From the Quad
4/24/2023 10:28:00 AM | General
Presented by Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist
Good Morning Demon Deacon Nation,
What a weekend for the Deacs! I'm actually finishing up this Monday morning edition of From The Quad live from a conference room in Dallas where I arrived last night to attend today's Lead1 FBS AD's meeting. This morning we are meeting with new NCAA President Charlie Baker, but I have to admit I have ACC Network Extra open on my laptop following the Deacs in the ACC men's golf match-play championship that started at 9 a.m. ET! If you can't watch, you can track the scores on GolfStat, which is exactly what I did on my flight yesterday!
The Deacons are already bringing home some hardware as Michael Brennen won the individual 2023 ACC championship yesterday with a clutch birdie on the third extra hole! Michael's title is the 23rd ACC crown in the illustrious history of Wake Forest men's golf - the first of which was won in 1954 by the king, Arnold Palmer!
And speaking of special, Friday night's annual Wake Forest Distinguished Alumni Awards Gala bestowed a signature honor on two notable Demon Deacons, trailblazer Beth Norbrey Hopkins ('73, P '12, P '15) and champion of the arts J.D. Wilson ('69, P '01). They were recognized in front of a packed Sutton Center crowd. We know Beth's late husband, Demon Deacons legend Dr. Larry Hopkins was smiling down on the evening ceremony.
Let's get to the updates!
Wake Forest Hosts Spirited Track & Field Meet & Festivities at Kentner Stadium
After a great hug from Beth Hopkins at the Gala, I walked back down to Kentner Stadium where Wake Forest hosted its first track meet since 2018! This event was made possible thanks to the leadership of director of track & field / cross country John Hayes and the hard work of dozens of volunteers and athletics staff.
Over 500 competitors from 24 top collegiate programs gathered for this all-day meet, which started at 9 a.m. and concluded with the 10,000 meter race under the lights at 11 p.m. Click here to read a complete competitive recap of the event, which only tells part of the tremendous story of the Value to Wake Forest, Winston-Salem and the Triad delivered by this event.
This event was broadcast on ACC Network Extra and we welcomed back several hundred Wake Forest track and field / cross country alumni and their families who enjoyed a tailgate with current student-athlete parents on the Miller Center Plaza. Additionally for some non-student-athlete entertaining events, there was an alumni mile and a student 4x100m relay race!
We also recognized our reigning Atlantic Coast Conference Champion men's cross country team and the Demon Deacons' 1989 men's cross country team that recorded the highest finish in program history at the NCAA Championships by placing third. Finally, we saluted 13 seniors from the Wake Forest men's and women's track & field teams on Friday for their time and dedication to our program!
Next up, our team travels to Charlotte this weekend for its penultimate regular season event as our student-athletes prepare for the ACC Championships in Raleigh (May 11-13). Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and @WakeTrack for more information ahead of these events.
And, we are proud of the program record 12 track and field student-athletes named to the All-ACC Academic Team!
No. 2 Diamond Deacs Continue Winning Ways - 400 Wake Wins for Coach Walter
Yesterday's 17-1 win at Pitt clinched our seventh-straight ACC series victory of the season and also marked the 400th win at Wake Forest for our skipper! Now in his 14th year at Wake Forest, Coach Tom Walter has run his overall career record to 826-661-1. Two weeks ago, the Demon Deacons earned their first-ever series win at Louisville with a dominant hitting performance over the then-No. 10 ranked Cardinals. Wake Forest's .850 winning percentage (34-6) is the best in the nation and the Deacs lead the ACC in conference wins!
Wake Forest returns to The Couch on Tuesday as we welcome No. 10 Coastal Carolina to Winston-Salem for a 6 p.m. start. It's a $5 midweek contest, which means everything in the park from your ticket, to hot dogs and an ice-cold Deacon Brew is just $5! Wednesday night we head down U.S. 74 to Shelby, N.C. for a neutral site game vs. Appalachian State as we honor Jim Horn, a member of the 1955 NCAA Champion baseball team and longtime supporter. This weekend we have home contests versus Wofford at 6 p.m. on Saturday and High Point (5 p.m.) on Sunday. Our chase for an ACC crown resumes next weekend (May 5-7) as we host Boston College for a big series, so buy your tickets now!
ACC Championships Review; Demon Deacons Await NCAA Championship Selections
It was a highly competitive two weeks for our golf and tennis programs at their respective ACC Championships! On the tennis courts in Cary, the Deacon women downed Notre Dame on Thursday, before falling to UNC on Friday. Meanwhile, our men's team downed Virginia Tech and No. 23 NC State on the way to the semifinals. Coach Tony Bresky's squad battled No. 12 Duke to the last point before falling, 4-3.
