Old Gold&Black “Covers the campus like the magnolias”
VOL 113 , NO. 3
WA K E F O R E S T ’ S S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R S I N C E 1 9 1 6
OCTOBER 1, 2026
Wake Forest jumps from No. 51 to No. 34 in the U.S. News ranking University climbs 17 spots as the list places greater weight on graduates’ economic outcomes CAROLINE KHALAF Senior Writer After dropping below the top 50 in the U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best National Universities list last year, Wake Forest rose back up to the No. 34 spot. Wake Forest tied with Boston University, University of California, Davis, University of California, Irvine, University of Florida, University of Illinois UrbanaChampaign, University of Texas Austin and University of Wisconsin Madison. In 2023, Wake Forest’s ranking dropped from No. 29 to No. 47 after U.S. News changed 17 of the 19 scoring metrics in its methodology. It was the first time the university had been ranked out of the top 30 since 1996. Last year, the university dropped from No. 46 to No. 51. Now, the university sees a drastic change in its ranking after U.S. News boosted the weight of economic graduate success this year. According to the Department of Education’s College Scorecard, Wake Forest students who receive federal aid earn a median salary of $92,943 four years following graduation. Additionally, the Office of Personal and Career Development reports that over the past five years, an average of 97% of Wake Forest graduates have been employed or enrolled in graduate school within six months of graduation. Wake Forest also recently ranked No. 17 in LinkedIn’s Top Colleges 2026, which evaluates colleges and universities that best prepare graduates for long-term career success. On last year’s inaugural list, the univer-
Courtesy of U.S. News
U.S. News & World Report drops their 2027 rankings for the best colleges and universities.
Piper Saunders /Old Gold & Black
After dropping below the top 50 in the U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best National Universities list last year, Wake Forest rose back up to the No. 34 spot. sity ranked No. 25. Additionally, the university ranked No. 10 for job placement and No. 6 among colleges for business majors. Wake Forest students fill roles in capital markets, technology and internet and legal services in New York City, Washington, D.C., Charlotte, N.C., according to LinkedIn. Wake Forest’s overall ranking isn’t the only number to focus on. U.S. News also recognized the university in the following categories: No. 12 in Best Undergraduate Teaching (same as last year) No. 27 in Top Private Schools (29th last year) No. 32 in Best Value Schools (34th last year) No. 78 in Economics (same as last year) However, some of the factors many consider to be most important to a Wake Forest education, such as small class sizes and faculty with a terminal degree, are not factors in the U.S. News scoring. In a statement, President Peter Rodriguez said that although it’s exciting to see the new ranking, it doesn’t reflect the full Wake Forest experience in his view. “The improvement in Wake Forest’s U.S. News and World Report ranking is great. Not because Wake Forest has substantially changed in the course of a year, but because the U.S. News rankings are consequential for how Wake Forest is perceived,” Rodriguez said. “Rankings offer one lens through which to understand a university, but they can’t capture the full breadth of the
Wake Forest experience — from academic excellence and a personalized student experience to the depth and range of our graduate and professional programs.” Methodology adjustments change many schools’ rankings To calculate rankings, U.S. News groups the schools into 10 categories based on the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education institutional classifications. Wake Forest has been in the “National Universities” category since 1994 due to its range of undergraduate majors, master's and doctoral programs and faculty research. Then each school is scored on up to 17 academic quality factors. In 2023, a new methodology was introduced, changing 17 out of 19 scoring metrics. The main change in the formula this year was that postgraduate earnings by major replaced graduate indebtedness. The greater list has also changed. Massachusetts Institute of Technology took the No. 1 spot from Princeton University, which held it for 15 years. Princeton is ranked No. 2 and Harvard University is No. 3. Private schools took the top 19 spots, and the Universities of California, Berkeley and Los Angeles tied as the country’s top public universities. Contact Caroline Khalaf at khalca23@wfu.edu
What's Inside NEWS Students navigate increasing rents Page Four
CITY & STATE A conversation with the Lt. Goveror Page Five
FEATURES Deacon OneCard goes virtual Page Nine
ENVIRONMENT Fat Bear Week is here Page Eleven
OPINION Sydney Sweeney ad raises eyebrows Page Thirteen
SPORTS Wake upsets Louisville away Page Fifteen
ARTS & CULTURE "Firebugs" debuts at Scales Page Eighteen
Old Gold & Black This column represents the views of the Managing Editor of the Old Gold & Black, Maria Silveira
Editorial: A proudly uncertain senior I have never been good at dealing with uncertainty. In fact, my Common Application personal statement centered on the comfort I found in an established routine: the childhood ritual of reading the Harry Potter series with my sister. While I no longer lean on Harry
The chaos that characterizes the OGB has beome one of the most comforting parts of my college routine.
