Whether junior safety Alex Frye ever plays again for Wake Forest will apparently depend on the performances this week of three freshmen who have yet to start their careers.
The Deacons practiced Monday with full pads but without Frye, a redshirt junior from Fayetteville who started the first four games at free safety. Coach Jim Grobe said yesterday that Frye will remain sidelined while the staff takes a good long look this week at safeties Daniel Mack and Duran Lowe and cornerback Dominique Tate.
All three are first-year freshmen who were expected to be redshirted this season to preserve their season of eligibility.
"We went into the season hoping some guys that were older guys and hadn't played much would be the guys," Grobe said. "It just hasn't happened that way.
"The thing you don't want to do is you don't want to play freshmen. But the thing you don't also want to do is play a junior or senior who hasn't ever played before and have them not be very good. You might as well go ahead and take the young guys and say ‘Here we go.'
"I don't want to tell you that's what's going to happen, but that's what we did (Monday) night. We looked at those three kids (Monday) night."
Frye was suspended for the final four games of last year for missing practice, but Grobe said this week's decision was not in response to any violation of team rules.
"He just hasn't played well," Grobe said. "I'll tell you more at the end of the week.
"Right now I feel it's not good to have old guys around young guys if the young guys are stepping up."
Cyhl Quarles is expected to start his fifth straight game at strong safety with Josh Bush, a converted cornerback, making his first start at free safety.
But Grobe and Tim Billings, the secondary coach, will spend the week looking for a third safety, with the leading candidates being Mack, Lowe and John Stamper, a redshirt sophomore from West Forsyth, who has played almost exclusively on special teams in his first 17 games.
Of the freshmen, Grobe said he considers Mack better suited for free safety and Lowe for strong safety. Mack is 6-0, 195 pounds and Lowe is 5-11, 215 pounds.
"We'll look at Daniel first but we'll look at Duran," Grobe said. "And we looked at Dominique Tate (Monday) night."
Tate, a cornerback from Carver High School in Winston-Salem, may be pressed into action. Michael Williams, a redshirt sophomore who started the first four games at cornerback, was sidelined against Boston College with a pulled hamstring.
Williams will be evaluated during the week. If Williams remains sidelined against N.C. State, Kenny Okoro, a redshirt freshman from Greensboro, will probably start at the cornerback position opposite senior Brandon Ghee.
But the Deacons need a third cornerback to spell Okoro and Ghee and play the nickel back in certain formations. With Bush at safety, that might open the door for Tate's first action.
Running back Kevin Harris returned to practice Monday after missing the BC game with a strained groin. Harris said he has been cleared to play against N.C. State.
dcollins@wsjournal.com.
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