No. 18 Wake Forest is looking to replicate last season’s success as they face the Liberty Flames at home on Saturday.
The Liberty Flames will travel to Truist Field in Winston Salem, North Carolina to play the currently undefeated Wake Forest Demon Deacons for the third time in school history. The game will start at 5 PM on Sept. 17 and can be viewed on the ACC Network.
Truist Field, formerly know as BB&T Field, can hold up to 31,500 onlookers. It hit record capacity in November of 2004 when 37,623 tickets were sold for their game against North Carolina.
The Demon Deacons have said that they sold more than 4,000 new season tickets for the 2022 Season, but it is important to note that there will likely be many Liberty fans at Truist Field this Saturday due to its close proximity to Lynchburg. Liberty has also offered to bus students who buy their own tickets to the game at no additional charge.
Liberty will be the Demon Deacons’ third opponent of season. The Demon Deacons brought down Vanderbilt last Saturday (Final 45-25), and they also beat VMI by 25+ points earlier this season.
Dave Clawson, the Demon Deacons’ head coach, is going into his ninth season with Wake Forest. Clawson got his start as a quarterback and running back coach at the University at Albany in 1989 and eventually was named the Demon Deacons’ 32nd head football coach in 2013.
Clawson led the Demon Deacons to a program best 11-3 record and a Gator Bowl win last season. The team’s three losses were to UNC and then No. 14 Clemson and No. 13 Pittsburgh. 70% of the Wake Forest team production from last year has returned to play this season.
Sam Hartman, the Demon Deacons’ starting QB for the last three seasons, had previously been out for a non-football related injury. Last Saturday, he made his first season appearance against Vanderbilt and went 18/27, threw for 300 yards, and pitched 4 TDs.
After the Liberty Flames play at Wake Forest, the Demon Deacons are planning to host #5 Clemson and then play at Florida State. The intensity of the oncoming schedule might make the Demon Deacons be focused beyond their game against Liberty.
Three Players to Watch For
QB #10 Sam Hartman, as mentioned above, was out for the Demon Deacons’ season opener due to a blood clot. Having healed up, Hartman seems to have returned ready to lead Wake Forest to another great season. Hartman threw for 4,228 yards, 39 TDs, and 14 INTs last season.
WR #9 AT Perry has had eight catches for 189 yards and 1 TD already this season. Perry is Sam Hartman’s primary receiver and had 71 catches for 1,293 yards (1/4 of Hartman’s yards) and 15 TDs in 2021. Shutting down Perry may be crucial to the Flames’ success this weekend.
DE #40 Rondell Bothroyd has 8 tackles and one sack between the Demon Deacons’ first two games. Last season, Bothroyd had 63 tackles and 8 sacks. Bothroyd is a physical player that will be tricky for the Flames’ offensive line to stop.
Upcoming Games
Sept. 17 – Wake Forest vs Liberty
Sept. 24 – Wake Forest vs Clemson
Oct. 1 – Wake Forest @ Florida State
