2008 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team

Before the season

Schedule

Roster

Coaching staff

Game notes

Post Season

Rankings

Scores by quarter

References

Roster changes

Recruiting

Baylor

Ole Miss

Florida State

Navy

Clemson

Maryland

Miami

Duke

Virginia

NC State

Boston College

Vanderbilt

Navy

Conference

National

2008 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football

EagleBank Bowl, W 29–19 vs. Navy
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Division	Atlantic
2008 record	8–5 (4–4 ACC)
Head coach	Jim Grobe
Offensive coordinator	Steed Lobotzke
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Brad Lambert
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	BB&T Field (Capacity: 31,500, FieldTurf)

2008 ACC football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
Atlantic Division
Boston College xy		5	–	3		9	–	5
#21 Florida State x		5	–	3		9	–	4
Maryland		4	–	4		8	–	5
Wake Forest		4	–	4		8	–	5
Clemson		4	–	4		7	–	6
NC State		4	–	4		6	–	7
Coastal Division
#15 Virginia Tech xy$		5	–	3		10	–	4
#22 Georgia Tech x		5	–	3		9	–	4
North Carolina		0	–	4		0	–	5
Miami		4	–	4		7	–	6
Virginia		3	–	5		5	–	7
Duke		1	–	7		4	–	8
Championship: Virginia Tech 30, Boston College 12
$ – BCS representative as conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant North Carolina vacated 8 wins, including 4 ACC wins Rankings from AP Poll

The 2008 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. It was Wake Forest's 56th season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

The Demon Deacons were led by eighth-year head coach Jim Grobe. Wake Forest played its home games at BB&T Field. The Deacons began their season on August 28 at Baylor. A win in the 2007 Meineke Car Care Bowl against UConn gave the Deacons twenty wins over the last two seasons.

The team is finished 8–5 overall and 4–4 in ACC play, and beat Navy in the inaugural EagleBank Bowl on December 20.

Quarterback Zach MacDowell enrolled Coastal Carolina University in January, and will play there starting in 2008.^[1]
Running back Lucas Caparelli was dismissed from the university after an off the field incident in January.^[2]

On National Signing Day, the Demon Deacons received letters of intent from 17 players.

Andrew Parker TE 6-5 225 Jacksonville, Florida Bartram Trail
Terence Davis WR 6-1 180 Lilburn, Georgia Brookwood
Gabe Irby OL 6-3 315 Mt. Airy, Georgia Habersham Central
Ted Stachitas QB 6-3 185 Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida Nease
Derricus Ellis DE 6-2 225 Rome, Georgia Darlington School
Joey Ehrmann LB 6-4 210 Baltimore, Maryland Gilman
Ramon Booi DL 6-6 330 Jacksonville, Florida Nease
Scott Betros LB 6-1 220 Jacksonville, Florida Bolles School
Riley Haynes LB 6-1 225 Jacksonville, Florida Nease
Kevin Smith DE 6-4 210 Plano, Texas East
Lovell Jackson RB 5-10 170 Tampa, Florida Plant
Garrick Williams OL 6-4 314 Columbia, Missouri Rock Bridge
J.T. Dixon TE 6-4 230 Chandler, Arizona Hargrave Military
Chance Raines OL 6-2 270 Jacksonville, Florida Bolles School
Joe Looney OL 6-3 315 Lake Worth, Florida Lake Worth
Kenny Okoro CB 6-0 185 Greensboro, North Carolina Dudley
Chris Givens RB 6-0 200 Wylie, Texas Wylie^[3]

^[4]