Last weekend, Coach Kim Lewellen's women's golf team won the stroke play portion of ACC Championships by eight strokes as Wake Forest was one of just two schools to shoot an under-par in the third round. The Deacs' 54-hole score of 19-under-par 845 is the third-lowest 54-hole score all-time at the ACC Women's Golf Championship. Individually, senior Rachel Kuehn finished with a 54-hole score of eight-under 208 for a third-place finish and medalist honors. Additionally, senior Lauren Walsh and junior Mimi Rhodes joined Kuehn inside the top 10 at tied for fifth and seventh, respectively.
Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and our social media platforms as the NCAA Selection Shows for these respective sports are Thursday, April 26 for women's golf, Monday, May 1 for men's and women's tennis and next Thursday, May 3 for men's golf.
Deacon Fans Snapping Up Wake Forest Gear at Record Pace, Online & On Campus
The excitement of Wake Forest Athletics, the passion of our fans to represent the Old Gold and Black, and the emergence of specialty brands along with our continued partnerships with industry leaders Nike and Hanesbrands has helped drive our licensing revenue to new heights. And, to better serve Deacon fans, we recently made a strategic decision to close the Deacon Shop inside Hanes Mall. This move enables us to reinvest resources in other initiatives - and will actually increase the volume of Wake Forest apparel carried in area stores. In addition to local outlets such as Dick's Sporting Goods, fans can shop online at WakeForestShop.com 24 hours a day and visit the Deacon Shops located on Hearn Plaza, which are open seven days a week (except holidays). Also, we have bolstered the selection at our gameday locations inside Truist Field, Joel Coliseum and Couch Ballpark while we work behind the scenes on some exciting future developments!
Goal No. 4 - Win Championships: Demon Deacons Debate Dominates!
Another national championship has come back to Winston-Salem as our Wake Forest University debate team clinched a historic achievement! On April 11, our top two teams (juniors Iyana Trotman and Tajaih Robinson along with seniors Ana Bittner and Ari Davidson) closed out the final round of the Cross Examination Debate Association national tournament. They were the last two teams standing, winning both first and second place. Both teams were undefeated throughout the championship, which was held in Texas at the University of Houston.
The win marks another achievement for the Wake Forest Debate team, which this year won all three major national policy debate tournaments, including the top trophy at the American Debate Association competition in early March. Wake Forest's debate tradition began in 1835, one year after the college was founded.
Celebrating World-Class Student-Athletes at the Black & Golden Globes
An annual endeavor of our Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is the production of one of the most fun evenings of the year. The annual Black & Golden Globes event on Thursday night will bring our 400-plus student-athletes together inside Scales Fine Arts Center on our beautiful Reynolda Campus to celebrate a successful 2022-23 academic year and hand out some of our annual Wake Forest Athletics awards!
Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and our @DemonDeacons social media accounts to learn who has won the Ron & Linda Wellman Life Teammate Award, the Edwin G. Wilson Scholar Athlete of the Year Award, the ACC Top Six for Service and many other student-athlete driven awards.
As always after the Athletics competitive year comes to a close in two months, we will announce winners of the Arnold Palmer and Marge Crisp Award, along with many others.
Exciting Spring Football Game Previews Fall Season
It was a high-flying and exciting afternoon of football at Truist Field back on April 15 as Coach Dave Clawson's squad tallied 778 total yards on offense and scored five touchdowns in the two-hour game. Fans who tuned in on ACC Network Extra were treated to special interviews during the broadcast with the legendary Bob Grant and Wake Forest Sports Hall of Famer and ACC Legend Desmond Clark. Meanwhile, the 2,500 fans inside Truist Field enjoyed the return of the DEACTOWN Fan Zone presented by Forsyth County Farm Bureau Insurance and postgame autographs on the field with our student-athletes!
A few weeks ago our football players received their Gasparilla Bowl championship rings our players received a few weeks ago. Earning bowl rings - and diplomas - are Wake Forest football traditions - with the Deacs sporting the ACC's second-longest bowl streak and a graduation success rate of 93 percent!
It's never too early to start planning ahead for the fall and remember the 'One More Rule' as you set your weekend plans for the season ahead! As we have mentioned in past editions of From the Quad, tickets for Opening Night at Truist Field are on sale now! Then, in Week 2 we will welcome the Vanderbilt Commodores for Unrivaled Weekend on Saturday, Sept. 9. In anticipation of a capacity crowd, our ticket office has already released single game tickets and four-packs for purchase now! Special promotions for specific groups for that game include High School Bands, Jr. Spirit Day, First Responders, Furniture Industry Professionals and that contest will serve as our annual "Climb to Remember" game in memory of 9/11.
