admo

Relax some fellas... it's going to be a battle throughout the day. We will prevail.

Convert a third down now

Looks like Wake is going to keep dinking the passes, doing slants to set something up for down field later. Gotta be ready..

Nice punt... we got ourselves a football game here fellas... buckle up the chin straps! GBR!!!!

Swift - my boy! Way to bounce back!

That was 6... who blew the coverage, DB or S (Green)?

3 1/2 quarters left, will definately get the passing game going.. have hope - it's early!

Touchdown is always better, but its still 3 points off a turnover. GBR!

I hate the fade.... dammit.

Hey Eliot, what seems to help me out is V8, plenty of water, tylenol, and get some food.

Awesome!

Washington over Boise St? I like your call! Fortunately for Washington they dont have to spend the first half getting used to blue turf since it's in Seattle. You were close last week with the Mizzou pick. Maybe you should do a weekly Upset pick thread? I'm going with Oregon over Michigan. Especially because the Wolverines are 6 point favorites, at home, and terribly want to shut the world up with a big win. Upset - zing!

"And the winner goes to post number 2900, uh.. I mean 2901! I win!"

He actually was pretty good at it a few years ago. But he also gave some near heartattacks with the ocasional drops. As many have mentioned before, there will be some different guys in there through the course of the year. Cally has even hinted on that.

I totally agree. It filters down because the players seem to have the respect too, with the silent confidence as well.

Since the move to the WAC, TCU is 5-0 against the Big 12. They beat OU a few years ago in Norman. It would be an "upset" since they are the Vegas dawg, but it wouldnt be a major upset. The Horned Frogs were ranked #3 Nationally in defense last year and they returned 9 starters from the group. It should be a battle. UT may choke which can cost them against a good TCU team, or they may bring their A game and win. I'm very looking forward to this game. Go FROGS!

