Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1510995
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 18, 2023 39 GAME PREVIEW: WAKE FOREST He's looked good on several returns that get the Irish out past the 30-yard line, not just the one he returned 99 yards for a touchdown. The kicking game shows a Wake Forest advan- tage on paper, but redshirt sophomore kicker Matthew Dennis is only 14 of 16 because he has attempted just 2 field goals beyond 40 yards. Eight of his makes have been between 20 and 29 yards. Notre Dame's Spencer Shrader has attempted 9 field goals beyond 40 yards, and 6 of those have been beyond 50 yards. He's 4 of 6 on such kicks. He's 10 of 15 on the year. Between Shrader 's monster leg and Notre Dame's knack for special teams in every sense of the words, the Irish have yet another edge here. Advantage: Notre Dame COACHING Could it be that Marcus Freeman is earning back his brownie points and receiving deserved flowers for the way he's handled things since the melt- down at Louisville in early October? He had the Irish ready to roll in blowout wins over USC and Pitt. When things get that out of hand, it generally comes from the top down. Freeman hit all the right buttons in those two games, outside of burning too much time off the clock at the end of the first half against Pitt. We've got to mention Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden here, too. He's quickly as- cending as one of the best coordinators in college football for what he's done in his two years with the Irish. He's a mastermind schemer, and it shows throughout the course of games. Offensively, Dave Clawson and Wayne Ruggiero certainly have the edge over Notre Dame OC Gerad Parker. But that duo needs the correct personnel to make the slow-mesh offense hum. They need a quarterback like Sam Hartman. They don't seem to have one at the moment, so there is only so Redshirt sophomore kicker Matthew Dennis con- verted 14 of his first 16 field goal attempts for the Demon Deacons this season. PHOTO COURTESY WAKE FOREST ATHLETICS much they can do to put their fingerprints on a game like this. Freeman should have the Irish geared up nicely for one final game at Notre Dame Stadium this fall. Advantage: Notre Dame INTANGIBLES There is no hiding from the elephant in the room. This is like Tom Brady playing the Patriots as a member of the Buccaneers for Sam Hartman. He's got to look friends on the other side in the eyes and come up with the determination to beat them. That's not too difficult to do for a competitor like Hartman, but you've got to look at it through a Wake Forest lens too. It's not going to be difficult to do for the players over there, especially the ones on defense. If there is a chance to make a big, clean hit on Hartman, they'll take it. If there is a chance to intercept him, they'll be gunning for it. This is an emotional game. There is no gloss- ing over it and spouting the cliché "just another game" chatter. Another thing to monitor is the weather. Around this same week in 2022, Notre Dame and Boston College played in an out-of-nowhere blizzard. One moment, you could see everything clearly on the TV broadcast and from the press box. The next, flakes were coming down hard and heavy all over the field. Hartman joked on Oct. 31, which was also a snowy evening in South Bend, that he had never lived anywhere so cold so soon. Get ready for more, Carolina native. It's coming. And those who have been around Notre Dame for a while now absolutely love it. Advantage: Notre Dame OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. WR-X 80 Jahmal Banks 6-4 205 Jr. 8 Wesley Grimes 6-2 187 So. WR-S 13 Ke'Shawn Williams 5-10 190 Jr. 81 Deuce Alexander 5-11 165 Fr. 88 Ian Ver Steeg 6-0 182 R-Fr. LT 52 Spencer Clapp 6-6 295 R-Sr. 73 Zach Vaughan 6-6 304 R-So. LG 55 Michael Jurgens 6-4 311 R-Sr. 77 George Sell 6-4 300 R-So. C 74 Luke Petitbon 6-2 294 So. 65 Hank Lucas 6-2 275 R-Fr. RG 54 Matt Gulbin 6-4 313 R-So. 71 CJ Elmonus 6-7 295 R-Jr. RT 62 DeVonte Gordon 6-5 310 R-Jr. 72 Erik Russell 6-8 301 R-So. TE 20 Cameron Hite 6-3 243 R-Jr. 17 Michael Frogge 6-5 240 R-So. 82 Trey Boll 6-4 231 Jr. WR-Z 2 Taylor Morin 5-10 180 R-Jr. 5 Horatio Fields 6-3 202 R-So. 84 Nick Ragano 6-0 181 R-So. QB 12 Mitch Griffis 5-11 193 R-So. 18 Santino Marucci 6-1 217 R-So. RB 6 Justice Ellison 5-10 209 Jr. 23 Demond Claiborne 5-9 200 So. 30 Tate Carney 5-10 209 R-Fr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DE 30 Jasheen Davis 6-3 259 Jr. 43 BJ Williams 6-4 256 R-So. DT 91 Kevin Pinter 6-1 282 R-Jr. 98 Wyatt Crespi 6-1 279 R-So. 11 Nick Helbig 6-2 284 R-Sr. DT 44 Justin Williams 6-2 282 R-Jr. 55 Bryce Ganious 6-2 281 Jr. DE 5 Kendron Wayman 6-4 255 Jr. 15 Jaylen Hudson 6-3 259 R-Jr. Buck 24 Dylan Hazen 6-1 228 R-So. 26 Quincy Bryant 6-0 224 R-So. 39 AIden Hall 6-2 217 Fr. MLB 40 Jacob Roberts 6-1 233 Sr. 34 Zach Ranson 6-2 233 R-Jr. CB 1 Caelen Carson 6-0 195 Jr. 25 Jamare Glasker 6-1 175 R-Fr. SS 3 Malik Mustapha 5-11 207 Jr. 7 AJ Williams 5-11 200 R-Jr. FS 9 Chelen Garnes 5-11 200 Sr. 35 Rushaun Tongue 6-1 181 Fr. CB 10 Deshawn Jones 6-0 181 R-So. 22 Demarcus Rankin 6-0 183 Jr. Nickel 14 Evan Slocum 5-11 191 Jr. 45 Nick Andersen 5-11 194 So. Wake Forest Demon Deacons Depth Chart SPECIAL TEAMS Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. K 99 Matthew Dennis 5-11 193 R-So. 97 Caleb Carlson 6-3 193 R-Fr. KO 98 Tyler Black 5-10 179 Fr. 97 Caleb Carlson 6-3 193 R-Fr. P 36 Ivan Mora 6-0 189 R-Jr. 98 Tyler Black 5-10 179 Fr. LS 32 Will Cobb 5-10 201 R-So. 90 Jacob Zuhr 6-0 220 R-So. Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. H 36 Ivan Mora 6-0 189 R-Jr. 98 Tyler Black 5-10 179 Fr. PR 2 Taylor Morin 5-10 180 R-Jr. 13 Ke'Shawn Williams 5-10 190 Jr. KR 23 Demond Claiborne 5-9 200 So. 13 Ke'Shawn Williams 5-10 190 Jr.