The Army Black Knights went to Winston-Salem as underdogs, but ended up humbling the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. With second half adjustments and opportunistic turnovers, Army was able to defeat the Wake Forest Demon Deacons 21-13. Army improves to 5-3 on the season while Wake Forest will drop to 5-3.

Wolford Turnovers

John Wolford struggled in this game. Head Coach Dave Clawson said in his post-game press conference, “He (Wolford) didn’t look settled.” Wolford’s mistakes happened when he overthrew his receivers. All three of his interceptions occurred after a ball sailed over the intended receiver or the receiver jumped, but the ball was too far out of his reach. Wolford said after the game, “I continue to turn the ball over and I can’t do that.”

Army Adjustments

In the first half Army was held to 42 rushing yards on 24 carries. Army tried to run through the middle of the field with their fullbacks. They ended the game with 238 rushing yards on 64 carries. Army stuck with the run as an option team, but changed the style. They utilized their speed and want to the edge more and they were much more effective. Their offense began getting 5-7 yards a run and Wake Forest’s defense could not get off the field. The Deacons defense got worn out and it showed on the scoreboard.

Wake Forest Missed Opportunities

There were two main opportunities squandered by the Demon Deacons. The first was in the first half after an Army touchdown. John Armstrong returned the kickoff for a touchdown, but for the second straight game, it was called back on a holding call that brought the Deacons back to their own 10 yard line.

The other missed opportunity was a touchdown pass that was dropped by Scotty Washington. Had the play been made, Wake Forest would have taken a 17-7 lead and Army may have had to change their strategy. If this happened, the game could have had a different result.

Wake and Army Will Look For Their Bowl Opportunities Later

Both teams are now in the same position. One more win and a chance for a bowl is theirs. Wake Forest has all ACC games left. They will play in the next month Virginia at home, Louisville on the road and Clemson and Boston College, both at home. Two of those games look winnable, but none of the wins look like a guarantee.

Army will play Air Force, Notre Dame, Morgan State and Navy. Morgan State seems like the most likely win while the rest of the games should be tough. Army should be going bowling this season. A surprise bowl berth for Army after they snapped a nine-game losing streak to Wake Forest in Winston-Salem.

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About the author
Jordan Hansgen
Wake Forest Student Sports Writer for Vavel.com Analyst on 91.3 FM Buffalo Blitz show