Potter for comfort, the friendships and home I built at Wake Forest serve a similar purpose. Now, the thought of braving the real world without my friends turned family, sorority turned home and newsroom turned sanctuary is absolutely daunting. At the onset of the fall semester of my senior year, I now stand at a crossroads, as so many college seniors do, unsure of what my life will look like come May. Faced with a 5.6% unemployment rate for recent college graduates, higher than the 4.2% rate for workers overall, it’s hard to not feel defeated. The Old Gold & Black has
provided me with exceptional professional experience, life lessons and, most importantly, a safe place with strong friendships fueled by a love for telling stories. Starting as a staff writer my freshman year of college and becoming a news editor that spring, I was determined to make a lasting impression on the fantastic 2024 executive board. Looking back on my time as managing editor, I wouldn’t take back a single late night in Benson 518, stressful deadline or Monday night editorial board meeting. The chaos that characterizes the OGB has become one of the most comforting parts of my col-
lege routine. At the end of my tenure, I will look back with nothing but gratitude as I wonder what my new routine will encompass. This uncertainty is overwhelming, but I urge myself and our readers in transitory periods to lean into this discomfort. Although it is hard not to get caught up in the bleak labor market headlines, I am choosing to trust in my Wake Forest education and the life experiences it has granted me. While my freshman self would have feared the idea of not knowing what's next, Wake Forest University has taught me that the most personally enriching moments happen in uncertainty.
Old Gold&Black THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY SINCE 1916
MATTIE STILLERMAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF stilmk23@wfu.edu
MARIA SILVEIRA
MIRIAM FABRYCKY
PIPER SAUNDERS
ANNE SHANNON
MANAGING EDITOR
DEPUTY EDITOR
MULTIMEDIA DIRECTOR
BUSINESS MANAGER
silvmt23@wfu.edu
fabrml24@wfu.edu
>> NEWS Aric Loiacono, loiaat25@wfu.edu Hadassah Evans, evanha24@wfu.edu
>> ARTS & CULTURE Lydia Derris, derrlf23@wfu.edu Henry Yates, yatehs24@wfu.edu
>> CITY & STATE Eve Darke, darkev23@wfu.edu
>> PHOTO & VIDEO Christopher Wallace, wallca24@wfu.edu
>> FEATURES Bianca Reznic, riletc24@wfu.edu Rishi Vanka, vankrk24@wfu.edu >> ENVIRONMENT Ella Jennings, jennem25@wfu.edu >> OPINION Caroline Gottsman, gottca23@wfu.edu Hannah Ordan, ordahg25@wfu.edu >> SPORTS Griffin Lamphier, lampgm25@wfu.edu
saunpg23@wfu.edu
shanae24@wfu.edu
>> POLICIES Our job as a newspaper is to be a platform for all voices, not just the ones we agree with. However, we reserve the right to reject advertisements that are vulgar, inaccurate, obscene or violate Wake Forest’s policies on nondiscrimination, diversity, equity, and inclusion as they pertain to student organizations. We will also reject any advertisements that promote illegal activities according to the state of North Carolina.
>> SOCIAL MEDIA Paige Rakowski, rakope25@wfu.edu
Not only do we hold our newspaper and its contents to a high standard, but we also expect that those who choose to use us as an outlet for their ideas, opinions and skill hold themselves and their content to a high ethical standard.
