Offense? Check. Defense? Check. Special teams? Check.
Despite a slower than anticipated start, Wake Forest football found themselves rolling to a win Thursday night, trouncing the North Carolina A&T Aggies, 45-13.
After coming into the week with no clear starting quarterback, Head Coach Dave Clawson chose to send out sixth-year incumbent Michael Kern to take the first offensive series — one that proved unsuccessful after a few runs and a hurried throw went incomplete towards redshirt sophomore Horatio Fields.
“I wish we’d have started faster, but I don’t think it’s a bad thing to face a little adversity like that and bounce back from it,” Clawson said postgame.
The defense, however, came out firing. After forcing a three-and-out on the first Aggie drive, it provided Kern the opportunity to bounce back — hitting receiver Taylor Morin for a pair of large completions. It was running back Demond Claiborne who used his agility and quickness to find a hole in the defense and take it seven yards to the paydirt for the first Demon Deacon score of the season.
“I definitely want to seize opportunities and take everything I can get when it comes to putting the team on my back, and making big plays when we need it,” Claiborne said postgame.
After another unsuccessful drive under Kern, the Aggies found a run of form on the offensive side of the ball. After a mixed attack featuring rushes from A&T running back Kenji Christian and a bevy of throws from quarterback Kevin White, the Aggies got on the board behind a 21-yard run from Christian.
A&T kept the offense up through the start of the second quarter, with Christian and White providing a series of short but consistent gains — enough for a 38-yard field goal by Aggie kicker Andrew Brown.
After the ineffective drives from Kern, the Demon Deacons turned to another man to helm the offense — sixth-year transfer Hank Bachmeier. After a large 48-yard gain on a Demond Claiborne run, Bachmeier made a series of accurate throws, including his first passing touchdown in a Demon Deacon uniform: a 24-yard pass to redshirt junior wideout Donovan Greene.
Bachmeier continued to excel, commanding a long drive from the Wake Forest 15-yard line all the way to a halftime-beating 31-yard field goal from redshirt junior kicker Matthew Dennis.
“The plan was that we were going to give Michael [Kern] the first two to three, and then give Hank [Bachmeier] the next two to three,” Clawson said of the quarterback rotation.
Coming out of halftime, the Demon Deacons took no extra time to get back on the board. After a three-and-out series by A&T, Morin took a punt to the promised land, speeding past the Aggies’ special teams unit for a 73-yard touchdown return.
“That play doesn’t happen without my teammates out there, and those guys made it happen,” Morin said postgame.
Additionally, the offense turned into a well-oiled machine under Bachmeier, who continued to find receivers on the ensuing offensive drive, hitting Morin in between the hashes before the receiver broke free for a 51-yard gain. After a handful of unsuccessful red zone rushing attempts, Bachmeier rolled out to the right side of the field and found Fields in the front of the endzone for a five-yard touchdown reception.
Bachmeier kept it rolling throughout the third quarter, finding both Greene and redshirt freshman Deuce Alexander for large gains. The sixth-year quarterback spread the wealth around the receiver room, too, hitting tight end Cameron Hite for a quick gain before again finding Alexander — this time in the end zone to take a 28-point lead.
“The beauty of the offense is being able to distribute the ball to any receiver, at any time,” Bachmeier said postgame.
In the end, the Demon Deacons finished off the game with time management and a Tate Carney rushing touchdown, finishing off the Aggies 45-13.
“It’s definitely nice to start off with a win,” Bachmeier said.
