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Deacs' ground game is grounded
Emergence of Skinner has led to more passing, and more red-zone problems
AP Photo
Josh Adams of Wake Forest found some running room against Clemson.
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Published: October 15, 2008
Wake Forest's offense, in recent games, has been like a rocket that keeps jettisoning boosters until it reaches the shadow of the goal line with nothing to propel it into the end zone.
Coach Jim Grobe was asked yesterday why the 21st-ranked Deacons don't abandon their spread offense inside the opponent's 20-yard line in favor of a power formation that uses a fullback. Wake Forest ranks last in the ACC in red-zone efficiency, having scored on just 16 of 23 trips inside the 20.
His answer?
It's easier said than done.
"It's tough to change your mentality when you haven't practiced it enough during the week," Grobe said. "We're trying to find time to meet and lift (weights) and practice.
"Now if I can find time for that I-formation football clinic that we need to do every day, then we'll be all right."
The problem illustrates how much Wake Forest's offensive identity has changed in the past three years, or since Riley Skinner established himself as a special quarterback.
At Ohio, and in his first five seasons at Wake Forest, Grobe was known for his team's relentless rushing attack. The Deacons led the ACC in rushing season after season, and their 3,135 rushing yards in 2002 rank second in school history.
That team executed well in the red zone. Of course, that team had Ovie Mughelli at fullback and Tarence Williams at tailback and used the I-formation as its base offense.
This team's fullbacks -- Mike Rinfrette, Rich Belton and Kevin Harris -- have spent most of their time flanked wide.
"Back in the day, Ovie Mughelli would just vaporize linebackers and defensive ends, and Tarence Williams is back there behind Ovie just licking his chops," Grobe recalled. "He can't wait to get his hands on the ball because he knows there's going to be a path behind that guy.
"And I think we could develop that, certainly with Mike Rinfrette. And (Rich) Belton did some pretty good things physically the other day (against Clemson). But you almost have to be in the I all the time so they can get their reads and take the right path to the guy they're blocking and hit the block right.
"It's hard to be a spread team and all of a sudden you're an I team."
Grobe said that in his early seasons, Wake Forest devoted about three-quarters of its practice time to rushing the football.
"We've kind of flipped that now," Grobe said. "We're two-thirds to three-quarters throwing the ball in practice."
Grobe pointed to Saturday's opponent, Maryland, as a team that should be good in the red zone. The Terps, with freshman tailback Da'Rel Scott running behind junior fullback Cory Jackson, rank fifth in the ACC in rushing with 165.2 yards a game and eighth in passing with 190.5 yards.
They're sixth in red-zone offense in all games, with 16 scores on 20 chances. Eleven of the scores have been touchdowns.
"On paper everything looks great," Grobe said. "But if you can't execute it, and if you don't make a living out of it…."
Scott leads the ACC with 96.4 rushing yards a game. Wake Forest doesn't have a back in the top 10.
The Deacons are preparing to play their second straight game without star kicker Sam Swank, who has been sidelined since he strained his right quadriceps in practice Oct. 6. Grobe reiterated yesterday that whether Swank is able to play will be a game-time decision.
If Swank is unavailable, redshirt freshman Shane Popham will again handle the punting and kicking.
"Sam looked great at practice (Monday)," Grobe said. "He didn't do anything. He just stood and watched, but he looked really good.
"We're just going to leave it up to him totally. This is one of those deals where it's hard to gauge. We certainly don't want him to come back too quick and pull (it) again. But we need him.
"So we'll just kind of play it by ear and wait and see. We've got a good kicker in Shane Popham. I hope Shane can just kind of turn it loose and not be as nervous as he was against Clemson."
Note: When asked if he was a candidate to replace Tommy Bowden at Clemson, as several media outlets had reported, Grobe said he hadn't been contacted and that he isn't interested because "I'm a Wake Forest guy."
He laughed off reports that listed him as a possible candidate, saying "it's funny that every job that ever comes open, everybody runs right over and says, ‘Hey, are you interested in that job? Have they contacted you?"'
■ Dan Collins can be reached at 727-7323 or at dcollins@wsjournal.com.
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