>> COPY EDITORS Eliana Fountain, founeg25@wfu.edu Gianna Sanchez, sancgc25@wfu.edu
The Old Gold & Black is published Thursdays during the school year, except during examinations, summer and holiday periods, by Triangle Web Printing of Durham. The views expressed in all opinion pieces and advertisements contained within this publication do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Old Gold & Black. As part of our commitment to reporting news fairly and accurately, we will not remove any previously published content online unless it is retracted. If an error in either our online or print content is brought to our attention, we will revise the originally published article with an appended correction. In order to facilitate thoughtful and appropriate debate, profane, vulgar, or inflammatory comments on our website are not allowed and will be deleted. Comments which incite violence, target individuals in a form of cyber bullying, or which promote ideas which vilify marginalized communities will be deleted, and proper authorities may be notified and involved.
>> DESIGN CHIEF Thomas Tilton, tilttd25@wfu.edu
>> DESIGN TEAM Channing Benson, benscc25@wfu.edu Isabel Walker, walkic26@wfu.edu Elle Jashnani, jasher26@wfu.edu Riley Smith, smitri25@wfu.edu >> SUBMISSIONS The OGB welcomes submissions in the form of story tips, columns and letters to the editor. Letters to the editor should be fewer than 500 words, and columns should be around 500 words. Send yours via e-mail to stilmk23@wfu.edu the Monday before publication. We reserve the right to edit all letters for length and clarity. No anonymous letters will be printed.
>> ADVISER Ivan Weiss, weissij@wfu.edu
Want to write for us? Email wfuogb@gmail.com
>> ONLINE MEDIA Website: wfuogb.com Facebook: facebook.com/ogb1916 X (Twitter): @wfuogb Instagram: @wfuogb TikTok: @wfuogb Sports X (Twitter): @wfuogbsports
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Cynthia Erivo opens the 2026-2027 Face to Face Season Erivo discussed her career, embracing fear and the importance of staying curious NOLA ADEPOJU Staff Writer $V WKH ¿UVW VSHDNHU RI :DNH )RUHVW¶V )DFH WR )DFH 6SHDNHU )RUXP DZDUG ZLQQLQJ VLQJHU DQG DFWRU &\QWKLD (ULYR EHJDQ KHU HYHQLQJ LQ :LQVWRQ 6DOHP RQ 6HSW E\ DVNLQJ WKH DXGLHQFH WR LPDJLQH 6WDQGLQJ EHIRUH D SDFNHG KDOI RI /DZUHQFH -RHO 9HW HUDQV 0HPRULDO &ROLVHXP (ULYR VDQJ -RKQ /HQQRQ¶V ³,PDJLQH´ WR WKRXVDQGV RI FRPPXQLW\ PHPEHUV ¿OO LQJ WKH DUHQD ZLWK D VRQJ URRWHG LQ WKH SRVVLELOLW\ RI D ZRUOG VKDSHG E\ FROOHFWLYH KRSH 7KHQ VKH HPEDUNHG RQ D FRQYHUVDWLRQ WKDW UHSHDWHGO\ UHWXUQHG WR WKH LP SRUWDQFH RI LPDJLQLQJ VRPHWKLQJ IRU RQHVHOI DQG KDY LQJ WKH FRXUDJH WR SXUVXH LW 0RGHUDWHG E\ 'RPLQLFN $PHQGXP D 8QLYHUVLW\ RI 1RUWK &DUROLQD DW *UHHQVERUR DOXP ZKR ZRUNHG ZLWK (ULYR DV SURGXFWLRQ PXVLF VXSHUYLVRU RQ ³:LFNHG ´ WKH FRQYHUVDWLRQ JDYH WKH DXGLHQFH D FKDQFH WR KHDU GLUHFWO\ IURP DQ DUWLVW ZKRVH FDUHHU KDV PRYHG DFURVV ERWK VWDJH DQG VFUHHQ (ULYR LV SHUKDSV EHVW NQRZQ IRU SRUWUD\LQJ (OSKDED LQ WKH ³:LFNHG´ ¿OP IUDQFKLVH 6KH LV DOVR NQRZQ IRU KHU 7RQ\ $ZDUG ZLQQLQJ SHU IRUPDQFH DV &HOLH LQ ³7KH &RORU 3XUSOH ´ KHU 2VFDU QRPLQDWHG SRUWUD\DO RI +DUULHW 7XEPDQ LQ ³+DUULHW ´ DQG KHU (PP\ QRPLQDWHG SHUIRUPDQFH DV $UHWKD )UDQNOLQ LQ ³*HQLXV $UHWKD ´ $OWKRXJK (ULYR KDV PDQ\ DFFRODGHV KHU FRQYHUVD WLRQ ZLWK $PHQGXP ZDV PRUH IRFXVHG RQ WKH SHUVRQ ZKR KDG WR HDUQ WKHP 7KDW EHJDQ WKH VWRU\ RI KRZ VKH EHFDPH DQ DFWRU $PHQGXP TXRWHG (ULYR¶V PHPRLU ³6LP SOH 0RUH $ %RRN IRU $Q\RQH :KR +DV %HHQ 7ROG 7KH\¶UH 7RR 0XFK ´ SURPSWLQJ KHU WR UHÀHFW RQ KRZ VKH ³IHOW VSDUNO\ RQ WKH LQVLGH DV LI >VKH@ ZHUH FDUERQ DWHG´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³, WKRXJKW µ2ND\ ,¶OO VLJQ XS ,¶OO DSSO\ DQG WKHQ ZH¶OO VHH ZKDW KDSSHQV LQ WKH ¿UVW URXQG ´ (ULYR VDLG ³, SUREDEO\ ZRQ¶W JHW LQ DQG WKHQ WKLV ZLOO EH WKH HQG RI WKLV « , JRW LQ ´ 7KH DFFHSWDQFH FKDQJHG WKH GLUHFWLRQ RI KHU FDUHHU EXW (ULYR PDGH FOHDU WKDW JHWWLQJ WKURXJK WKH GRRU ZDV RQO\ WKH EHJLQQLQJ +HU UHODWLRQVKLS ZLWK 5$'$ KDV FRQWLQXHG ORQJ DIWHU KHU WLPH DV D VWXGHQW 6KH QRZ VHUYHV DV WKH LQVWLWXWLRQ¶V YLFH SUHVLGHQW DQG UHWXUQV WR WHDFK ZRUNVKRSV KRSLQJ WR JLYH \RXQJ SHUIRUPHUV WKH NLQG RI HQFRXUDJHPHQW WKDW KHOSHG KHU UHFRJQL]H KHU RZQ SRWHQWLDO
Courtesy of Wake Forest
Dominick Amendum Forest’s 2026-2027
(left) interviews Cynthia Erivo (right) to Face to Face Speaker Forum Series
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open Wake on Sept. 16.
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POLICE BEAT • • • • • • •
An unknown individual was found walking alongside Long Dr., visibly dirty after consuming alcohol underaged at a social event on Polo Road. This report was filed at 2:08 p.m. on Sept. 20. An individual consumed alcohol while underage at an off-campus fraternity party. This report was filed on Sept. 20 at 12:06am. An unknown individual split a dorm door after hitting body weight against it. This report was filed on Sept. 19. at 4:30 p.m. An individual made inappropriate comments to unknown persons during a football game, causing their removal. This report was filed at 3:55 p.m. on Sept. 19. Underaged individuals were seen consuming alcohol by an RA. This report was filed at 10:13 p.m. on Sept. 18. An unknown individual consumed alcohol while underaged and fell from a vehicle. The unknown individual was transported to a hospital by FSEMS. This report was filed on Sept. 18. At 12:29 a.m. Unknown individuals forcibly entered a person’s vehicle, taking no items. This report was filed on Sept. 14. At 1:31 p.m.