We expect all six home games this year to be sellouts and the most economical way to secure your seats is through season tickets! For questions or assistance, please contact the Wake Forest Ticket Office at 336-758-3322 ext. 1 or tix@wfu.edu. Regular office hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
World Class Football Student-Athlete Experience Fulfilled by Efforts of Wendell Dunn
Speaking of football, back in February Wake Forest director of player development Wendell Dunn launched a comprehensive off the field learning program for our football student-athletes titled, Top Hat Wednesdays. This eight-week Wednesday afternoon program includes topics like taxes and investing, N.I.L., leadership, and mental health awareness.
Wendell's position was established several years ago thanks to a generous gift made by Billy Prim to create the Football Player Career Development fund which helps football student-athletes transition into college as undergraduates, and into the industry of their choice upon graduation.
Here is the list of topics and guests that were covered with our student-athletes. Additionally, here is a list of partners who help with this program:
Today is also Pump Up for Piccolo, which has been held annually since 2005, as a special between the football program and Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity to benefit the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund at the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. I am very appreciative of Coach Clawson and our student-athletes' involvement in this important event each year as we continue to raise awareness of cancer research.
Finally, Coach Clawson's model program is epitomized by these six Demon Deacons who were named to the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society! This continues to demonstrate the academic excellence of Wake Forest football!
From the Quad Big 3
Finally, here are today's Big 3 ways to help the Deacs:
As always, continue to send your thoughts, ideas and suggestions to me at wfuad@wfu.edu, and…
Go Deacs!
John Currie
Director of Athletics
Good Morning Demon Deacon Nation,
What a weekend for the Deacs! I'm actually finishing up this Monday morning edition of From The Quad live from a conference room in Dallas where I arrived last night to attend today's Lead1 FBS AD's meeting. This morning we are meeting with new NCAA President Charlie Baker, but I have to admit I have ACC Network Extra open on my laptop following the Deacs in the ACC men's golf match-play championship that started at 9 a.m. ET! If you can't watch, you can track the scores on GolfStat, which is exactly what I did on my flight yesterday!
The Deacons are already bringing home some hardware as Michael Brennen won the individual 2023 ACC championship yesterday with a clutch birdie on the third extra hole! Michael's title is the 23rd ACC crown in the illustrious history of Wake Forest men's golf - the first of which was won in 1954 by the king, Arnold Palmer!
And speaking of special, Friday night's annual Wake Forest Distinguished Alumni Awards Gala bestowed a signature honor on two notable Demon Deacons, trailblazer Beth Norbrey Hopkins ('73, P '12, P '15) and champion of the arts J.D. Wilson ('69, P '01). They were recognized in front of a packed Sutton Center crowd. We know Beth's late husband, Demon Deacons legend Dr. Larry Hopkins was smiling down on the evening ceremony.
Let's get to the updates!
Wake Forest Hosts Spirited Track & Field Meet & Festivities at Kentner Stadium
After a great hug from Beth Hopkins at the Gala, I walked back down to Kentner Stadium where Wake Forest hosted its first track meet since 2018! This event was made possible thanks to the leadership of director of track & field / cross country John Hayes and the hard work of dozens of volunteers and athletics staff.
Over 500 competitors from 24 top collegiate programs gathered for this all-day meet, which started at 9 a.m. and concluded with the 10,000 meter race under the lights at 11 p.m. Click here to read a complete competitive recap of the event, which only tells part of the tremendous story of the Value to Wake Forest, Winston-Salem and the Triad delivered by this event.
This event was broadcast on ACC Network Extra and we welcomed back several hundred Wake Forest track and field / cross country alumni and their families who enjoyed a tailgate with current student-athlete parents on the Miller Center Plaza. Additionally for some non-student-athlete entertaining events, there was an alumni mile and a student 4x100m relay race!
We also recognized our reigning Atlantic Coast Conference Champion men's cross country team and the Demon Deacons' 1989 men's cross country team that recorded the highest finish in program history at the NCAA Championships by placing third. Finally, we saluted 13 seniors from the Wake Forest men's and women's track & field teams on Friday for their time and dedication to our program!
Next up, our team travels to Charlotte this weekend for its penultimate regular season event as our student-athletes prepare for the ACC Championships in Raleigh (May 11-13). Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and @WakeTrack for more information ahead of these events.
And, we are proud of the program record 12 track and field student-athletes named to the All-ACC Academic Team!