Tuesday Football Press Conference Quotes Jim Grobe and the Deacons preview the Nebraska game Sept. 4, 2007 Head Coach Jim Grobe On getting Brett Hodges into the first team offense... "We really like Brett. He was back and forth with Riley to be the starter (last year). Because of an injury, he didn't get the opportunity, but he's got it now. We feel good about Brett Hodges. He practices great every week. We've always felt we've had two quarterbacks we can win with and it's just Riley's turn and now Brett has a chance to show what he can do." On whether the offense will be adjusted for a new starter... "I think Brett's got it all. He's been doing all the same things that Riley's done, he just hasn't been able to do them in a game. On Saturday, he was 17 for 23, running all the same plays that Riley'd been running until Riley got hurt. So I feel really good about Brett. I don't think we'd make any changes with him or Riley in the game." On the running game... "I hope we do better. I made a big deal about that after the game, and I feel poorly that we didn't run any better than we did, but at the same time, Boston College is a really good defense against the run. We threw for 366 yards, had 24 first downs. We did some really good things in the game. We just had two red zone turnovers, and that was the difference. I really believe that had we run the ball better, we'd had a better chance to win, and through the season if we don't run the ball better, I think we're in trouble. I just don't think you can be a one dimensional football team. We want to run the football better, and hopefully we'll continue to throw it pretty good." On Kenneth Moore... "In our throw game, we're gonna go to who they let us go to. And Kenny just happened to be open on a lot of those seam passes. They kind of left him alone, and that was good for us. I don't really care who catches the football, and I would not anticipate that Kenny's going to catch 15 balls every week, but he certainly had a great game to open the season." On Nebraska... "They're really, really good. Better than when we played them a couple of years ago. They're real physical. They're big guys up front on both sides of the ball. And I think the thing that really impresses me is that they've got really good team speed. They're big up front and their big guys can all run so we've got our work cut out for us. They are very well coached, one of the best fundamental teams you'll see anywhere, and whatever the old Nebraska used to be, that's what they look like right now." On the BC game... "We had about four opportunities in the game to make red zone stops, and had the ball tipped around going all kinds of crazy ways, and we didn't come up with them. And that was really the difference. Last year, we made a couple picks in the red zone, and that basically won the game, and this year we didn't come up with any defensively and had a couple on offense. It was a really tough job for our defense to get ready because we didn't know what to expect. Were we gonna get a lot of Steve Logan? Were we gonna get a lot of Jack Bicknell? Were we gonna get a lot of Jagodzinski? We just didn't know what type of offense we were going to get. And we were doing a lot of adjusting during the game, trying to react on the run, and I thought our coaches did a nice job. I thought our players did a nice job, but in the end we didn't make enough plays to back it up and win the football game." On the Nebraska program... "One of the things that really amazed me when we went to Nebraska was how sportsmanlike their fans are. They're not saying bad stuff to you, you come on to the field and they cheer for you. They're not negative in a sense that they're against the visiting team, they're just really for their team. And a lot of places could take a lesson on how to be fans from Nebraska. We were just really impressed and overwhelmed at how much support Nebraska had, but equally impressive to us was how sportsmanlike they were to us as a visiting team." On what [Head Coach Bill] Callahan has done with the program... "Talentwise, we don't see any weaknesses. They're big up front. They've got some really good skill kids that run well. I think that he's got a new thought process going on as far as throwing the football. They can run it and throw it. Last week, they ran for over 400 yards against a pretty good Nevada team, had a couple hundred yards passing. And Coach Callahan's been known for throwing the football. Everyone thought this was going to be a fun and gun offense, but last week they rush for 400. So they're just playing good football. They're a pretty balanced team. They hurt you throwing the football, and obviously run it really well. They just look like a national championship contending type football program right now." On Brett Hodges going into the huddle... "What I really enjoyed was when I looked down the sideline, and Brett knew he had to go, he was warming up. And when he looked over at me he smiled. He wasn't nervous. He was excited about getting a chance to play. He knew it was his turn, and he went in and played really, really well. And that's what I expected. I feel that we've got two kids who can really help us win in Brett and Riley, and it was just fun to see Brett go out and take charge and seize the moment. He went out and played really, really well, as we expected him to. A lot of kids would have panicked a little bit and he was excited to get the chance." On what to expect of this Saturday's atmosphere... "I think it's going to be pretty good. I think we're going to have a lot of fans here. I think Nebraska's bringing a lot of people. It ought to be an electric atmosphere. I think we're a pretty good football team. I think we lost to a pretty good football team in Boston College. And having watched the film, I feel Nebraska's a great football team, so we have our work cut out for us, but our fans will get to see a couple of good football teams. I think we're pretty good, and I think Nebraska is going to be really impressive coming into our stadium. Our fans are going to get a chance to see a really good football game." On week one of college football... "It's really fun for us to get started again. Last year was wonderful, but I think right now our kids are totally focused on playing this season. We had some great upsets the first week, a lot of close games. It's kind of fun of see who the teams are around the country that'll look a little better, and that'll be throughout the season. We'll be seeing teams go up and down as the season goes through. It's just fun to be playing football." On a timeframe for Riley Skinner... "My timeframe would be today. He'd be back out their practicing today, but I think both with Riley and Matt [Robinson], it's how quickly they heal, and all kids are different. You take the same injury with two different kids and it might take one a week and one three weeks. You just never know how it's going to work out. Thank goodness neither Riley nor Matt Robinson is hurt as badly as we thought they might have been on Saturday. So that's a blessing and we'll just have to wait and see, kind of up to them more then us." On preparing the second string quarterback during preseason... "For about three weeks, Brett got an awful lot of reps. The last week, we probably gave more to Riley, but we've always done that with our backup quarterback. Of course, last year, we didn't know who the backup really was. We were trying to split reps between Brett and Riley. This year, we knew who the backup was, so going through the preseason, Riley and Brett were getting a share of snaps, and Brett had plenty of snaps to go in Saturday and be successful." Sophomore Quarterback Brett Hodges In the huddle after Riley Skinner got hurt... "A lot of the veterans and the seniors on the sideline and in the huddle all came up to me and it was really, `come on, let's go, let's get it done'; and it looked in their eyes like they had full confidence in me and it was very heartwarming to feel that, and it gave me the confidence to go out there and know that these guys were behind me and not have to worry about that, and just worry about what I needed to do on the field." On Kenneth Moore getting 15 receptions... "Kenny is a playmaker, and we have an offense that is a quick hitter, and Kenny is in that position where we get him the ball as soon as possible and as fast as we can so he can make plays and 15 catches, then after that he had extra yards, and that really does help out the offense by putting the ball in the hands of a playmaker like Kenny and just to let him do what he does" On what he learned offensively from the Boston College game... "That we need to be more mentally tough, a little bit more physical, not to take things for granted; like in the quarterback position we missed some crucial run-checks, I missed a run-check on that fourth and one which ended up costing us the game and I think we need to get better in that aspect and get more physical and just get back to playing football and worrying less about the other team and worrying more about ourselves." On feeling comfortable on the field... "There was a tiny bit of nervousness, not really, but I've always been in the mindset to always be ready, even last year, my redshirt freshman year, and growing up through high school I've always been taught to be ready whether I was playing or not, so when the opportunity came I was fully prepared practicing with the first team offense, and getting those reps in practice and knowing that I really am only one injury away. So I went in there knowing that was the case and because of that I knew the offense, I studied the tape, I knew the defense and it's just going out there and performing against somebody other than my own teammates now." Senior Defensive Tackle Zach Stukes On improving the defense after Boston College... "As a defensive lineman I feel like we need to once again stop the run and put more pressure on the quarterback in order to force him to make bad decisions and hopefully get our defensive backs to get some interceptions by defensive pressure." On the ability to prepare for a well-established offense... "Well, it's hard for the first game because you have no idea what they're going to do, the only thing you can look at is the past film and you don't know if they have changed anything. But with this week, Nebraska has one game under their belt so we're able to look at that film and analyze that and have a better grasp on what will be happening out there." On describing the atmosphere for the Nebraska game in 2005... "It was a nice experience, the whole big sea of red, the fans were wonderful, they cheered us on, they gave us a good time and I enjoyed it." On the thoughts of Wake Forest fans... "I love it, to actually have Groves Stadium sold out is a big accomplishment for the program. I feel responsible for that and I can't wait to get out there and play in front of the fans." Junior Cornerback Alphonso Smith On improving the defense... "Defensively, we just need to play better, we had too many mental mistakes, and we didn't carry how we practice over to the game. As a secondary, we need to relax and just play better. We were there to make plays, but we didn't make the plays; we were in the position to make the plays, but we didn't; and this week we need to not only be in the position to make plays, but to make them." On being the last line of defense... "It just comes with the position, as a defensive lineman you can make a mistake and they can gain 12 yards, as a linebacker you can miss a tackle and they can gain 12 yards but in the secondary with one false step that can be six points put up in a second on you, and you just have to have confidence that if they throw the ball over here it'll be trouble for them, and if you do get scored on you just have to say, `alright I got scored on, that's the end of that, and I'm going to go out here and they'll have to do it again'. That's my motto, if you catch a ball on me I'm like, `alright, good catch, but do it again'; and as a defensive back you just have to know that you're not going to be perfect and you have to be headstrong and just know that in the course of the game you're not going to be perfect out here on this island by yourself, you're going to get balls caught on you and you just have to get passed that." On giving up two defensive touchdowns and 38 points... "We did, and that's pretty unusual, we gave up 38 points and we turned the ball over, that's not Wake Forest football and what I think we need to do is just play better, tackle better, be better mentally and just have fun as a defense, I don't think we had fun, I think we were putting too much pressure on ourselves and I think this Saturday and this week we're going to release some of that pressure and just have fun, just go out and fly around a little bit." On a sold out stadium... "It means a lot, as you probably know I just like to have fun. When you look up and see your fans in all black, you're like `ok this is what we're going to do today, these people are supporting us and it just makes you want to play harder', and this Saturday I can almost guarantee you that we'll play hard. I can't promise anything else, but I will promise that us as a Wake Forest football team we're going to play 100 miles per hour and we're going to play hard."