Old Gold & Black | News
Page 4| Thursday, October 1, 2026
Wake Forest Earns National Honors for FirstGen Career Program National recognition brings the OPCD’s career initiatives into the spotlight HADASSAH EVANS News Editor When Wake Forest University’s Office of Career and Personal Development received national recognition for its first-generation initiatives from the National Career Development Association, Assistant Director Cesar Grisales was quick to demystify the achievement. “We didn’t do anything that was rocket science,” said Grisales, who works across both the OPCD and First in the Forest, the university department dedicated to supporting first-generation and Pell Grant-eligible undergraduates. “Our approach empowered students to be leaders, improved communication surrounding available resources and created intentional avenues that this population of students could act on.” The OPCD works to eliminate financial obstacles that disproportionately affect firstgeneration students. By assisting undergraduates with professional attire, travel grants for work opportunities, supplementary stipends for unpaid roles and fee coverage for postgraduate entrance exams, the office targets the hidden cost of professional advancement. This strategy yielded a 92% engagement rate among Wake Forest’s first-generation undergraduates and gave rise to a new model, which now scales across 25 campuses nationwide. “Hearing from my students, and being [first-generation] myself, allows them to have
a voice in spaces that they deserve to be a part of,” Grisales said. When the initiative launched in 2022, administrators recognized a critical gap. While Wake Forest was admitting first-generation students, little was planned to guide their professional journeys and address barriers to postgraduate success. “[The OPCD] knew a lot less about this population of students than others,” Grisales explained. To begin their outreach, the coaching team hired six first-generation student ambassadors who hosted networking events, mentored peers and held evening office hours. “Once students saw that this was genuine and that they could relate to the staff, they realized that we were actually here to help,” Grisales said. For junior Keira Bradley, the connection began before classes started. The First in the Forest pre-orientation brought her and 20 additional first-generation students to campus a week early their freshman year. “First in the Forest pre-orientation helped me meet a lot of people,” Bradley said. “I met my closest friend, mentors and learned about campus resources and opportunities.” The OPCD also partnered with the Career Pathways Initiative. Launched by Wake Forest parent Ken Lang, CPI connects firstgeneration students with internship opportunities, alumni mentors, and employer pipelines. Participating students have a 95% post-graduation placement rate.
Ken Chen/ Old Gold & Black
ǯ ϐ ϐ Ǧ Ǥ “CPI is great, but it’s primarily for business,” Bradley said. “The work they are doing is very important… I just hope that nothing remains stagnant.” Administrators hope the NCDA recognition will attract philanthropic support and grant investments for expansion. “Grants are an interesting space… in order to compete for more, you need to start with some under your belt,” Grisales said. “The small growth we’ve seen in the last few years has taken concerted effort, but it’s also been our foot in the door when we consider fundraising and grant aspirations.” Grisales hopes increased funding will make choices easier for first-generation students.
“If I had a gajillion dollars in our program, it would simply exist to help students make easier and more informed decisions across their professional journeys, instead of worrying about ‘dang, I can’t afford the rent for this New York City consulting internship I really wanted.’” Showing that listening to the needs of firstgeneration students isn’t rocket science earned Wake Forest recognition, but the real work lies ahead. For the OPCD, the award is a step in the right direction — the real goal is making sure students have the support they need to take the next one.
Contact Hadassah Evans at evanha24@wfu.edu
