Saturday, no doubt, took a lot out of Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert. There was the back and forth of the game against SMU that was not well played, but a win nonetheless. There was the regular infuriation with the game officials, particularly over the flag for yet another illegal formation call on a fake punt (the fourth of the season by our unofficial count). Dickert spent so much time riding the officials that at some point, some rube in the press box quipped that Dickert was on the field more than his offense.
There was the post-game jubilation mixed with the tears that came when he saw Wake benefactor Bob McCreary sitting in the first row. And more emotion when his two young boys came into the room, fresh off playing their own football game earlier in the day. The players? They were still working their way through the craziness. So let’s check out what Wake Forest said after the SMU win.
Jake Dickert
It was an exuberant Dickert who took to the podium after the game. “I’m so fired up for our football team, man! These guys are gritty. They’re tough. They believe in each other. We found a way to win. And it was ugly, which is awesome!”
There were 17 punts in the game. The continuous flipping of the field led to five-plus possessions per quarter for each team on average, with very little offensive production to show for them. Wake and SMU combined for 547 yards of offense and 669 yards of punting.
“We disrespected the football a lot today. And that a lot of times gets you beat.” Dickert gave himself a significant mistake as well. With under two minutes to play and SMU clinging to a two-point lead, Wake had the ball first and goal on the six-yard line. Running back Demond Claiborne shoved his way up the middle for no gain and fumbled with the Mustangs recovering. “Coach Dickert made a huge error, just not centering the football and kicking the ball at the end,” he said of the play call, and opting for the third-person reference to explain it.
SMU couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, punting the ball over to Wake. The Deacs took over on their own 42-yard line with no time-outs left. A 25-yard pass to Kamrean Johnson took the ball to the SMU 33-yard line. Wake ran up and spiked the ball to stop the clock with four seconds left. Just enough time for kicker Connor Calvert to attempt a 50-yard field goal.
Dickert said he never wavered in his belief in Calvert, even with an earlier miss from 55 yards out. “I mean, there’s no wavering in that situation. We’re going to kick it every time. The only other option is a Hail Mary, and I think we know it is just that.”
Difference-Making Defense
Even with the “disrespecting the ball” offense, Wake’s defense kept the Deacs in the game. The defense has gone from one that tried not to get beaten to one that is aggressive at all times.
“We respect the opponent, but we have to stay in a constant state of attack,” Dickert explained. “We know our EDGE players are really, really good. I think they went out there and set the tone. Karon Prunty is an all-conference performer. It’s been that since day one. Nick Anderson is Captain America. He makes it all happen. These guys play relentlessly.”
Connor Calvert
With whatever else the coaching staff finds in the game film to work on, the talk is going to be about the game-winning 50-yard field goal. Video footage from just behind the uprights shows the kick cleared the crossbar by maybe a foot. It bounced off the padding on the uprights and kicked out, which gave SMU the impression it was no good. Officials on the field confirmed that they had already heard from the ACC replay office in Charlotte that they had looked at it and it was good.
Calvert described the experience from his perspective. “It was kind of surreal,” he said. “As soon as I got out there, I kind of blacked out. I saw Cobb, [long snapper Will Cobb], with the ball in his hand, ready to snap. I saw Rac [holder/wide receiver Sawyer Racanelli] put it down, and when the ball came off my foot, it felt good.”
He said he had no doubt he had the leg to make the kick. He chuckled when asked where it ranked in his history of significant kicks. “It’s definitely number one,” he said. There was a couple of close moments there in the high school state championship, my senior year. But, no, nothing beats that game at the moment against SMU.”
Is this going to make him more popular on campus now, considering kickers are usually pretty anonymous? “I guess we’ll have to wait and see on Monday,” he said with a laugh.
On the season, Calvert is a perfect 18 for 18 on extra points and 11 of 15 on field goals.
Chris Barnes
The redshirt freshman transfer from Washington State led the team with 66 yards on five catches.
He described the tone in the locker room after the last-second win. “We turned up.” He said he had never been part of a game where there were so many changes of possession and turnovers. “This is one for the books for sure. A game-winning field goal from my boy, Connor, with the big ol’ leg. I ain’t never had anything like this, ever.”
Davaughn Patterson
The senior defensive back was part of that attacking Wake Forest defense. He said as a veteran of years at Wake Forest, he is not surprised that the team is 5-2. “With all the work we put in throughout the off-season, during Spring, during Summer, during camp, we prepared ourselves for this moment. We believed in ourselves from the beginning of the season.”
He said the ability to be an aggressive defense comes from each unit of the defense playing its role. “Nobody’s out there playing solo. Our main saying is rush and cover. As long as the d-line rushes and the secondary covers, the offense has nowhere to go.”
Main Image: Tony Siracusa
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