CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2017 Wake Forest

8–⁠5 (4–⁠4 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Dave Clawson.

Schedule and results

Wake Forest in 2017, game by game: won vs. Presbyterian 51–7; won at Boston College 34–10; won vs. Utah State 46–10; won at App State 20–19; lost vs. Florida State 19–26; lost at No. 2 Clemson 14–28; lost at Georgia Tech 24–38; won vs. Louisville 42–32; lost at No. 5 Notre Dame 37–48; won at Syracuse 64–43; won vs. No. 25 NC State 30–24; lost vs. Duke 23–31; won vs. Texas A&M 55–52+44−14Won 51–7 vs. Presbyterian+44PresbyterianWon 34–10 at Boston College+24Boston CollegeWon 46–10 vs. Utah State+36Utah StateWon 20–19 at App State+1App StateLost 19–26 vs. Florida State-7Florida StateLost 14–28 at No. 2 Clemson-14No. 2 ClemsonLost 24–38 at Georgia Tech-14Georgia TechWon 42–32 vs. Louisville+10LouisvilleLost 37–48 at No. 5 Notre Dame-11No. 5 Notre DameWon 64–43 at Syracuse+21SyracuseWon 30–24 vs. No. 25 NC State+6No. 25 NC StateLost 23–31 vs. Duke-8DukeWon 55–52 vs. Texas A&M+3Texas A&M
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31vsPresbyterianW 51–⁠787%
Sep 9atBoston CollegeW 34–⁠1039%
Sep 16vsUtah StateW 46–⁠1070%
Sep 23atApp StateW 20–⁠1938%
Sep 30vsFlorida StateL 19–⁠2650%
Oct 7at2ClemsonL 14–⁠2813%
Oct 21atGeorgia TechL 24–⁠3831%
Oct 28vsLouisvilleW 42–⁠3247%
Nov 4at5Notre DameL 37–⁠4820%
Nov 11atSyracuseW 64–⁠4352%
Nov 18vs25NC StateW 30–⁠2450%
Nov 25vsDukeL 23–⁠3169%
Dec 29Bowls & playoffvsTexas A&MBelk BowlW 55–⁠5246%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Texas A&M 55–⁠52 in the Belk Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 5th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 16th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 119 on file).

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 5th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
459–⁠368
Coach
Dave Clawson
Elo
1566 +84 this season
SP+ rating
10.5 No. 31 of 128; offense No. 21, defense No. 49, special teams No. 67
SRS
12.4 No. 21 of 130 in FBS
Returning
109% of last season’s EPA, No. 1 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 68 roster talent No. 66 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Warren Ruggiero
Defensive coordinator
Jay Sawvel
Captains
Grant Dawson, Wendell Dunn, Cam Serigne, A’Lique Terry, Jaboree Williams and John Wolford
Offense
Slow mesh
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense25th of 130
  • Defense58th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted14th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted46th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1743%1.2225th of 130
Defense0.0842%1.3058th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.20 off
0.05 def		45% off
41% def		—14th off
46th 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
Offense3.9own 3114% allowed
Defense3.1own 3119% caused

CORE rating 10.6, 22nd of 130 (offense 8.6, defense -2.0).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsJohn Wolford QB3,192 yds
Passing touchdownsJohn Wolford QB29 TD
Rushing yardsMatt Colburn RB904 yds
Rushing touchdownsJohn Wolford QB10 TD
Receiving yardsGreg Dortch WR722 yds
Receiving touchdownsCam Serigne TE9 TD
TacklesCameron Glenn DB98 tkl
SacksDuke Ejiofor DL6.5 sacks
InterceptionsEssang Bassey DB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2017 class

Michael Allen WDE★★★No. 443
Jeffery Burley ILB★★★No. 694
Christian Beal-Smith APB★★★No. 839
Chase Monroe ILB★★★No. 876
Tyriq Hardimon CB★★★No. 886

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

The 2017 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.838
Running backs13.00.852
Receivers33.00.839
Offensive line52.60.803
Defensive line32.70.830
Linebackers52.80.825
Defensive backs33.00.841
Athletes and specialists13.00.811
Whole class222.80.826

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 2018

The 2018 draft
Rd 2Jessie Bates III SCincinnati Bengals
Rd 6Duke Ejiofor DEHouston Texans

Roster 87

The 2017 roster

87 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2017 line; 51 have a stat line. See the roster

2017 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson7–⁠112–⁠24
Miami7–⁠110–⁠313
NC State6–⁠29–⁠423
Virginia Tech5–⁠39–⁠424
Wake Forest4–⁠48–⁠5
Louisville4–⁠48–⁠5
Boston College4–⁠47–⁠6
Georgia Tech4–⁠45–⁠6
Florida State3–⁠57–⁠6
Duke3–⁠57–⁠6
Virginia3–⁠56–⁠7
Pittsburgh3–⁠55–⁠7
Syracuse2–⁠64–⁠8
North Carolina1–⁠73–⁠9

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