Wake Forest Athletics
Roberson Finding Home as No. 1 Target
11/4/2020 12:30:00 PM | Football, Les Johns
“In practice, I’m always yelling at and talking to Sam, telling him to get me the ball.” - Jaquarii Roberson
After losing 1,000 yards of production at the slot receiver position with the graduation of Kendall Hinton, there were questions entering the 2020 Wake Forest Football season on how that production would be replaced.
At the midway mark of the season, it appears the Deacs have their answer.
Though quarterback Sam Hartman has found both redshirt junior Jaquarii Roberson and redshirt freshman Taylor Morin often this season, it's Roberson who has established himself as one of the top-graded slot receivers in the entire country.
"I want the ball a lot, like every receiver does," Roberson said. "It's a good feeling and I want to keep being the guy who Sam wants to go to. I'm going to keep doing what I've been doing to get those targets."
The Hartman-to-Roberson connection started during the summer, when Roberson met up with the Wake Forest signal caller during the quarantine time during the summer.
"Me and Sam during the offseason and then in quarantine when I got back from Boston, I got with Sam down in Lake Norman a few times," Roberson said. "We made that connection. In practice, I'm always yelling at and talking to Sam, telling him to get me the ball. I want to be a ball hog."
Roberson leads the Deacs and is top-10 in the ACC with 33 receptions. He has 490 yards and two scores. Despite his strong start, there are still other times he believes he should be targeted by Hartman.
"I really try not to worry him (during the game)," Roberson said. "I know how much he has going on in one play. I get in his ear once or twice a game, but normally let him relax."
Hartman definitely couldn't miss Roberson in the Deacs win over Syracuse on Saturday. The wide receiver found room behind the defense on an 80-yard touchdown reception. It was a career-high for both Roberson and Hartman and was the longest offensive play of the year for Wake Forest.
"We have smart guys and guys who love football," Roberson said. "They aren't going to do anything to put our team in jeopardy. It was a big win and we celebrated for 24 hours. We enjoyed the win, but we have smart guys and a disciplined football team."
Coming off a four-game winning streak, the Demon Deacons are operating with a good amount of confidence.
"I'm really confident and have been since the first two games," Roberson said. "I feel like I just gain confidence and that our offense is only getting more confident. We keep competing and making plays. We still have a peak that we can continue to reach, but we will get there.
"I just keep going hard in practice and working on my craft. I've been working on my routes and doing the same things over and over, and I'm going to continue. That will make me a better receiver."
Roberson began playing as a sophomore at Hertford County, playing both side of the ball. It's there that he first started learning to make nice, crisp 'sticks' in his breaks on routes.
"It's always been a strength, although I'm going to keep working at it," he said about his route running/ "I'm hoping to get better at making my routes better here and there.
"Going back into my recruitment, he (wide receiver coach Kevin Higgins) can see if we have a strength running routes. Then when we get here, we straight up our routes and make them more crisp. Coach Higgins works with us a lot on the smaller things, like blocking and coming out of our breaks. That plays into running routes as well."
At the midway mark of the season, it appears the Deacs have their answer.
Though quarterback Sam Hartman has found both redshirt junior Jaquarii Roberson and redshirt freshman Taylor Morin often this season, it's Roberson who has established himself as one of the top-graded slot receivers in the entire country.
"I want the ball a lot, like every receiver does," Roberson said. "It's a good feeling and I want to keep being the guy who Sam wants to go to. I'm going to keep doing what I've been doing to get those targets."
The Hartman-to-Roberson connection started during the summer, when Roberson met up with the Wake Forest signal caller during the quarantine time during the summer.
"Me and Sam during the offseason and then in quarantine when I got back from Boston, I got with Sam down in Lake Norman a few times," Roberson said. "We made that connection. In practice, I'm always yelling at and talking to Sam, telling him to get me the ball. I want to be a ball hog."
Roberson leads the Deacs and is top-10 in the ACC with 33 receptions. He has 490 yards and two scores. Despite his strong start, there are still other times he believes he should be targeted by Hartman.
"I really try not to worry him (during the game)," Roberson said. "I know how much he has going on in one play. I get in his ear once or twice a game, but normally let him relax."
Hartman definitely couldn't miss Roberson in the Deacs win over Syracuse on Saturday. The wide receiver found room behind the defense on an 80-yard touchdown reception. It was a career-high for both Roberson and Hartman and was the longest offensive play of the year for Wake Forest.
"We have smart guys and guys who love football," Roberson said. "They aren't going to do anything to put our team in jeopardy. It was a big win and we celebrated for 24 hours. We enjoyed the win, but we have smart guys and a disciplined football team."
Coming off a four-game winning streak, the Demon Deacons are operating with a good amount of confidence.
"I'm really confident and have been since the first two games," Roberson said. "I feel like I just gain confidence and that our offense is only getting more confident. We keep competing and making plays. We still have a peak that we can continue to reach, but we will get there.
"I just keep going hard in practice and working on my craft. I've been working on my routes and doing the same things over and over, and I'm going to continue. That will make me a better receiver."
Roberson began playing as a sophomore at Hertford County, playing both side of the ball. It's there that he first started learning to make nice, crisp 'sticks' in his breaks on routes.
"It's always been a strength, although I'm going to keep working at it," he said about his route running/ "I'm hoping to get better at making my routes better here and there.
"Going back into my recruitment, he (wide receiver coach Kevin Higgins) can see if we have a strength running routes. Then when we get here, we straight up our routes and make them more crisp. Coach Higgins works with us a lot on the smaller things, like blocking and coming out of our breaks. That plays into running routes as well."
Players Mentioned
QB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ FootballMen's Basketball Postgame Presser vs. Clemson, 2026 ACC Tournament
Thursday, March 12
Wake Forest Women's Basketball: Marcy Carter Women's History Month Feature
Wednesday, March 11
Sebastian Akins Tough
Wednesday, March 11
Wake Forest Advances in 2026 ACC Tournament
Wednesday, March 11