspects of it in our offense, but we don't major in it the way that they do. They have other wrinkles in it, but that is the bread-and-butter of their offense. They have every different answer. If you're going to support it this way, they'll do this. If you try to get this guy involved, they'll have a play to answer it. They're very good at it. They know what they're doing. If you didn't have to play them, you would enjoy watching them because you appreciate good football. They are very sound and their offensive linemen know exactly what they're doing and the quarterback doesn't make mistakes. He is very deceptive. There are times when he just takes off. There were a few times against Georgia where he was out-running a good SEC defense."
Redshirt senior tight end Cam Serigne
On the Utah State game:
"For us, it's a building process. When you watch the film, it wasn't perfect. We need to clean things up. It's just about getting better every week for us. Coming to practice this week, we just worked on the details and getting better at what we're doing."
On Appalachian State:
"They're a great defense. They play really hard. They're really good players and we're going to have to really bring it this week. For me, it's just sticking to the same things we always do. We need to play our game and execute the details."
On chemistry this season compared to last season:
"We have a bunch of experienced players, a lot of guys who have played a lot of football. Up front, we start a lot of redshirt juniors, on the outside we have a lot of guys that have played before and we just have a lot more playmakers overall who can get the ball in their hands. John Wolford is as good as it gets in a quarterback: he's smart and a great player. We're clicking right now and we need to keep that going."
On John Wolford:
"Once he got the job, he's been running with it. You need to have a quarterback that leads the troops and I think he can keep the train rolling."
On what they learned from starting last season 4-0:
"It's all about maintaining. You can't wear down and you can't let up just because you have success early in the season. We have to treat ourselves like we're 0-3 and keep going. Each week is a one-week season."
On Wake Forest's explosive offense this season:
"You see guys break for runs that are 40-plus and that's a good feeling. We have to keep that going and have guys make plays when they have the opportunity. I have full faith that our guys will do that."
Senior quarterback John Wolford
On the team's offensive performance against Utah State:
"It's a good feeling when you walk off the field with that much success. It starts early in the week with practice, we had a good week of practice going into that game, and you saw us execute the game plan well once we got there. It's a positive step for us and gives us some confidence coming into this next game but at the same time, at the end of the game, the game is over and you have to move on. We're excited with that result but it's time to focus on App State now."
On the differences on the field between this year and last year:
"I think there is a net improvement to the offense. Each unit has gotten better. I think we've been in the system a little longer and we're more mature and know what we're doing. We're getting better each week. That's a big thing: we can never stagnate, we need to ascend. As the competition steps up, we need to continue to build."
On the depth of the Wake Forest offense:
"It's hard for defense to key in on a certain player. Cam Serigne is making plays, Cortez Lewis is making plays, Tabari Hines and Greg Dortch are making plays. When you know you can throw a screen and a guy will make a gain out of it, that makes my stats look better and it makes me look better. It's a good feeling knowing that we have some options outside."
On Arkeem Byrd:
"He's a great guy. He works hard and loves football. Seeing him get his shot, get a bunch of carries and go for a bunch of yards, it's good for our offense. He's explosive. If you give him a crease, he can take it to the house and that's another weapon that we have."
On App State's defense:
"They're very sound. They're an aggressive defense and they have some talent. They have a good D-Line, good linebackers and a good back end. There's a reason they're doing well the past few years. Part of that is their defense."
