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Wake Forest Football Recruiting

Deac94 said:
My very unofficial scholarship count for 2019 is currently at 87. Projecting scholarships is difficult because there is probably turnover that I am not aware of, and the scholarship status of specialists and former/current walk-ons is sometimes unclear. Plus, Clawson is becoming more transparent about the use of greyshirt offers. So it will all be managed. No worries there.

With all of that being said, having tracked this for a few years the class usually cuts off in the summer when the count reaches 88-90. So 2-3 more commits this summer seems like a good guess (assuming we hold onto Flowers). I have a hard time believing it could go much higher than that.
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Army officer kicker could easily be a preferred walk on. GI Bill paying for his education.
 
WFU1977 said:
Since 4 of our 5 OL are seniors, I have been wondering who are the backups by position and their class year for the OL? Do we have some folks with decent playing experience that will be able to slide in a year from now?
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wakelaw13 said:
I mentioned Mike Edwards. Taleni Suhren was pretty highly ranked as the #52 tackle in the country. He's a RS Soph this year, and I expect he'll get some playing time. Nathan Gilliam will be a RS Jr, and Je'Vionte Nash a RS Soph. Michael Jurgens and Devonte Gordon were relatively highly ranked and will be true freshman. We're building depth and getting all these guys a redshirt year is huge.

ETA: It's Mike "Edwards" - thanks Tigerswood
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The backup OL spots, and how much PT they get, will be interesting to watch.

It seems safe to project 3 starters for 2019:

Nathan Gilliam will be a redshirt senior in 2019. He was basically a co-starter at RG last season. So he's already one of the top 6 OLs on the roster. Played 525 snaps in 2017.

Jake Benzinger will also be a redshirt senior in 2019. He started every game at RT.

Je'Vionte Nash will be a redshirt junior in 2019 and has been a standout underclassman so far. He played 121 snaps in 2017, including special teams.

That leaves 2 spots that seem wide open for guys like Suhren (who will be a redshirt junior in 2019), Watson (who will be a redshirt junior in 2019) and Mike Edwards (who will be a redshirt freshman in 2019). It wouldn't surprise me at all to see Zach Tom (who will be a redshirt sophomore in 2019) win the OC job. It sounds like he impressed in practice last year, especially towards the end of the season.
 
It's a nice feeling to be fairly confident about 2019 already.
All the hard work is paying off.
 
Hopefully our line will develop to the point where we can substitute more freely. Having well-rested linemen in the 4th quarter would be huge in just wearing teams down with the running game.
 
BudatWake said:
My biggest worry in holding on to Clawson. Hope he is 100% committed to Wake. He and has staff are killing it. So much better than what Grobe did after Orange Bowl
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Something tells me he'll be around a long time. Only worry is if ND comes calling...
 
PhDeac said:
I’m not worried. Clawson’s background suggests he will dedicate 110% effort to bringing championships to Wake as long as the Winston food scene keeps improving.
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I am worried. He is a proven rebuilder. Other programs with more money will come after him to right their ship. Even Elko as a replacement choice may be too expensive now.
 
It's my understanding that Clawson has some personal reasons that could also keep him in WS. In addition to that, he's so damn competitive that I see him wanting to prove you can win at WF, which to a small extent he already has.

I'm not too worried Clawson will jump ship, at least not in the next 4-5 years.
 
TimmyClutch said:
I am worried. He is a proven rebuilder. Other programs with more money will come after him to right their ship. Even Elko as a replacement choice may be too expensive now.
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Not many big-time programs are looking for a "rebuilder". They want a win this season kind of guy. Every one of Clawson's teams have been terrible their first 2-3 years. Probably from a combination of the situations he inherited and the refusal to take short cuts that benefit the short-term more than the long-term. 2-3 years of losing football gets you canned at 50% of the BCS jobs. Maybe a perennial BCS loser would have the patience for a Clawson rebuild, but I am not sure those are better jobs than Wake.
 
Hard to say whether Clawson will finish his career at Wake. The quality of life in NC is very high and he's close to his parents in Charlotte. At his age, quality of life would seem like an important consideration for him. On the other hand, he is extremely ambitious and energetic, and if WF does well this season, he will have many suitors. My guess is he will retire from a bigger program.
 
Clawson and WF work for a lot reasons.

Completely speculating, but I don't think Clawson looks at WF as a stepping stone (as in, he isn't going to leave WF to take just another random Power V job; he isn't going to leave for Purdue or Missouri). Also, don't think that an elite football program will offer Clawson unless and until he has a truly spectacular season here (like 2006). If that happens, will not worry about ND or Michigan offering Clawson until I finish celebrating.
 
Another factor to keep him here is that he and his daughter Courtney are very close and she just finished her freshman year at Davidson
 
Clawson said without any provocation that Wake was his last job. Maybe he is blowing smoke, but it was an interesting comment to just make off the cuff.
 
In the big picture Clawson can be the best football coach ever at Wake and probably have the second statue on campus versus being just another great coach at a football school with a long list of “great” coaches. Besides what has already been mentioned, I also think the one year Tennessee experience showed him that football factories do not accept a multi year rebuilding program - they want to win right away. Clawson is not a quick fix kind of coach. He’s thorough, follows his “process" and patient. If the Tennessee experience has left a bad taste in Clawson’s mouth then it makes him appreciate even more what he has at Wake Forest. He is also reaping recruiting benefits of his work and it seemed to go into high gear recently. And just maybe he wants to enjoy the ride and prove he can manage a highly successful program at Wake.
 
This, plus WF is really investing in facilities. Just pay him well and he might stay for a while.
 
Clawson probably also wants to see what his team can do when it isn't being undermined from within. I'm sure he wants some revenge wins over the conference cheaters, especially in their stadiums.
 
I want to think that Clawson and WF is the perfect "marriage". But, I thought that before. It takes a special guy to welcome the challenge of building and sustaining a winning program at Wake. Clawson seems to be that kind of guy. If Wake ever enjoys sustained success in the Atlantic division of the ACC it will require someone like Clawson who is committed and content for the long haul.
 
There aren't many schools in the country that offer their coaches better job security than Wake Forest. Probably no other school in the power five.

Now that really pisses fans off when we're talking about basketball, but there is no denying that that stability has really benefited our other sports programs and some of the hires we've made for them.

ETA: mistake!
 
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