From the Quad

Good Monday Morning Demon Deacon Nation!

As I pulled into campus at 7:30 a.m. it was invigorating to see the resident student parking lots filling up as the first day of spring semester classes is Wednesday! Across our beautiful Reynolda campus so many behind-the-scenes heroes in Student & Residential Life, Campus Health, Grounds, etc., have worked tirelessly to set up another healthy, safe and successful semester of on campus learning, despite the obvious challenges of COVID.

Wake Forest is excited to welcome 21 new student-athletes across six sports this spring and with many of our teams in the thick of competition, let's get to our updates!

"Senior Day" for President Hatch
Since our final home football game was canceled due to Florida State's COVID issues, we didn't have the chance to present President Hatch his "senior" jersey at Truist Field as we planned. Instead, I had the pleasure to present him with a framed jersey celebrating his transformational tenure as Wake Forest's 13th president at our (socially distanced & well ventilated of course) Cabinet planning meeting in Reynolda Village last week. Special thanks to our versatile Provost, Rogan Kersh, for his photography skills!

President Hatch's expectation of excellence for all areas of Wake Forest University has manifested itself competitively with NCAA Championships in Men's Soccer (2007) and Men's Tennis (2018), a combined 26 ACC Regular Season and Tournament Championships and of course our current record streak of five-consecutive bowl seasons. These achievements were accompanied with superlative student-athlete academic and graduation success. While his June 30 retirement is not far away, President Hatch is truly sprinting, not coasting, as he approaches the "finish line."

Hot Hoops in the Joel
The ACC Network brought two exciting Deacon basketball games in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum to a nationwide audience over the weekend.

Led by sophomore Ismael Massoud's 31 points, Saturday's men's basketball win over Pitt had double-meaning for Coach Forbes as it marked his first-career Atlantic Coast Conference victory and it was his 300th career win as a head coach. Pitt came into the game with an 8-2 overall record and in third place in the ACC. I am so appreciative of Coach Steve Forbes and his staff for the outstanding job they have done developing the tough-minded, positive, never-quit identity that has been clearly emerging during our tough opening stretch. Next up for the Deacs is a Big 4 road trip to Raleigh to take on the Wolfpack on Wednesday night.

Yesterday, Coach Jen Hoover's squad battled valiantly as they took No. 1 ranked Louisville down to the wire. Featuring the most recent two ACC Players of the Week (Jan. 11, Ivana Raca; Jan. 18, Gina Conti), the Deacons are now 7-6 and have been receiving votes in both polls during the season. The Deacs continue their homestand, playing host to Florida State on Thursday, Jan. 28, in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The game will tip off at 6 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.

Spring Programs Underway… and Winning!
The Wake Forest indoor track and field program opened up the season in Blacksburg, Va. at the Hokie Invitational, while the Deacons No. 12 men's tennis program beat Denver and the No. 16 ranked women's tennis team knocked off UCF yesterday. Coach Jeff Wyshner's team has two players (Carolyn Campana, Eliza Omirou) ranked in the initial ITA singles and doubles rankings.

Jerry Haas' No. 5 ranked men's golf kicked off our spring sports season last weekend with a tie for first place at the Seminole Invitational Invitational. Wake Forest had four players finish inside the top 20 (!) while the team shot 22-under par in their first collegiate tournament since March 2020.

Wake Forest's No. 1 women's golf team and No. 17 baseball squad are back in action soon!

Seven (!) Demon Deacon Soccer Players Enter Professional Ranks
Wake Forest women's soccer standout Hannah Betfort became the sixth Demon Deacon to be selected in the National Women's Soccer League Draft going No. 37 overall to Portland.

Upon hearing the news, Coach Tony da Luz said , "Hannah has unconditionally excelled in every role and is prepared for NWSL competition. She is a brilliant student-athlete, a force on the field, and a person of impeccable character. This is something she has been working for all her life and I am so happy for her and her family."

