Wake Forest Athletics News
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Gold Rush: Time to Do It Again
Aug. 22, 2002 By Jay Reddick James MacPherson has heard the hype before. When MacPherson first came to Wake Forest from Tucson, Ariz., as a freshman quarterback in 1998, the Deacons were coming off a 5-6 season, a year in which the team was five scant points away from seven wins and a bowl bid. Sports Illustrated put WFU in its preseason top 25. MacPherson intently watched how the returnees on that squad dealt with expectations. And after the 3-8 record that the Deacs put together that year, he learned a lesson. "The attitude of that team was trying to protect what they had already done," MacPherson said. "They thought, five wins is great, now let's build up from that. And it didn't work." MacPherson helped pilot the 2001 Deacons to a 6-5 record - and 10 more points could have meant eight victories and a sure bowl bid. But now, as the starting quarterback, he knows that the 2002 team must start over if they want to get anywhere. "We have to do it again," MacPherson said. "We realize that the year before has nothing to do with this year. We can be really good, but we still have to go at it like we're supposed to. We could get too caught up in what people are saying, because we had some success last year, and we have a lot coming back, but we have to block that out and go play. If we listen, we're going to be surprised by some teams." MacPherson could be forgiven if he felt a little bit too comfortable coming into this season. After two years of mostly splitting time under center with Anthony Young, for the first time, the senior entered preseason camp as the unquestioned starter. And yes, he said on the eve of camp, he is relaxed. But that's good news for Deacons fans. "The experience I gained the last two years has been invaluable," MacPherson said. "I'm able to relax and know that anything can happen, but I still know what I'm able to do, what the game will be like and what to prepare for. I have to be ready to take control, and be ready to just play and not worry about other things." MacPherson got his mind prepared for the trials to come by getting away from it all. As part of a class project, he spent the first five weeks of summer traveling throughout Europe, an experience he said he'll never forget. "It was part of a class, but mostly, it was just a chance to be over there," MacPherson said. "I was always thinking about football - I took a ball with me and was able to throw to a few guys - but it was a nice break to see another part of the world." MacPherson spent time in Italy, France, Holland, Germany and England, among others, but his favorite memory was the chance to use his Spanish-language skills. "I used Spanish once in Italy, in this Internet cafe," MacPherson said. "This man's time ran out, and he lost all his e-mails. He was trying to explain to the woman behind the counter that he lost his e-mails, and she could understand him, but she only spoke Italian and English, so he couldn't understand her. I used basic Spanish to tell him that his timecard had run out. It was an amazing feeling to be able to help and communicate in a foreign country. I'll remember that for the rest of my life." The quarterback's talents as a communicator are not to be underestimated. He came back to Winston-Salem in early July, for the second session of summer school, and since then, he has been one of the players in charge of motivating players to come to the practice field in the afternoons. With this group, though, he said motivation wasn't a problem. "We have guys that want to be out there," MacPherson said. "It's tough to get guys to go out there in the afternoons, but if we want to be as good as we can be, we have to put in the extra work. It's great to have guys that really want it." MacPherson hinted that the workouts included a few new plays, to make the already high-powered Wake Forest offense even more aggressive. "We had some new stuff put in spring, and this fall, we have some new wrinkles," MacPherson said. "We're still trying to maintain that unpredictability and give ourselves the best chance to score. The offense is still evolving. I don't know how much I can say, but it's all changes for the good." The optimistic motivator also hopes that the new offense brings not just more victories, but more fans. The team finished just 2-4 at home last season, and MacPherson said one reason for that was the lack of big crowds to get behind the Deacons. "This place is so underappreciated," MacPherson said. "The fans are a little bit not rowdy enough, and we need to give them something more to be excited about. It's going to take beating some big teams at home. A 6-5 record got a lot of people excited, but we've been here before, and now we have to prove it." |