Sports > September 18, 2008

By Martin Rickman | Staff writer

Two years ago, the prospect of the little-known Wake Forest going into Tallahassee and shutting out legendary Coach Bobby Bowden for the first time ever was laughable, but after that 30-0 drubbing and a convincing win in Winston-Salem last season, the Deacons should have earned respect.

The Deacs find themselves ranked 18th having faced two BCS conference opponents in Baylor and Ole Miss, six spots higher than Florida State who squeaked into 24th this week. The Seminoles gained attention after their convincing victories over Western Carolina and Chattanooga.

Despite the rankings, the Deacs are 5.5 point underdogs.

Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder spoke with confidence.

“We’re not going to lose this game,” Ponder said to the media.

“They’re Florida State,” fifth-year senior safety Kevin Patterson said. “They may have had two down years, but they’re still a powerhouse when it comes to name. They’re 2-0. I’m not going to knock them for that.”

The Deacons have made their mark modestly behind Head Coach Jim Grobe, who makes that a part of his philosophy. Grobe doesn’t pursue the five-star blue chip recruits that are immediately attracted to the lure of Florida State’s prestige and the legacy of Bowden, who is still battling it out with Penn State Head Coach Joe Paterno for the title of the winningest coach of all-time.

With his policy of red-shirting and playing mistake-free, workhorse football, Grobe’s team has taken advantage of the Seminoles’ recent struggles.

The athletes are still there for Bowden, but his grip on the team has slipped, as the team’s trouble academically and with the law have highlighted the trouble in Tallahassee.

Ten Seminoles are still suspended for the game against the Deacons because of an academic fraud incident from last season.

But, they return junior wide receiver Preston Parker, who led the team with 1513 all-purpose yards and 62 receptions last year. Also playing will be junior defensive tackle Budd Thacker.

The Deacons have won 20 games in the last two years under Grobe, and although they are still not favored in this game, at least a lot more people are talking about Wake Forest winning than they were two years ago and even last year.

ESPN top analyst Kirk Herbstreit picked the Deacs as his “upset of the week,” a complimentary but strange statement considering that a team ranked six spots higher in the polls winning would be an upset.

“We have to earn the respect,” fifth year senior linebacker Stanley Arnoux said. “They’ve been doing it so long, it is a given. I’m surprised they weren’t ranked pre-season.”

Underdog or not, there is no question that this game means a lot to the Deacons.

Despite the common thread of players saying that they have to take this one game at a time, there is a definite weight to the prospect of beating Florida State for the third year in a row and making a statement in a night game on ESPN2.

“We are underdogs, but not by as much as we were in ’06,” Arnoux said.

“We’re used to it now. We probably have a few more people who think we can win than we did back then, but that doesn’t matter. We just have to come out and execute.”

This game is make-or-break for the Deacs, who have two solid wins over Ole Miss and Baylor, who are both 2-1, but they are looking for a statement win over who Patterson called the fastest team we will play all year.

It could establish Wake Forest as a national name for the first time all year and a realistic favorite to make it back to the ACC Championship.

With a loss, the Deacons will likely fall out of the top 25 and will have to win to claw their way back into the rankings and the public consciousness.

The team may approach this game like any other, but it is no question that it is a must-win.

“This game is going to count later in the season, that’s why this is a must-win,” Patterson said.

“Whoever loses this game is going to be 0-1 in ACC play.”