Filed under: Wake Forest, ACC
I'll be honest- if you didn't want Wake Forest to have a successful team, I'd understand. I'd probably also assume you were an ACC coach with the last name of Bowden or Groh. In the event that teams like Wake (and possibly in the future, Duke) start winning with regularity more than they currently are, it disturbs the status quo that had existed in the ACC for too long. Basically, as long as you give Florida State a decent game, 8 wins per season and an occasional Peach Bowl was more than enough to secure your position as a head coach with decent job security in the olden days (read: like, in 2002).
Unfortunately, for the coaching class that came in during the early part of the century, the decentralization of power has actually made their jobs that much harder. Whenever someone gets on national TV popping off on how the ACC is just a petri dish breeding mediocrity, it's probably your fault. Especially when a school like Wake Forest is getting it done despite having the smallest enrollment of a BCS school, challenging academic standards and a shared statehood with two of the most recognizable brands of any college in the country (Duke and UNC).
Well, Tommy Bowden and Al Groh aren't leaving any "hot seat" lists any time soon, but at least they get a respite from hearing how much better of a job Jim Grobe could do with their resources. For a week, at least. Coming off yet another eye-popping domination of Florida State in Tallahassee, the Demon Deacons suffered probably the most inexplicable loss of the upset-lardened weekend, taking an L to Navy (yeah, they lost to Duke, but there's a chance doing that might not be all that shameful anymore). Usually, when something like this goes down, it can be attributed to an unfamiliarity with the option offense ... clearly, not something that can be the culprit here.
Oddly enough, Wake screwed this one up in large part to an insanely out-of-character performance by Riley Skinner, who threw four picks. Mind you that Wake is generally known for its ability to hold onto the ball while causing turnovers. Especially the talent discrepancy that happens nearly every week with these guys, avoiding mistakes is paramount.
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Even with this supposed disaster (and trust, it's going to take a lot for Wake to sniff the Top 25 again any time soon), like Maryland, Wake is still undefeated in conference with a huge test out of the way. I'm not ready to sell yet, but this is just a reminder that Wake is human too. Weird.