No. 2 Diamond Deacs Continue Winning Ways - 400 Wake Wins for Coach Walter
Yesterday's 17-1 win at Pitt clinched our seventh-straight ACC series victory of the season and also marked the 400th win at Wake Forest for our skipper! Now in his 14th year at Wake Forest, Coach Tom Walter has run his overall career record to 826-661-1. Two weeks ago, the Demon Deacons earned their first-ever series win at Louisville with a dominant hitting performance over the then-No. 10 ranked Cardinals. Wake Forest's .850 winning percentage (34-6) is the best in the nation and the Deacs lead the ACC in conference wins!
Wake Forest returns to The Couch on Tuesday as we welcome No. 10 Coastal Carolina to Winston-Salem for a 6 p.m. start. It's a $5 midweek contest, which means everything in the park from your ticket, to hot dogs and an ice-cold Deacon Brew is just $5! Wednesday night we head down U.S. 74 to Shelby, N.C. for a neutral site game vs. Appalachian State as we honor Jim Horn, a member of the 1955 NCAA Champion baseball team and longtime supporter. This weekend we have home contests versus Wofford at 6 p.m. on Saturday and High Point (5 p.m.) on Sunday. Our chase for an ACC crown resumes next weekend (May 5-7) as we host Boston College for a big series, so buy your tickets now!
ACC Championships Review; Demon Deacons Await NCAA Championship Selections
It was a highly competitive two weeks for our golf and tennis programs at their respective ACC Championships! On the tennis courts in Cary, the Deacon women downed Notre Dame on Thursday, before falling to UNC on Friday. Meanwhile, our men's team downed Virginia Tech and No. 23 NC State on the way to the semifinals. Coach Tony Bresky's squad battled No. 12 Duke to the last point before falling, 4-3.
Last weekend, Coach Kim Lewellen's women's golf team won the stroke play portion of ACC Championships by eight strokes as Wake Forest was one of just two schools to shoot an under-par in the third round. The Deacs' 54-hole score of 19-under-par 845 is the third-lowest 54-hole score all-time at the ACC Women's Golf Championship. Individually, senior Rachel Kuehn finished with a 54-hole score of eight-under 208 for a third-place finish and medalist honors. Additionally, senior Lauren Walsh and junior Mimi Rhodes joined Kuehn inside the top 10 at tied for fifth and seventh, respectively.
Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and our social media platforms as the NCAA Selection Shows for these respective sports are Thursday, April 26 for women's golf, Monday, May 1 for men's and women's tennis and next Thursday, May 3 for men's golf.
Deacon Fans Snapping Up Wake Forest Gear at Record Pace, Online & On Campus
The excitement of Wake Forest Athletics, the passion of our fans to represent the Old Gold and Black, and the emergence of specialty brands along with our continued partnerships with industry leaders Nike and Hanesbrands has helped drive our licensing revenue to new heights. And, to better serve Deacon fans, we recently made a strategic decision to close the Deacon Shop inside Hanes Mall. This move enables us to reinvest resources in other initiatives - and will actually increase the volume of Wake Forest apparel carried in area stores. In addition to local outlets such as Dick's Sporting Goods, fans can shop online at WakeForestShop.com 24 hours a day and visit the Deacon Shops located on Hearn Plaza, which are open seven days a week (except holidays). Also, we have bolstered the selection at our gameday locations inside Truist Field, Joel Coliseum and Couch Ballpark while we work behind the scenes on some exciting future developments!
Goal No. 4 - Win Championships: Demon Deacons Debate Dominates!
Another national championship has come back to Winston-Salem as our Wake Forest University debate team clinched a historic achievement! On April 11, our top two teams (juniors Iyana Trotman and Tajaih Robinson along with seniors Ana Bittner and Ari Davidson) closed out the final round of the Cross Examination Debate Association national tournament. They were the last two teams standing, winning both first and second place. Both teams were undefeated throughout the championship, which was held in Texas at the University of Houston.
The win marks another achievement for the Wake Forest Debate team, which this year won all three major national policy debate tournaments, including the top trophy at the American Debate Association competition in early March. Wake Forest's debate tradition began in 1835, one year after the college was founded.
Celebrating World-Class Student-Athletes at the Black & Golden Globes
An annual endeavor of our Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is the production of one of the most fun evenings of the year. The annual Black & Golden Globes event on Thursday night will bring our 400-plus student-athletes together inside Scales Fine Arts Center on our beautiful Reynolda Campus to celebrate a successful 2022-23 academic year and hand out some of our annual Wake Forest Athletics awards!
Stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and our @DemonDeacons social media accounts to learn who has won the Ron & Linda Wellman Life Teammate Award, the Edwin G. Wilson Scholar Athlete of the Year Award, the ACC Top Six for Service and many other student-athlete driven awards.
