Deacs Focused on Finishing What They Started in June

A 12-game schedule turned into an ACC-centric 11-game schedule that eventually led to just eight regular-season games being played by Wake Forest in 2020.

Clearly, the NCAA knew it was going to be a roller coaster campaign, as programs fought through a pandemic to try to provide competition options for student-athletes across the country — allowing them to take this year as a 'free' year that doesn't count against their eligibility.

A bevy of talented Wake Forest football players have already announced their intentions to return next season, meaning the Deacs will be older and more experienced than at any other time during the Dave Clawson era. As the calendar rolls over in just a couple days, it would be easy to start getting excited for the season ahead in 2021.

But there's still work on the table at noon today, as the Deacs (4-4) square off against Wisconsin (3-3) in the Duke's Mayo Bowl in Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

"This year is this year," Wake Forest senior safety Luke Masterson said Tuesday. "Our big message is to finish this year strong. We didn't come here in June or July, stay here for six months, and sacrifice this much to not finish the right way."

Masterson missed the finish of his junior season with a shoulder injury and was out for a couple games during the already-abbreviated 2020 campaign with a foot injury. He's already said he's likely to come back for another year in 2021.

"Obviously, guys are looking forward to next year and I'm excited about next year," Masterson said. "But really our focus is finishing this year strong and making all these sacrifices worth it.

"After having the Florida State game taken away from us, guys are ready to get out there and compete."

Experience A Plenty for 2021
Senior tight end Brandon Chapman, who has also decided to return in 2021, said it's sort of a running joke about which player on the team will be the oldest. Grad transfer Miles Fox might be the winner, although Chapman called Sulaiman Kamara "an old man."

"This year has been so wacky, just so out of nowhere," Chapman said. "We just want to finish on the right note, but next year we're going to be special."

Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson said he's received more good news than bad news from players about coming back, but left it up to them to make their own announcements.

"As tough as this season was, I think there will be some decisions made here that will set us up to be a very good football team in 2021," Clawson said. "I think for a lot of these players they got cheated out of their senior year, and they don't want this to be their last year of college football. So, the overwhelming majority of these guys will come back. I'll probably be coaching the oldest, most experienced team I've ever coached."

The Path to Bowl Game
Just getting to Bank of America Stadium for today's game was quite a journey for the Demon Deacons, who were on the brink after a heartbreaking three-point loss at North Carolina followed by a Covid-19 shutdown that kept them off the football field for nearly a month.

It took a player-led team meeting on Zoom to get everyone on the same page, focused on closing the season out the right way.

"The mental exhaustion of our football team was starting to take a toll, and the captains called a meeting to rally the troops," Clawson said. "I was proud of our captains because they made a stand.

"We want to finish this season. We're not quitting and we're doing it the right way. It's hard to have good leadership without conflict at times. When you get 120 strong-willed people in a room together, they aren't always going to agree."

Masterson said the main purpose of the player-led meeting was for the captains to share with the rest of the team that they understood the emotions that everyone was going through during those difficult weeks.

"There's nothing easy about being a freshman or being a young guy on the team. But it's not just them, it's been a hard year. We wanted to have an open conversation.

"I think everyone is happy with the direction we went with. We want to finish this season out strong, and it gives us motivation going into this game. We could have ended it, but we chose to stay. This is the reward for that — getting to play a great Wisconsin team in Charlotte and hopefully end this year on a good note going into 2021."

Time to Finish Strong
Finishing with a win over one of the top perennial teams from the Big Ten would be an incredible accomplishment for the Deacs, who are facing one of the best defenses in the country — a Badgers unit that is allowing just 263.5 yards and 15.7 points a game.

While Wisconsin smothers on offense, they grind on offense and lead college football in time of possession. If Wake plays with pace on offense, but doesn't actually move the ball, it could be a long day for the Demon Deacon defense.

"We definitely need to stay on the field," Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman said. "But we're not going to change. We're going to play fast and do what we do. It's definitely in the back of our mind that three-and-outs would be a killer and we have to avoid those."

The Duke's Mayo Bowl will mark the fifth-straight bowl appearance for Wake Forest — a program record. A win would also give the Deacs a winning record for a program-best fifth-consecutive season.

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Players Mentioned

Brandon Chapman

Miles Fox

Sam Hartman

Sulaiman Kamara

Luke Masterson

Wake Forest Athletics