News-Record.com

WINSTON-SALEM -- Not that you're ever set, of course. As soon as a football coach says things are rolling along just fine, a knee will get twisted or an ankle rolled. But as the Wake Forest Demon Deacons begin preseason practice, they like their core and want to use August to identify backups.

And, yes, this is a sign that life is pretty good.

"We've come into August before without a good feel on our starters," coach Jim Grobe admitted Saturday.

With as many as eight fifth-year guys expected to start on defense alone, Wake is seeing the fruits of a recruiting effort initiated during losing seasons and before the brick-and-mortar certainty of an upgraded stadium. Now the job is about development of reserves as the club prepares for the Aug. 28 opener at Baylor, where the average high temperature for that date is a crisp 95 degrees.

"Developing a second string is our No. 1 priority," offensive coordinator Steed Lobotzke said, "because in football, they've always said, 'If you got one, you got none.' "

The areas of specific interest include:

* Offensive line: Lobotzke, who doubles as the position coach here, believes Trey Bailey will step in nicely to the center position held almost exclusively the past three years by All-American Steve Justice, a sixth-round draftee of the Indianapolis Colts. Tackles Joe Birdsong and Jeff Griffin and guards Barrett McMillin and Russell Nenon have played a lot of important snaps, but of the other nine linemen on the depth chart, only three have played in a college game. They have combined for only 51 snaps from scrimmage in their time.

"I want us to mesh better as an offensive line," Griffin said. "Trey Bailey has been taught by Steve and is a great player. Very athletic. Now we're all ready to get out there."

As much as Grobe and Lobotzke would love to ride their top guys in central Texas in less than four weeks, the heat may compel the use of multiple men up front. The redeeming news is that the game is set for a Thursday night.

* Finding time and a role for Brandon Pendergrass. The redshirt freshman was the talk of practice last season. In another program or in another time in Wake's development, the Floridian might have played right away, but Micah Andrews and eventual ACC Rookie of the Year Josh Adams were good enough to preclude that.

Now Pendergrass is ready for action, and the Deacs anticipate working on some two-back sets -- a departure from their normal M.O. -- to make the most of their personnel. Spring and August are times for experimentation, after all.

"Two lethal weapons at the same time," said Adams, who ran for 953 yards as a redshirt freshman in 2007. "You never know who will get the ball. I'm rooting for him. Hopefully, he can pull out Rookie of the Year as well."

* Defensive backfield. Redshirt freshman Michael Williams, penciled in as Alphonso Smith's backup at a cornerback spot, is out indefinitely with a leg injury, and that increases the urgency for fifth-year senior Kerry Major to impress this month. A solid effort from Major would eliminate the need to move Kevin Patterson over from safety.

The other point man in the secondary is Alex Frye, a redshirt sophomore from Fayetteville who apparently needs to make a good impression.

"He's a really bright guy, but sometimes he almost gives you the appearance of being too cool for school," Grobe said. "We need him to grind a bit and to be less of a rock star. One of my coaches used to say that some guys are artists, not painters. We need Alex to be just a worker."

August tends to provide ample opportunities in that area.

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels@news-record.com