Wake Forest Demon Deacons football

NCAAFootballSchool
TeamName = Wake Forest Demon Deacons


ImageSize = 300px
HeadCoachDisplay = Jim Grobe
HeadCoachLink = Jim Grobe
HeadCoachYear = 8th
HCWins = 50
HCLosses = 40
HCTies =
Stadium = BB&T Field at Groves Stadium
StadiumLink = BB&T Field at Groves Stadium
StadCapacity = 31,500
StadSurface = FieldTurf
Location = Winston-Salem, North Carolina
ConferenceDisplay= ACC
ConferenceLink = Atlantic Coast Conference
ConfDivision = Atlantic
FirstYear = 1888
AthlDirector = Ron Wellman
WebsiteName = WF Sports
WebsiteURL = http://wakeforestsports.cstv.com/
ATWins = 402
ATLosses = 582
ATTies = 33
ATPercentage = .412
BowlWins = 5
BowlLosses = 3
BowlTies = 0
NatlTitles = 0
ConfTitles = 2 (1970, 2006)
Heismans = 0
Color1 = Old Gold
Color1Hex = CFB53B
Color2 = Black
Color2Hex = 000000
FightSong = O' Here's to Wake Forest
MascotDisplay = Demon Deacon
MascotLink = Demon Deacon
MarchingBand = The Spirit of the Old Gold & Black
PagFreeLabel = Outfitter
PagFreeValue = Nike
PagFreeLabel = Rivals
PagFreeValue = Duke Blue Devils
North Carolina Tar Heels
NC State Wolfpack

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represents Wake Forest University in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Wake Forest was ranked in the Top 25 in the nation by the AP Poll during most of the 2006 season. Wake Forest won the 2006 ACC Atlantic Division Title and the 2006 ACC Conference Championship by defeating Georgia Tech 9-6 on December 2 in the ACC Championship Game in Jacksonville, FL. The win sent Wake Forest to the Orange Bowl to play Big East champion Louisville, where they lost to the Cardinals. This made Wake Forest the smallest school to ever compete in the Bowl Championship Series. Of all schools that play Division I FBS football, only Rice and Tulsa have smaller undergraduate enrollments, and Wake Forest has the smallest undergraduate enrollment of any school in the BCS conferences. For his part in the record-setting season, coach Jim Grobe was unanimously selected ACC Coach of the Year, and handily won the AP Coach of the Year award several weeks later. Wake Forest plays its home football games in Groves Stadium.

History

Mascot, nicknames and colors

Like many other collegiate school colors and mascots, Wake Forest's traditional "Old Gold & Black" and "Demon Deacon" have distinctive, yet somewhat debated, origins.

As early as 1895, Wake Forest College was using its colors in athletic competition. The school's literary magazine, "The Wake Forest Student," described them in this manner:

:"At last, Wake Forest has a college badge. It is a very neat button designed by Mr. John M. Heck and contains a tiger's head over the letters WFC. The colors are in old gold and black." [http://wakeforestsports.collegesports.com/trads/wake-trads-spirit.html]

As the 20th century opened, those colors became frequently associated with the college, particularly its athletic and debate teams. Most historians believe that their adoption comes from the connection with the tiger mascot, and not, as some have proposed, from any association with the Bible.

Sadly, Heck, who is credited by the magazine with the creation of the tiger/old gold and black badge, died of typhoid fever at the age of 19 -- just one year after making a contribution to Wake Forest history that has lasted now for nearly 100 years.

The tiger mascot, however, remained with the school for just more than two decades. Reports indicate that by the early 1920s, the college's nicknames were most commonly noted as the "Baptists," or simply "The Old Gold & Black."

Those were difficult times for the Wake Forest athletic squads. But a gentleman by the name of Hank Garrity took over as head football and basketball coach in 1923 and for a brief period reversed those fortunes. Garrity led the football team, which had never had a winning record in the 1900s, to three straight winning seasons. And in two seasons on the hardwood, his clubs compiled a 33-14 mark.