Wake Forest renters face rising housing costs New policies and increasing rents mean students are navigating a tighter market JORDAN HARRIS Contributing Writer As Winston-Salem continues to grow, rising rental prices are creating new challenges for Wake Forest students looking to secure housing compatible with a college budget. According to ApartmentList.com, the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Winston-Salem is currently $1,027, a 57% increase from August 2020 when a comparable arrangement cost $770. Across North Carolina, average rental prices decreased by 1.5% in the past year, but prices in Winston-Salem increased by 0.83%. This increase has added pressure to students who must balance housing costs with other expenses, all while prioritizing leases that have a close proximity to campus. Enrollment increases A major catalyst behind this squeeze is the university’s own enrollment growth. Housing availability on Wake Forest’s campus affects where students are able to live. This fall, the university welcomed 1,590 first-year students, the largest incoming class in its history. As a result, many first-year students moved into residence halls such as Poteat and Kitchin, which were previously reserved for sophomores. Sophomore students then occupied a greater percentage of traditionally junior and senior dorms, thus increasing the number of undergraduate students who needed to secure off-campus housing. Up to 75 current seniors who expressed
a desire to live on campus this year were pushed off campus when Residence Life and Housing released housing lottery results in February. “I think a big part of it stems from Wake Forest over-admitting students and not being prepared for the consequences,” senior Neil Sawheny said. He lives off-campus by choice. While the long-term effects of Wake Forest’s new housing model remain to be seen, it’s clear that the current situation has pushed more upperclassmen than usual into a competitive off-campus market. Lengthy process The timing of this competition in the rental market is complicated by the intricacies of the university’s policy. Wake Forest requires most undergraduates to live on campus for six full semesters, meaning most students are not guaranteed off-campus approval until partway through their college careers. Yet the off-campus rental market moves on its own schedule, with desirable leases often signed a full year in advance — well before students know whether they’ve been approved to live off campus at all. To beat that rush, some students feel forced to secure rental agreements as early as possible. “My friends and I have been on [our] lease since October 2024, before Wake Forest and Winston-Salem started having a housing problem,” Sawhney explained. “It helped that I had a connection to the house I’m currently in, so I was able to take advantage
of that opportunity early.” Many students are locking in rental agreements based on market conditions that may look very different by the time they actually receive their keys. At the same time, students have very little ability to react or switch agreements if prices shift because leases are agreed upon so far in advance. Potential solutions To alleviate some of the burden on student renters, Wake Forest has developed affiliate housing partnerships, such as Creekside at The Grounds. Located across University Parkway near LJVM Coliseum, the new Creekside project will create 229 new apartments available for students beginning in fall 2027. Importantly, most students living at
Piper Saunders/Old Gold & Black
ǯ
the Grounds will be able to apply their residence toward the university’s six-semester housing requirement, with exceptions for certain financial aid recipients. Further, the conclusion of renovations at Babcock Residence Hall will open additional oncampus housing for current students, including the approximately 927 study abroad students who will return to WinstonSalem next semester. Until solutions arise, Wake Forest students will keep doing what they’ve always done: signing leases early, crossing their fingers and hoping the market holds steady long enough to move in.
Contact Jordan Harris at harrjw26@wfu.edu
CITY & STATE OLD GOLD & BLACK
PAGE 5 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
Eve Darke, darkev23@wfu.edu
A conversation with Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt
1RUWK &DUROLQD¶V VHFRQG KLJKHVW HOHFWHG RI¿FLDO RIIHUV SHUVSHFWLYH RQ HGXFDWLRQ IXQGLQJ DQG DGYLFH WR \RXQJ SHRSOH MIRIAM FABRYCKY &LW\ 6WDWH HGLWRU 'HPRFUDW 5DFKHO +XQW WRRN RIÀFH DV 1RUWK &DUROLQD·V WK OLHXWHQDQW JRYHUQRU LQ -DQXDU\ $V WKH VWDWH·V VHFRQG KLJKHVW HOHFWHG RIÀFLDO KHU UHVSRQVLELOLWLHV LQFOXGH SUHVLGLQJ RYHU WKH 1RUWK &DUROLQD 6HQDWH DQG VHUYLQJ RQ ERWK WKH 1RUWK &DUR OLQD %RDUG RI (GXFDWLRQ DQG WKH 1RUWK &DU ROLQD %RDUG RI &RPPXQLW\ &ROOHJHV +XQW·V ´)XWXUH 5HDG\ 1RUWK &DUROLQDµ DJHQGD IRFXVHV RQ H[SDQGLQJ IXQGLQJ IRU FKLOG FDUH FRPPXQLW\ FROOHJHV DQG FDUHHU DQG WHFKQL FDO HGXFDWLRQ +XQW VDW IRU D FRQYHUVDWLRQ ZLWK 2OG *ROG %ODFN 'HSXW\ (GLWRU 0LULDP )DE U\FN\ RQ 6HSW 7KLV LQWHUYLHZ KDV EHHQ HGLWHG IRU FODULW\ DQG EUHYLW\. Miriam Fabrycky: For your “FutureReady Community College Tour,” you’ve been visiting the state’s 58 community colleges. What insights have you gained so far from these visits? Rachel Hunt: These community colleges are doing incredible things at a very sophisticated level. The biotech programs that