Date	Time	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 28	8:00 PM	at Baylor*	No. 23	Floyd Casey Stadium • Waco, Texas	FSN	W 41-13	30,633^[5]
September 6	3:30 pm	Ole Miss*	No. 20	BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ABC/ESPN2	W 30-28	31,986^[5]
September 20	7:00 PM	at No. 25 Florida State	No. 18	Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, Florida	ESPN2	W 12-3	79,235^[5]
September 27	3:45 PM	Navy*	No. 15	BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ESPNU	L 24-17	33,173^[5]
October 9	7:30 PM	Clemson	No. 21	BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ESPN	W 12-7	33,988^[5]
October 18	12:00 PM	at Maryland	No. 19	Byrd Stadium • College Park, MD	Raycom	L 26-0	46,257^[5]
October 25	12:00 PM	at Miami		Dolphin Stadium • Miami Gardens, FL	ESPNU	L 16-10	41,208^[5]
November 1	3:30 PM	Duke		BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ESPN360	W 33-30 ^OT	32,226^[5]
November 8	3:30 PM	Virginia		BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ESPNU	W 28-17	34,014^[5]
November 15	3:30 PM	at North Carolina State		Carter-Finley Stadium • Raleigh, NC	ESPNU	L 21-17	56,174^[5]
November 22	3:30 PM	No. 25 Boston College		BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ABC/ESPN2	L 24-21	30,373^[5]
November 29	7:00 PM	Vanderbilt*		BB&T Field • Winston-Salem, North Carolina	ESPNU	W 23-10	25,902^[5]
December 20	11:00 AM	vs. Navy*		RFK Stadium • Washington, D.C. (EagleBank Bowl)	ESPN	W 29-19	28,777^[5]
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. ^#Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

After the 2007 season, The Deacons had two assistant coaches accept other coaching positions. Defensive Coordinator Dean Hood accepted the head coaching job at Eastern Kentucky.^[6] Quarterbacks coach Jeff Mullen left the Deacons to assume the Offensive Coordinator position at West Virginia.^[7]

Position	Name	First year at WFU
Head Coach	Jim Grobe	2001
Secondary	Tim Billings	2006
Quarterbacks	Tom Elrod	2003
Defensive Ends	Keith Henry	2001
Defensive Coordinator	Brad Lambert	2001
Offensive coordinator / Offensive line	Steed Lobotzke	2001
Defensive Tackles	Ray McCartney	2001
Assistant Head Coach / Running backs / Kickers	Billy Mitchell	2001
Tight Ends / Fullbacks	Steve Russ	2008
Wide Receivers	Brian Knorr	2008
Source: http://wakeforestsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/wake-m-footbl-mtt.html

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	10	10	14	7	41
Baylor	0	6	0	7	13

In front of a national television audience, Riley Skinner threw for three touchdowns, including two to Chip Brinkman. Josh Adams and Brandon Pendergrass added touchdown runs in a lopsided 41-13 scoreline. Alphonso Smith and Alex Frye notched interceptions for the Deacons, who won their first ever game in the state of Texas.^[8]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Ole Miss	7	7	0	14	28
Wake Forest	7	3	10	10	30

Sam Swank's 42 yd FG with three seconds remaining gave Wake Forest a thrilling 30-28 win over Ole Miss. In a game with several lead changes, Ole Miss took the lead with just over one minute remaining in the fourth quarter. Wake quarterback Riley Skinner led the Deacons down the field in 53 seconds to set up Swank's game winning field goal.^[9]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	3	0	6	3	12
Florida State	0	0	3	0	3

In a game that featured no touchdowns, Sam Swank made four field goals to lead the Demon Deacons to a 12-3 win in Tallahassee. The win was the Deacons' second consecutive win in Tallahassee, and the third straight overall over the Seminoles. The Wake Forest defense was stout, allowing Florida State under 250 yards of offense, and forcing seven turnovers, including five interceptions.^[10]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Navy	7	10	0	7	24
Wake Forest	0	0	10	7	17

Eric Kettani ran for a career-high 175 yards and backup quarterback Jarod Bryant scored the decisive touchdown in the fourth quarter, as Navy came into Winston-Salem and upset Wake Forest 24-17.^[11]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Clemson	0	0	7	0	7
Wake Forest	3	0	0	9	12

Riley Skinner's 7-yard touchdown pass to DJ Boldin with 5:28 to go gave the Deacons a 12-7 win against Clemson. In a defensive battle, the Deacons' defense managed to hold Clemson to less than one yard per carry. Wake Forest dominated the game statistically but were unable to capitalize on several scoring chances. The sole turnover in the game was a Cullen Harper pass intercepted by Alphonso Smith, who tied a school record with his 17th career interception. Riley Skinner also threw for 186 yards and a touchdown on 22-of-34 passing, and also added 73 yards on the ground.^[12]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	0	0	0	0	0
Maryland	7	6	6	7	26

Chris Turner completed 28-of-41 passes for 321 yards and a touchdown, and Maryland knocked off another top-25 team with a 26-0 thumping of No. 21 Wake Forest.^[13]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	7	3	0	0	10
Miami	3	0	10	3	16

