CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2008 Wake Forest

8–⁠5 (4–⁠4 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Jim Grobe.

Schedule and results

Wake Forest in 2008, game by game: won at Baylor 41–13; won vs. Ole Miss 30–28; won at No. 24 Florida State 12–3; lost vs. Navy 17–24; won vs. Clemson 12–7; lost at Maryland 0–26; lost at Miami 10–16; won vs. Duke 33–30; won vs. Virginia 28–17; lost at NC State 17–21; lost vs. Boston College 21–24; won vs. Vanderbilt 23–10; won vs. Navy 29–19+28−26Won 41–13 at Baylor+28BaylorWon 30–28 vs. Ole Miss+2Ole MissWon 12–3 at No. 24 Florida State+9No. 24 Florida StateLost 17–24 vs. Navy-7NavyWon 12–7 vs. Clemson+5ClemsonLost 0–26 at Maryland-26MarylandLost 10–16 at Miami-6MiamiWon 33–30 vs. Duke+3DukeWon 28–17 vs. Virginia+11VirginiaLost 17–21 at NC State-4NC StateLost 21–24 vs. Boston College-3Boston CollegeWon 23–10 vs. Vanderbilt+13VanderbiltWon 29–19 vs. Navy+10Navy
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 28atBaylorW 41–⁠1371%
Sep 6vsOle MissW 30–⁠2880%
Sep 20at24Florida StateW 12–⁠352%
Sep 27vsNavyL 17–⁠2478%
Oct 9vsClemsonW 12–⁠762%
Oct 18atMarylandL 0–⁠2656%
Oct 25atMiamiL 10–⁠1649%
Nov 1vsDukeW 33–⁠3077%
Nov 8vsVirginiaW 28–⁠1761%
Nov 15atNC StateL 17–⁠2165%
Nov 22vsBoston CollegeL 21–⁠2447%
Nov 29vsVanderbiltW 23–⁠1066%
Dec 20Bowls & playoffvsNavyEagleBank BowlW 29–⁠1953%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Navy 29–⁠19 in the EagleBank Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 5th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 6th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 119 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 23
  2. Wk 2: 20
  3. Wk 3: 20
  4. Wk 4: 18
  5. Wk 5: 16
  6. Wk 6: 25
  7. Wk 7: 21
  8. Wk 8: 21

Butkus AwardAaron Curry, OLB

Consensus All-AmericanAlphonso Smith, CB

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 5th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 16
Points
273–⁠238
Coach
Jim Grobe
Elo
1600 −7 this season
SP+ rating
6.4 No. 45 of 120; offense No. 91, defense No. 11, special teams No. 63
SRS
7.2 No. 29 of 120 in FBS
Recruiting class
No. 62
Offensive coordinator
Steed Lobotzke
Defensive coordinator
Brad Lambert
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense101st of 120
  • Defense35th of 120
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted117th of 120
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted48th of 120
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0438%0.88101st of 120
Defense0.0037%1.0035th of 120
Opponent-adjusted-0.01 off
0.02 def		38% off
38% def		—117th off
48th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense-0.1own 36— allowed
Defense-0.1own 29— caused

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.

Top recruits in the 2008 class

Scott Betros ILB★★★No. 713
J.T. Dixon TE★★★No. 742
Gabe Irby OG★★★No. 1110
Derricus Ellis WDE★★★No. 1154
Terrence Davis WR★★★No. 1246

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2008 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs13.00.811
Receivers32.70.789
Offensive line32.30.799
Defensive line13.00.824
Linebackers13.00.857
Defensive backs12.00.767
Athletes and specialists13.00.802
Whole class112.60.802

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2009

The 2009 draft
Rd 1Aaron Curry OLBSeattle Seahawks
Rd 2Alphonso Smith CBDenver Broncos
Rd 4Chip Vaughn SNew Orleans Saints
Rd 4Stanley Arnoux ILBNew Orleans Saints

2008 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Virginia Tech5–⁠310–⁠415
Georgia Tech5–⁠39–⁠422
Florida State5–⁠39–⁠421
Boston College5–⁠39–⁠5
Maryland4–⁠48–⁠5
North Carolina4–⁠48–⁠5
Wake Forest4–⁠48–⁠5
Miami4–⁠47–⁠6
Clemson4–⁠47–⁠6
NC State4–⁠46–⁠7
Virginia3–⁠55–⁠7
Duke1–⁠74–⁠8

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.