As always after the Athletics competitive year comes to a close in two months, we will announce winners of the Arnold Palmer and Marge Crisp Award, along with many others.
Exciting Spring Football Game Previews Fall Season
It was a high-flying and exciting afternoon of football at Truist Field back on April 15 as Coach Dave Clawson's squad tallied 778 total yards on offense and scored five touchdowns in the two-hour game. Fans who tuned in on ACC Network Extra were treated to special interviews during the broadcast with the legendary Bob Grant and Wake Forest Sports Hall of Famer and ACC Legend Desmond Clark. Meanwhile, the 2,500 fans inside Truist Field enjoyed the return of the DEACTOWN Fan Zone presented by Forsyth County Farm Bureau Insurance and postgame autographs on the field with our student-athletes!
A few weeks ago our football players received their Gasparilla Bowl championship rings our players received a few weeks ago. Earning bowl rings - and diplomas - are Wake Forest football traditions - with the Deacs sporting the ACC's second-longest bowl streak and a graduation success rate of 93 percent!
It's never too early to start planning ahead for the fall and remember the 'One More Rule' as you set your weekend plans for the season ahead! As we have mentioned in past editions of From the Quad, tickets for Opening Night at Truist Field are on sale now! Then, in Week 2 we will welcome the Vanderbilt Commodores for Unrivaled Weekend on Saturday, Sept. 9. In anticipation of a capacity crowd, our ticket office has already released single game tickets and four-packs for purchase now! Special promotions for specific groups for that game include High School Bands, Jr. Spirit Day, First Responders, Furniture Industry Professionals and that contest will serve as our annual "Climb to Remember" game in memory of 9/11.
We expect all six home games this year to be sellouts and the most economical way to secure your seats is through season tickets! For questions or assistance, please contact the Wake Forest Ticket Office at 336-758-3322 ext. 1 or tix@wfu.edu. Regular office hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
World Class Football Student-Athlete Experience Fulfilled by Efforts of Wendell Dunn
Speaking of football, back in February Wake Forest director of player development Wendell Dunn launched a comprehensive off the field learning program for our football student-athletes titled, Top Hat Wednesdays. This eight-week Wednesday afternoon program includes topics like taxes and investing, N.I.L., leadership, and mental health awareness.
Wendell's position was established several years ago thanks to a generous gift made by Billy Prim to create the Football Player Career Development fund which helps football student-athletes transition into college as undergraduates, and into the industry of their choice upon graduation.
Here is the list of topics and guests that were covered with our student-athletes. Additionally, here is a list of partners who help with this program:
- WFU Entrepreneurship Dept.
- Winston-Salem Sheriff Department
- WFU Office of Personal & Career Development
- WFU School of Business
- WFU Leadership & Development Department
- WFU Sports Psychology
- WFI Counseling Department
Today is also Pump Up for Piccolo, which has been held annually since 2005, as a special between the football program and Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity to benefit the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund at the Comprehensive Cancer Center at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. I am very appreciative of Coach Clawson and our student-athletes' involvement in this important event each year as we continue to raise awareness of cancer research.
Finally, Coach Clawson's model program is epitomized by these six Demon Deacons who were named to the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society! This continues to demonstrate the academic excellence of Wake Forest football!
From the Quad Big 3
Finally, here are today's Big 3 ways to help the Deacs:
- Make it a point to get to David Couch Ballpark to cheer on the No. 2 Diamond Deacs in one of our last 10 regular season home games! First pitch tomorrow versus No. 10 Coastal Carolina is 6 p.m.
- The NFL Draft starts on Thursday - stay tuned to GoDeacs.com and our social media accounts for unique content and broadcast information as our football alumni await their names to be called. Re-watch our Pro Day broadcast from March 29 here, which was produced by our talented ACCN multimedia staff!
- Our men's and women's soccer schedules are set for this fall! While adding those home matches at Spry Stadium to calendars, be sure to purchase season tickets for each sport here or contact the Wake Forest Ticket Office for more options!
As always, continue to send your thoughts, ideas and suggestions to me at wfuad@wfu.edu, and…
Go Deacs!
John Currie
Director of Athletics
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Players Mentioned
Football Media Availability (9/18/25)
Thursday, September 18
Matt Barrie SportsCenter at Wake Forest with Demond Claiborne
Wednesday, September 10
Matt Barrie SportsCenter on Wake Forest Campus (Arnold Palmer Complex)
Wednesday, September 10
Football Media Availability (9/9/25)
Wednesday, September 10