Wake Forest was not able to maintain a halftime lead in falling against Miami. The Deacons were unable to mount much offense in the second half, and a Robert Marve QB sneak in the third quarter ended up being the game-winner. Fullback Mike Rinfrette scored the lone Deacons touchdown on a one-yard run on Wake's first offensive series.^[14]

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Duke	7	0	13	10	0	30
Wake Forest	9	3	10	8	3	33

In a back and forth affair, Wake Forest held off Duke 33-30 in an overtime battle. Alphonso Smith blocked a punt for a safety and had two interceptions for the Deacons, including one in overtime to end the game. Riley Skinner had a touchdown pass to DJ Boldin, and also scored on a quarterback sneak. The Blue Devils had their chance to win at the end of regulation, but missed a 42-yard field goal that would have won it. Aaron Curry led the Deacons with 16 tackles.^[15]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Virginia	0	3	0	14	17
Wake Forest	14	14	0	0	28

On homecoming weekend in Winston-Salem, the Demon Deacons dazzled fans en route to a 28-3 halftime advantage. Riley Skinner threw two touchdown passes in the first half, including a 58-yard strike to Devon Brown. Kevin Patterson gave the Wake defense their first touchdown of the season, as e brought back a UVA pass for a 53-yard touchdown. Wake Forest turned more conservative in the second half, and allowed UVA to pick up a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, but the lead was safe, and the Deacons claimed bowl eligibility for the third consecutive season.^[16]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	7	7	3	0	17
NC State	7	7	0	7	21

Russell Wilson threw the game-winning touchdown to Anthony Hill will ten minutes remaining, and NC State held off Wake Forest 21-17 in Raleigh. DJ Boldin had a hand in both Wake touchdowns, throwing a pass to Marshall Williams for a 64-yard touchdown, and catching a 7 yarder of his own. Williams had his first career 100 yard receiving day, grabbing 7 balls for 116 yards.^[17]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Boston College	3	13	0	8	24
Wake Forest	0	7	7	7	21

Backup quarterback Dominique Davis scored on a one-yard quarterback sneak in the final minutes to send Wake Forest to their second straight close defeat. In a defensive battle, the Demon Deacon defense scored two touchdowns, and a punt block set up the third. Kevin Patterson and Kyle Wilbur returned fumbles for touchdowns, and Rich Belton caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from Riley Skinner. This game also saw the return of kicker Sam Swank, who missed several weeks with injury.^[18]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Vanderbilt	3	0	0	7	10
Wake Forest	3	7	7	6	23

Three different Deacons ran for touchdowns as Wake held off Vanderbilt 23-10 in each team's regular season finale. Brandon Pendergrass, Kevin Harris, and Rich Belton got in the endzone, and Alphonso Smith tied the ACC record for career interceptions. The win guaranteed Wake Forest their third consecutive winning season.^[19]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wake Forest	0	7	7	15	29
Navy	10	3	0	6	19

All-ACC First Team

DJ Boldin (WR)

Aaron Curry (LB)

Alphonso Smith (CB)

All-ACC Honorable Mention

Boo Robinson (DE)

Riley Skinner (QB)
^[21]

Aaron Curry (LB)- 2008 Butkus Award Winner, 2nd Team AP All-American, 2nd Team Sporting News All-American, 2nd Team Rivals.com All-American
Alphonso Smith (CB)- 1st Team AP All-American, 2nd Team Sporting News All-American, 2nd Team Rivals.com All-American

Ranking Movement
Poll	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Wk 15	Final
AP	#23	#20	#20	#18	#16	#25	#21	#21	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
Coaches	#23	#20	#19	#18	#15	#25	#21	#19	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
Harris	Not released					#25	#22	#21	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
BCS	Not released								NR	NR	NR	#24	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Wake Forest	63	61	64	82	3	273
Opponents	54	55	39	90	0	238

