There may not have been a more thematic ending to Wake Forest’s football season.
It was a heartbreaking conclusion to another 4-8 campaign as Wake Forest dropped their season finale at home to Duke, 23-17, and finishing 15th in the ACC.
The Demon Deacons controlled most of the rivalry matchup with a 17-3 halftime lead until once again falling apart in the fourth quarter. Late mistakes on offense and a fateful blown coverage in the endzone for a Duke touchdown as time expired sealed Wake Forest’s game and another losing season.
“Obviously a heartbreaking loss,” Head Coach Dave Clawson said after the game. “It’s a tough way to lose a game, and a tough way to end a season.”
In many ways, the game captured the cadence of Wake Forest’s season. Although the Demon Deacons’ play improved significantly from their same 4-8 record as last year, they struggled to close out close games like this one all year long.
“This year, we had a lot of games where we had breakdowns in all three phases,” Clawson said. “In a lot of ways, I thought today’s game was a microcosm of our season.”
Like many of their prior matches this season, the Demon Deacons entered this past Saturday’s game much improved from the week’s loss. Quarterback Hank Bachmeier rallied from his previous two sub-hundred-yard passing games for a 200-yard, one-touchdown performance to post a 17-3 Wake Forest lead at halftime.
The defense, meanwhile, went toe-to-toe with one of the nation’s top offenses, winning the turnover battle and holding the Blue Devils to nearly half as many yards of offense through the first half.
But routinely, the difference in play on each side of the fourth quarter was night and day. Duke managed to score three straight touchdowns as the Demon Deacons’ defense took its foot off the gas, while Wake Forest’s offense made critical mistakes, including penalties and a fumble, on potentially game-winning drives. A 39-yard touchdown pass from Duke quarterback Maalik Murphy on a blown coverage completed the Blue Devils comeback victory.
“It’s just kinda a broken record,” Clawson said. “We just make bad plays; we have penalties.”
Ending the season on a sweeter note was Wake Forest wide receiver Taylor Morin, who made history as the all-time receiving yards leader in Wake Forest Football’s program history. The all-purpose veteran’s 47 yards and eight catches on the day pushed him to 2,974 career receiving yards for first place on Wake Forest’s all-time receiving yards list.
Morin was also among the 34 members of Wake Forest Football honored during Senior Day. Clawson thanked his senior players – many of whom played the final games of their college careers – for their hard work and dedication to Wake Forest. Seniors like Morin have been instrumental in building a winning program in recent years, a record which Clawson cited in defending the infrastructure of his program, despite this season’s 4-8 conclusion.
Now, Clawson says, it’s time to take a step back and evaluate the season, while trying to keep pace with the hustle and bustle of recruiting for next season.
“I’ll reflect on the season and what we did and how we did, and how we can get better.”
