news-record.com

SPORTS

Advertisement | Advertise with Us

Wake Forest football factoids

Saturday, August 2, 2008

A few preseason factoids on Wake Forest:

** The Deacs are ranked 23rd in the USA Today Preseason 25. That’s the one done by the coaches and included in the BCS formula. If ranked in the Associated Press survey in two weeks, Wake will have appeared in 11 of the past 36 AP polls. Before this stretch, which began in October 2006, the program had been ranked 11 times in 834 weeks dating back to 1950.

** Of the 65 conference-affiliated BCS members, only six play 75 percent or more of their non-league games against other BCS programs. They are Wake, North Carolina, Baylor, Connecticut, USC and Washington.

** The Deacs, picked to finish second in the ACC’s Atlantic Division, are seeking to post three consecutive winning seasons in league play for the first time in school history. The program was above .500 in six of the first 53 seasons of ACC play.

** Wake has won 12 ACC games (including the 2006 championship contest) in the past two seasons. The program earned 16 conference wins in all of the 1990s.

** QB Riley Skinner set an ACC record for single-season completion percentage (72.4) last year but understands why he’s not getting national hype.

“Those things tend to get overlooked when you throw more interceptions than touchdowns, is a wonderful stat to have,” he said.

Skinner finished with 13 picks and 12 TDs but became more judicious as the season wore on. He threw nine interceptions in his first 129 attempts and only four in the remaining 207 passes.

Accompanying Photos

Rob Daniels

Photo Caption: With the newly completed Deacon Tower in the background, Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe addresses reporters Saturday.

AUDIO

Wake Forest QB Riley Skinner says the team didn’t believe reports that coach Jim Grobe was leaving for Arkansas last December.

Coach Jim Grobe says he and his staff are content at Wake Forest and believe in the program’s long-term future.

Grobe has identified the need to establish depth as a primary goal of preseason practice.

USA TODAY PRESEASON POLL

Rk

Team (1st)

2007

Pts

1

Georgia (22)

11-2

1,438

2

USC (14)

11-2

1,430

3

Ohio State (14)

11-2

1,392

4

Oklahoma (3)

11-3

1,329

5

Florida (5)

9-4

1,293

6

LSU (3)

12-2

1,163

7

Missouri

12-2

1,143

8

West Virginia

11-2

1,008

9

Clemson

9-4

999

10

Texas

10-3

979

11

Auburn

9-4

888

12

Wisconsin

9-4

747

13

Kansas

12-1

714

14

Texas Tech

9-4

644

15

Virginia Tech

11-3

568

16

Arizona State

10-3

560

17

BYU

11-2

547

18

Tennessee

10-4

506

19

Illinois

9-4

422

20

Oregon

9-4

399

21

South Florida

9-4

350

22

Penn State

9-4

313

23

Wake Forest

9-4

203

24

Michigan

9-4

112

25

Fresno State

9-4

91

eMail Updates

Advertisement | Advertise with Us

Advertisement | Advertise with Us
Advertisement | Advertise with Us
Advertisement | Advertise with Us

News & Record Network Sites

Triad Weather

  • Current Condition: PARTLY CLOUDY
  • Current Temperature: 83°
  • UV Idx: 7
  • Forecast High/Low: H: 86° L: 67°

User Tools

  • RSS
  • Share
  • Sign in to MyNR

Search