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WFU waits to pick running back
Grobe says he'll let Baylor decide who'll start for the Deacons in the backfield
Journal Photo by Lauren Carroll
Morgan Harris tackles Brandon Pendergrass during a Wake Forest scrimmage.
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Published: August 21, 2009
Almost two weeks into preseason practice, Coach Jim Grobe of Wake Forest has yet to determine who his workhorse running back will be.
He figures he'll leave that answer to Baylor.
Kevin Harris, Josh Adams and Brandon Pendergrass, all had their moments in yesterday's second scrimmage of the preseason at BB&T Field. Harris carried 12 times for 61 yards, Adams five times for 24 yards and Pendergrass eight times for 47 yards and a touchdown.
Afterward Grobe said he expects the battle will run into the opener against Baylor on Sept. 5 and beyond. One problem Grobe and running backs coach Billy Mitchell have is that the Deacons rarely tackle backs to the ground during preseason.
"I don't think Kevin has done anything to lose his starting running back position," Grobe said. "I really think the competition for the running back job starts with Baylor.
"Now I will tell you if any of them come out and aren't practicing well, they can slide up or down. But it's hard to evaluate guys without tackling running backs. It's hard to move them up and down the depth chart.
"But I think right now Mitch feels good about all three. They'll all three play in the first game if they're healthy and I think that's when the real competition starts for snaps. The better they play the more snaps they'll get each week."
Harris won the position last December by running for 136 yards on 24 carries in the EagleBank Bowl victory over Navy. It was the comeback story of the season for the Deacons, considering that Harris spent the first 11 games of his redshirt junior season as a backup fullback.
Adams, the ACC's Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2007, slumped last season to 402 yards, 45 of which were gained over the final six games. Pendergrass, a redshirt freshman last season, led the Deacons with 528 yards on 150 carries.
Both Adams and Pendergrass were hobbled by injuries, Adams by preseason arthroscopic surgery on his knee and an ankle sprain against Miami and Pendergrass by a sprained knee also sustained at Miami.
"My sense is that the old guy (Harris) is going to get the benefit of the doubt and the two young guys, it's their job to try to take it away from him," Grobe said.
Senior quarterback Riley Skinner was again the star of the show, completing 11 of 12 passes for 161 yards. He threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to redshirt freshman Chris Givens and a 20-yard touchdown to sophomore tight end Cameron Ford, who got increased playing because of a back injury that has kept starter Ben Wooster on the sidelines.
Grobe was also impressed with the play of backup Ryan McManus, a former walkon who is now on scholarship in his fifth season in the program. McManus completed six of nine passes, including a sharp 20-yard strike to sophomore tight end Andrew Parker at the two that set up Tommy Bohanon's 1-yard touchdown run.
"We really wouldn't know with Ryan until he gets out against guys with wrong-colored jerseys on the other side of the football," Grobe said. "But what I've seen with Ryan is he just continues to improve. He's had some practices I haven't been real, real happy with, but this is his first dose of getting a lot of snaps.
"The more snaps he gets the better he gets. I felt really good today. I thought when we did plug him in with the (first team) he was very calm, managed the offense well, looked like a veteran quarterback out there running the offense."
Jordan Williams led the receivers with three catches for 49 yards, but it was Givens who once again caught Grobe's eye with catches of 39 and 22 yards and a 64-yard return off a line-drive kickoff from freshman Jimmy Newman. Givens, a redshirt freshman from Wylie, Texas, who is one of the fastest players on the team, is practicing despite a deep bruise in his shoulder.
"He's showing a little toughness, and that's what I like," Grobe said. "Last year as a redshirted guy I thought he was too playful, and he didn't take coaching real well at times. He didn't handle criticism very well.
"He's matured a lot. He wants to be coached. I've seen just since the start of August practice he's taken criticism better. He's had a bad shoulder and he's played through that. So I'm pleased with him. I think he sees an opportunity to play and he's trying to take advantage of it."
Grobe said that J.T. Dixon, a redshirt freshman tight end from Chandler, Ariz., has left the program. Dixon sat out last year after having back surgery shortly before the season, and did not play during preseason because the coaches were disappointed with his academic progress.
■ Dan Collins can be reached at 727-7323 or at dcollins@wsjournal.com.
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