Meanwhile two men's soccer alumni, Machop Chol and Isaiah Perente, signed Major League Soccer homegrown contracts with Atlanta United and Columbus Crew, respectively.

And, four more from Wake Forest men's soccer were picked in last Thursday's MLS SuperDraft. The four selections (Calvin Harris, No. 2 Overall by Cincinnati; Michael DeShields, No. 5 Overall by D.C. United; Justin McMaster, No. 17 Overall by Minnesota; Andrew Panneberg, No. 49 Overall by Orlando) are the most under head coach Bobby Muuss and the fifth time in program history that four Deacs were selected in a single draft.

Wake Forest has now sent 23 to the MLS ranks in the six years under Coach Muuss, with 15 being drafted and eight signing homegrown deals — yet another example of the elite program Bobby has built.

Wake Forest, Winston-Salem State & UNC School of the Arts Celebrated the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Wake Forest students joined with Winston-Salem State University and North Carolina School of the Arts students in this year's virtual MLK Read-In this past Saturday. The event shared Dr. Martin Luther. King Jr's legacy with local children.

WSSU and Wake Forest's long-time annual joint celebration of Dr. King. could not not be held on MLK Day due to the pandemic, but we are all excited for it to return in 2022. I also look forward to returning next year to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Prayer Breakfast presented by the Winston-Salem Chronicle and the Ministers Conference. I hope you'll join me there in 2022!

Continued Growth for the Spirit of the Old Gold & Black
Led by Dr. Tim Heath, The Spirit of the Old Gold and Black (SOTOGAB), which is the oldest marching band in the state of North Carolina, does an outstanding job of raising the energy level inside Truist Field and Joel Coliseum for all Demon Deacon home games.

Recently, five of our students performed in the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) Intercollegiate Marching Band (IMB) during halftime of the College Football Playoff National Championship game. It was special to see Gretchen Boyles (trombone), Tanner Bailey (snare drum), Emily McDonald (clarinet), Cole Nikas (tuba) and India Wood (color guard) during the virtual performance.

Individual gifts of lots of loyal supporters and band alumni make a big difference for SOTOGAB students by providing scholarships and operational support. To learn more about how you can help please contact Dr. Heath at heatht@wfu.edu!

Congratulations, Stan Cotten!
Voice of the Demon Deacons Stan Cotten has been named the North Carolina Sports Broadcaster of the Year by the National Sports Media Association Hall of Fame. I love listening to Stan, Lary Sorenson and Mark Freidinger tell the story of Wake Forest football, basketball and baseball over the air. WFU adjunct and Wake Forest Sports Properties sideline reporter Dave Goren serves as Executive Director of the NSMA, which is headquartered right here in Winston-Salem!

New this year, Wake Forest women's basketball is also on the "air" and we thank Deacon Virtual Season Ticket host Ty Collins for the great job he is doing as our play-by-play announcer. It's easy to tune in world-wide on our improved Wake Forest Athletics app!

2021 Football Schedule to Be Announced Thursday
With a fifth-straight bowl game and the 2020 football season behind us, our Fan Experience staff is hard at work getting ready for the 2021 season! Plans include an improved Ticket Purchase Assurance plan and more flexibility as we provide the Best Fan Experience in North Carolina. With so many starters returning and Deacons fans anxious to get back inside Truist Field for our six home games, we encourage you to secure your tickets early as sell-outs are expected! In the meantime, wear your mask so we can have an exciting 2021 fall season together inside Truist Field, Spry and Kentner Stadiums and inside Reynolds Gym.

Finally, for some inspiration I encourage you to read this excellent column by Senior Associate AD Barry Faircloth in which he declares 2021 as the Year of the Deac!

Thanks for your support and as always, please send me your comments, ideas, and questions to me at wfuad@wfu.edu!

Go Deacs!

John Currie
Director of Athletics

Wake Forest Athletics

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