Bold indicates started last game

Quarterbacks

6 Brett Hodges – Junior

10 Christian Hartford – Freshman

11 Riley Skinner – Junior

12 Skylar Jones – Freshman

13 Ted Stachitas – Freshman

15 Ryan McManus – Senior

32 Turner Faulk – Freshman

Running Backs

14 CJ Washington – Freshman

20 Lovell Jackson – Freshman

22 Brandon Pendergrass – Freshman

27 Josh Adams – Sophomore

34 Willie Dixon – Freshman

Wide Receivers

3 Devon Brown – Freshman

4 D.J. Boldin – Senior

7 Jordan Williams – Sophomore

8 Marshall Williams – Sophomore

17 Christopher Langley – Junior

18 Danny Dembry – Freshman

21 Andrew Wright – Junior

36 Casey Hill – Junior

81 Terence Davis – Freshman

82 Chris Givens – Freshman

86 Matt Hartford – Junior

88 Chip Brinkman – Senior

Fullbacks

23 Kevin Harris – Junior

35 Rich Belton – Senior

44 Mike Rinfrette – Junior

48 Anthony Williams – Junior

Tight Ends

80 Andrew Parker – Freshman

83 Cameron Ford – Freshman

84 J.T. Dixon – Freshman

85 Ben Wooster – Junior

89 Kenneth Coe – Sophomore

Offensive Linemen

61 Barrett McMillin – Junior

62 Doug Weaver – Freshman

64 Jeff Griffin – Junior

65 Gage Crews – Junior

66 Chance Raines – Freshman

67 Trey Bailey – Junior

69 Dennis Godfrey – Freshman

71 Ryan Britt – Freshman

72 Russell Nenon – Sophomore

74 Garrick Williams – Freshman

75 Michael Hoag – Freshman

76 Joe Birdsong – Junior

77 Boomer Peterson – Junior

78 Joe Looney – Freshman

79 Gabe Irby – Freshman

Linebackers

26 Jonathon Jones – Junior

32 Scott Betros – Freshman

35 Lee Malchow – Junior

39 Chantz McClinic – Senior

40 Kyle Jarrett – Freshman

41 Michael Potteiger – Junior

43 Stanley Arnoux – Senior

45 Riley Haynes – Freshman

46 Matt Woodlief – Sophomore

50 Joey Ehrmann – Freshman

52 Dominique Midgett – Junior

54 Collin Granger – Freshman

55 Tristan Dorty – Freshman

56 Hunter Haynes – Sophomore

57 Gelo Orange – Freshman

59 Aaron Curry – Senior

60 Barrett Powell – Freshman

63 Andrew Conroy – Senior

Cornerbacks

2 Alphonso Smith – Senior

5 Marcus Williams – Sophomore

6 Kenny Okoro – Freshman

17 Brandon Ghee – Junior

24 Michael Williams – Freshman

25 Josh Bush – Freshman

29 Kerry Major – Senior

37 Morgan Harris – Freshman

Safeties

8 Geoff Wissing – Junior

9 Chip Vaughn – Senior

10 Kevin Patterson – Senior

21 Alex Frye – Sophomore

28 Cyhl Quarles – Freshman

30 John Stamper – Freshman

36 Peter Grimm – Freshman

37 Junior Petit-Jean – Freshman

Defensive Ends

34 Antonio Wilson – Senior

42 Matt Robinson – Senior

53 Joe Hall – Freshman

54 Derricus Ellis – Freshman

90 Will Wright – Freshman

91 Kevin Smith – Freshman

93 Anthony Davis – Senior

94 Tripp Russell – Sophomore

97 Kyle Wilber – Freshman

99 Michael Lockett – Junior

Defensive Tackles

51 John Russell – Junior

58 Michael Carter – Sophomore

87 Ted Randolph – Junior

92 Bryson Dunmeyer – Freshman

95 Ramon Booi – Freshman

96 Boo Robinson – Junior

Place Kickers

14 Shane Popham – Freshman

21 Andrew Wright – Junior

38 Sam Swank – Senior

Punters

14 Shane Popham – Freshman

38 Sam Swank – Senior

Long Snappers

53 Greg Bechtel – Junior

54 Collin Granger – Freshman

Kick Returners

2 Alphonso Smith – Senior

3 Devon Brown – Freshman

21 Alex Frye – Sophomore

Punt Returners

2 Alphonso Smith – Senior

Wake Forest Demon Deacons football

Venues	Groves Stadium (1940–1955) Bowman Gray Stadium (1956–1965) BB&T Field (1968–present)

Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Tobacco Road North Carolina–Wake Forest rivalry

Culture & lore	Demon Deacon The 5th Quarter

People	NFL draftees Statistical leaders

Seasons	1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

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