I’ve seen at places like Alamance Community College are really on the level with our university systems. And they’re often being funded, and the equipment is given by the actual industries that are going to be hiring the students. I’m seeing people’s lives being changed. I met, down in Robeson County, two girls who each had two waitressing jobs. They were in an 18-wheel truck program, and they were going to come out and make six ÀJXUHV 6R WKH\ ZHUH WKULOOHG EHFDXVH WKH\ could quit both their waitressing jobs and provide for their families. We have places like the Tri-County Community College where land has been donated and the kids learning construction skills DUH DFWXDOO\ EXLOGLQJ DIIRUGDEOH KRXVLQJ 6R there are a huge variety of things going on in the state, and they’re all great, and they are all making our workforce ready. Fabrycky: Education is an important topic for your constituents across the state and especially in Winston-Salem, where the district has struggled with budget crises and leadership turnover over the past few years. What tangible steps are you taking to improve schools in North Carolina? Hunt: We’ve got to support our public schools, and that is not being done right now by the legislature. The funding is not there. We used to be a state [where] people moved to teach. We were at the national average in teacher pay. As far as early education goes, my father >*RYHUQRU -LP +XQW@ VWDUWHG 6PDUW 6WDUW and I’m the co-chair of the governor’s Task Force on Child Care and Early Education, along with a Republican state senator, Jim Burgin [District 12]. We were able to get a couple things into the budget to support early education, like KDYLQJ D VXEVLG\ ÁRRU IRU WKH UDWHV ZKLFK will really help in rural North Carolina. But we’ve got so much more to do. If we don’t get our funding back into our K-12 system, we are not going to remain one of the top
states for business, because people and companies are not going to move here. Fabrycky: It’s interesting to hear you mention working with a Republican colleague. I’m curious to hear about your approach to bipartisan relations as a Democrat presiding over a Republicanmajority Senate. +XQW 6RPH RI WKH EHVW WKLQJV ZH·YH HYHU done have come through a bipartisan working relationship. When we started [free public] kindergarten, that was my dad as lieutenant governor and Jim Holzhauser was the governor, a Republican. And when we expanded Medicaid, Governor Roy Cooper and the Democrats spent 12 years trying to get the Republicans to ZRUN ZLWK XV DQG LW ÀQDOO\ ZRUNHG $QG H[panding Medicaid saved people’s lives. These are the kinds of things that are not partisan. They affect everyone. It’s the same with public schools, and with our university systems. We have got to fund them the way they should be funded, and we need to get politics out of all of this. Fabrycky: With the midterms coming up, there’s a lot of focus on federal races. What do you have to say to voters asking themselves, “Why are North Carolina politics important to me?” Hunt: I would say vote with your pocketbook. Look at your life. Is your life better than it was two years ago? Four years ago? If not, think about why that is. And the economy is the most important thing in people’s lives, and it’s not good right now. People are VXIIHULQJ 3HRSOH DUH KXUWLQJ 6R ZH QHHG WR make some changes. Fabrycky: And what would you say VSHFLÀFDOO\ RQ 1RUWK &DUROLQD UDFHV" 9RWing not just in federal elections, but also down the ballot – why is that important? Hunt: Well, I’d say it’s the same thing. Funding has been cut from public education. We were able to expand Medicaid, but now these federal bills that have come through, they’re going to hurt people again with paying for healthcare. We have lots of things going on with our environment that are concerning, and they’re addressed by the state legislature and the federal government. 6R SHRSOH QHHG WR XQGHUVWDQG WKDW WKH SHUson you’re voting for, especially if they’re in the legislature, has a huge impact on their life. Fabrycky: What’s your message of civic engagement to young people? Hunt: I tell them, “Please get involved at whatever level you are able to do,” whether that’s volunteering, whether that’s working for a campaign or whether that’s just voting, because we need young people to come out. This is your future. You’re going to be around a lot longer than I am, and what’s happening now, the decisions that are being made now, are going to impact you for years and years to come. You should have some say in that. And the most important way to do that is by voting and making sure that other people do. If we could just get those numbers up, we could make such a difference. Fabrycky: And what advice would you give to young people who are interested in entering politics themselves?
