Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 NOV. 6, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY COREY BODDEN W ake Forest is now more than halfway through the fourth year of the Dave Clawson re- gime. Year four has worked out wonderfully for the head coach at his other three previous stops — Ford- ham, Richmond and Bowling Green. In 2002, Clawson led Fordham to a 10-3 record and an appearance in the Football Championship Subdivi- sion (FCS) quarterfinals. This came after finishing 0-11 in his first year at the helm and he followed that with 3-8 and 7-4 seasons. His fifth season yielded a 9-3 mark. Clawson then took over a strug- gling Richmond program and fin- ished 11-3 during his fourth season in 2007, reaching the FCS semifinals. It took five seasons at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level for Claw- son to again reach the 10-win plateau at Bowling Green, but an 8-5 mark in his fourth season was a building block for a 10-3 record and Mid-American Conference championship in 2013. Clawson has proven he can build struggling programs and is already doing the same in Winston-Salem, N.C., with the Demon Deacons. After back-to-back 3-9 seasons in 2014 and 2015, Clawson helped Wake Forest claim its first winning season since 2008 with a 7-6 record in 2016 that included a Military Bowl victory against a 10-win Temple squad. Wake Forest started the current cam- paign 4-0 with an impressive 34-10 win over Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass., but three consecutive losses to Florida State (26-19), Clem- son (28-14) and Georgia Tech (38-24) followed. The Demon Deacons held a lead in the second half against both Florida State and Georgia Tech, and did not have starting senior quarter- back John Wolford against the Tigers in Death Valley where they played even with the defending national champs for the final three quarters. The Deacons are still trying to get over that hump and secure a signa- ture win under Clawson, but have been close this season, with Notre Dame the next opportunity to accom- plish that coveted, defining win. This will be the third time Wake Forest has traveled to South Bend (2012 and 2015), and the program will be looking for its first win inside Notre Dame Stadium. Wake Forest's strength through the first seven contests was its de- fense, which was ranked within the top-third in the country after allow- ing 361.7 total yards and just 179.0 passing yards per game (No. 18 na- tionally). Despite having to replace defensive coordinator Mike Elko, who is now with the Irish, the De- mon Deacons have kept humming along on that side of the ball under Jay Sawvel, holding its first seven op- ponents to only 19.7 points per game. "Jay Sawvel inherited a very good defense from Mike Elko and that continuity has provided a solid base for this season," BloggerSoDear.com managing editor Riley Johnston said. "He likes to show different looks de- fensively and has a lot of 'joker' sets where guys are standing around the line of scrimmage. "The defensive line has been domi- nant behind Duke Ejiofor, so that al- ways helps to win the battle at the line of scrimmage. The linebacker play has seen some drop-off, but overall I am impressed with what Sawvel has done — and it has resulted in a top-25 defense according to S&P Rankings." The Irish faced one of the nation's top defensive ends in North Caro- lina State's Bradley Chubb Oct. 28. Though Ejiofor doesn't get the same national publicity, the senior has put together a strong season registering 29 tackles and 5.5 sacks in the team's first seven games. "He is just an athletic freak at the defensive end position, and that helps immensely when it comes to wreak- ing havoc in the backfield," Johnston said of Ejiofor. "The ability to line up at either end to blitz, and also drop back into a shallow coverage to spy and guard the perimeter is rare. "That allows him to make a lot of plays behind the line of scrimmage when he can get downhill." Outside of allowing 400-plus yards to triple-option foe Georgia Tech, GAME PREVIEW: WAKE FOREST Facts & Figures NOTRE DAME VS. WAKE FOREST Game Info Date: Nov. 4, 2017. Site: Notre Dame Stadium (77,622). Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. ET. Television: NBC. Radio: This broadcast can be heard live on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (channel 129) and on Notre Dame's IMG affiliates. Series Facts: This will be the fourth meeting between Notre Dame and Wake Forest. The Irish hold a 3-0 series lead. Head Coaches: Wake Forest — Dave Clawson (18-27, fourth season); Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (66-32, eighth season). Noting Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons are searching for their first win against Notre Dame … The Irish won the previous two meetings in South Bend, 38-0 in 2012 and 28-7 in 2015 … The Demon Dea- cons finished over .500 in 2016 for the first since 2008 … Through Oct. 21, Wake Forest was the No. 2 team in the ACC in red-zone offense, scoring points on 28 of 31 trips into the red zone (90.3 percent) … After seven outings, the Demon Deacons ranked third in the nation in fewest fumbles lost with one … The Deacs are tied for second in the nation in fewest turnovers lost with four … Wake Forest has ranked either last or next to last in the ACC in sacks allowed in each of the last three years, but stood fifth in the league (1.71 per game) heading into play Oct. 28. STATEMENT GAME The Demon Deacons are looking for a defining win under Dave Clawson