The current nicknames of the time were not descriptive enough of this new-found athletic spirit, school newspaper editor Mayon Parker ('24) felt. After Wake Forest defeated rival Trinity (now Duke) in Garrity's first football season (1923), Parker first referred to the team as "Demon Deacons," in recognition of what he termed their "devilish" play and fighting spirit.

Wake Forest's news director Henry Belk and Garrity liked the title and began using it extensively. The name has, of course, remained as one of the most unusual in America.

Wake Forest head football coaches

Records

All-time bowl record

Wake Forest has played in eight bowls in its history and owns a 5-3 record in those games. For the 2006-07 season, the school earned a bid to its first ever BCS game, with an Orange Bowl match-up against Louisville.

Rivalries

WFU is sometimes referred to as being a part of "Tobacco Road" or the Big Four [http://blog.news-record.com/staff/offtherecord/archives/2007/11/wake_breezes_to.shtml Wake breezes to Big Four title, again] ] , terms that refer to the four North Carolina schools that compete heatedly against each other within the ACC. Wake's all-time records against the members of Tobacco Road are 33-67-2 against UNC, 34-60-6 against NCSU, and 32-53-2 against Duke. [http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/acc/wake_forest/opponents.php Wake Forest Opponents] ] Wake Forest defeated North Carolina 6-4 on October 18, 1888 during the first intercollegiate football game played in the state of North Carolina. [http://www.wfu.edu/history/HST_WFU/redletter.htm Athletic History of WFU ] ] Wake Forest swept the series with its Tobacco Road rivals in both 2006 and 2007.

Individual Award Winners

Player

*ACC Player of the Year

:Bill Barnes - 1956:Brian Piccolo - 1964:Jay Venuto - 1979 :Chris Barclay - 2005

*Ray Guy Award:Ryan Plackemeier - 2005

*ACC Rookie of the Year

:Ciro Grassano - 1987:Riley Skinner - 2006:Josh Adams - 2007

Coaches

*ACC Coach of the Year:Paul Amen - 1956:Paul Amen - 1959:Bill Tate - 1964:Cal Stoll - 1970:John Mackovic - 1979:Bill Dooley - 1987:Bill Dooley - 1992:Jim Grobe - 2006

*Associated Press Coach of the Year:Jim Grobe - 2006

*Bobby Dodd Award:Jim Grobe - 2006

Current NFL Players

*Tyson Clabo - Offensive Lineman, Atlanta Falcons
*Desmond Clark - Tight End, Chicago Bears
*Steve Justice - Offensive Lineman, Indianapolis Colts
*Eric King - Cornerback, Tennessee Titans
*Ovie Mughelli - Fullback, Atlanta Falcons
*Calvin Pace - Linebacker, New York Jets
*Fred Robbins - Defensive Tackle, New York Giants
*Jeremy Thompson - Defensive End, Green Bay Packers
*Jyles Tucker - Linebacker, San Diego Chargers
*Steve Vallos - Offensive Lineman, Seattle Seahawks
*Joe Zelenka - Tight End, Jacksonville Jaguars

Other Famous Players

*Charlie Crist - Current Republican Governor of Florida.
*Rusty LaRue - Still owns several NCAA passing records
*Brian Piccolo - Former NFL running back, basis for the movie "Brian's Song"
*Clark Gaines - Former NFL running back, holds NFL record for most receptions in a game by a running back (3rd most receptions in a game among all players), and was the first undrafted rookie to rush for over 500 yards in a rookie season; currently serves as Assistant Executive Director of the NFL Players Association.
*Ricky Proehl - Former NFL wide receiver who won Super Bowl rings with St. Louis and Indianapolis.
*Brian Kuklick - Former NFL quarterback, owns school career passing yards record.

External links

* [http://wakeforestsports.com Wake Forest Sports]
* [http://wakeforestsports.collegesports.com/trads/wake-trads-spirit.html Wake Forest Sports tradition page]

References