Wake Forest Seeks Answers In Spring Practice

With Spring Practice now in full swing, the Wake Forest Demon Deacons are looking to improve on their 2014 campaign in which they were a bottom-feeder in the ACC. Wake finished the season with a 3-9 record that included an abysmal 1-7 conference mark. Head coach Dave Clawson is looking for improvement in his second year at the helm, and here’s a look at some questions he would like answered entering Spring ball here in March.

Who is playing quarterback for the 2015 Demon Deacons?

Wake Forest welcomes back 2nd year quarterback John Wolford. Wolford, a sophomore, completed 58% of his passes last season for 2037 yards and 12 touchdowns to go with 14 interceptions. While respectable, Wolford is expected to receive some serious competition this spring from early enrollee Kendall Hinton. The 3-star freshman, according to ESPN, entered school in January in order to compete for the starting quarterback job this fall. He should get a good look in workouts throughout the rest of March and into the Spring game in early April.

What’s going on at receiver in 2015?

The Demon Deacons return their leading pass catcher and a major red zone threat in tight end Cam Serigne, who led the team with 54 catches for 531 yards and five touchdowns in 2014. However, Wake will be looking to replace their best pure wide receiver off of last year’s squad, E.J. Scott who caught 50 passes last season for 513 yards and four touchdowns. Some possible candidates to emerge at the wide receiver position this Spring include a darkhorse in redshirt-sophomore Tyree Harris, as well as junior Jared Crump who caught 32 passes for 339 yards and one touchdown last season. Regardless of pecking order, these two receivers should lead the way heading into 2015.

Will the cornerback position be fully addressed this Spring?

No, and here’s why:

Wake Forest started two senior corners in 2014, Bud Noel and Kevin Johnson who anchored a unit that was ranked 62nd nationally in scoring defense after allowing 26.4 points per game. As both players move on, the Deacons will attempt to build more depth heading into 2015 beginning with Bryant Gross-Armiento, a junior transfer from Rutgers who will be present this Spring. He’ll be joined by true freshmen Amari Henderson (3-Star) and Dionte Austin (3-Star) who will both be on campus in the fall.

How will the offensive line shape up after a dismal 2014?

The weak spot in the Wake Forest offense from a year ago was the offensive line, which couldn’t seem to get enough chemistry going to keep quarterback John Wolford upright for a good portion of the season. The team’s starting left guard Cory Helms as well as starting left tackle Antonio Ford are gone from last year’s team, leaving gaping holes on the left side of the line. Redshirt freshmen Ryan Anderson, Patrick Osterhage, Justin Herron, and Phil Haynes could all be vying for two starting jobs, but all four have the potential be in the rotation throughout the year on what should be another patchwork project this upcoming season.

 

Wake Forest will hold its annual Spring Game at 3 p.m. on April 11th.

 

Thanks for reading! Follow me on twitter @mikem92VT and follow the site @InsideTheACC. Also check us out on Facebook.

Leave a Reply