The article mentions the trickery stuff, but what catches my eye is this: "Wake Forest quarterbacks Riley Skinner and Brett Hodges completed 45 of 60 passes for 366 yards last week against Boston College." For the most part I liked what I saw with our secondary last week. But if Wake throws that much this week - at home - I hope the guys are ready to step up and make a hit on those quick slants and short passing game. The secondary will be tested a lot.

Thanks Rob - good stuff!

NU 29 WF 22 PASS: 248 RUSH: 183

Thats... AMAZING. Awesome work BChico!!!

Got him on my FF team as well. I guess I'm a homer too! Aside from that I hope he stays healthy all season. He's going to do great!

Would like to see Will Henry out there when we are in the red zone. At least see what he can do and use his height for mismatches.

I see what everyone is saying & pretty much agree. But.. it's kind of cool to watch it happen on TV, as long as no one is getting hurt... and I'm drinking pitchers of beers with my friends and celebrating by kicking down the TV, tearing down pictures on the wall, blowing up the fireplace and carrying the reclyner out the house and around the block! Go Huskers!

I think he CG will be fine. He prolly wasnt 100%, the coaches new it, they liked the way Castille ran and complimented Lucky and as it turns out, just wasnt enough carries. Its one game, and there will be opportunities that he will shine as the season progresses. Man - all the talk I here about Culbert makes me wish I saw him play. Sounds like he made a good impression. Wonder if Nevada was a little beaten down though, by the time he came in? Not to take too much away from him, but you look up at the scoreboard and it's 4th qtr down 45-10, some guys will have a tendency to mail it in.