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Hunt: I would say get out and volunteer with a campaign or the party, whichever party you’re in. Learn about the issues. You could shadow somebody who’s running for RIÀFH 7KHUH·V QRWKLQJ OLNH NQRFNLQJ RQ doors to learn about whether you want to be a candidate. Fabrycky: As the second female lieutenant governor of North Carolina, do you have any particular advice for young women entering politics? Hunt: I would say it’s harder for women. 7KH WLPLQJ LV GLIÀFXOW , ZDLWHG XQWLO P\ NLGV ZHUH JURZQ 6RPH SHRSOH GR LW ZKHQ they’re younger. If you’re younger, then you have a longer time to serve. But it’s hard work. I spent about nine hours a day when , ZDV ÀUVW UXQQLQJ 6R GRQ·W XQGHUHVWLPDWH how hard it is, but think of what you can do if you get elected. It’s worth it, but you’ve got to have a support system. You’ve got to do it at the right time for you and your family. And you’ve got to believe in yourself, because you’re going to get criticized and people are going to talk about how you look and all the other things, especially as a woman. Fabrycky: Tell me more about your experience campaigning. +XQW 0\ ÀUVW FDPSDLJQ ZDV LQ , ran against a four-term incumbent RepubliFDQ LQ WKH 6WDWH +RXVH >%LOO %UDZOH\@ DQG , was in [a district that Donald Trump won] in E\ QLQH SHUFHQWDJH SRLQWV 6R LW ZDV D very tough race. I spent six hours a day on the phone trying to raise money, and then I went canvassing by myself for two to three hours every day. 7KDW ZDV D \HDU FRPPLWPHQW 6R LW wasn’t a small amount of time or a small amount of energy. We ended up winning by RQO\ YRWHV DQG WKH\ ZHUH SURYLVLRQDO DQG DEVHQWHH 6R D ORW RI VWXGHQWV KHOSHG PH JHW elected. Even if it looks impossible in certain years, if there’s going to be a wave election, DV WKHUH ZDV LQ \RX FDQ GR LW Don’t forget when you’re canvassing that you can go to places that have Trump signs. And the main thing is, when you talk to people, ask them about their lives. Don’t talk about your spiel until you listen to them. People are lonely in these houses – especially older people. And you can really make a difference. You can change people’s minds about what a Democrat looks like or what a
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ZRPDQ UXQQLQJ IRU RIÀFH ORRNV OLNH And that is combined with raising the money, which is unfortunately a huge barrier for folks these days because of the amount of money involved in politics. Fabrycky: You’ve spoken often about carrying on the legacy of your father, Governor Jim Hunt. I’m curious to hear how you balance maintaining that legacy while also making room for new perspectives within North Carolina politics. Hunt: My dad was, I think, the best governor we’ve ever had. He was also a great GDG %XW KH VKRZHG PH KRZ GLIÀFXOW LW LV WR do a good job as a public servant — how much time it takes. That is why I waited until my kids were out of the house to run for RIÀFH EHFDXVH , FRXOG QRW GR D JRRG MRE DV D mom and as a public servant. But he was also passionate about education and children, and I am as well. I learned that from him and my mom, who was a teacher, and from my grandmother, who was a librarian and a teacher. Education is what makes a difference in people’s lives. And that’s how we raise people up, and that’s how we raise our economy up. There are just basic things that people need to have good lives. They need a goodpaying job. They need healthcare. They need to make sure their areas are safe and their kids are safe. And we got to make sure our environment is preserved. We’re in this crazy summer that’s never-ending because of climate change. ,W·V GLIÀFXOW LQ WKLV HQYLURQPHQW LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV ULJKW QRZ EXW ZH JRW WR GR what we can in the state of North Carolina to make sure people’s lives are as good as they can be. good-paying job. They need healthcare. They need to make sure their areas are safe and their kids are safe. And we got to make sure our environment is preserved. We’re in this crazy summer that’s never-ending because of climate change. ,W·V GLIÀFXOW LQ WKLV HQYLURQPHQW LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV ULJKW QRZ EXW ZH JRW WR GR what we can in the state of North Carolina to make sure people’s lives are as good as they can be.
Contact Miriam Fabrycky at fabrml24@wfu.edu
Page 6| Thursday, October 1, 2026
Old Gold & Black | City & State
Trump campaigns for Whatley in North Carolina President highlights crime and hurricane recovery in Sept. 16 Gastonia visit ANOUSHKA NAMBIAR Contributing Writer President Donald Trump appeared in Gastonia, N.C. on Sept. 16 to campaign for U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley (R-N.C.). During the rally, Trump criticized Democratic candidate Roy Cooper’s approach to crime and discussed the state’s ongoing recovery from 2024’s Hurricane Helene. Trump urged North Carolina voters to support Whatley, a former chair of the Republican National Committee.
“We’re going to elect one of the greatest men that I’ve ever worked with in government, Michael Whatley, to go and become your United States senator,” he said. Trump frequently criticized Cooper’s public safety record, describing North Carolina as a “criminally dangerous” state under the former governor’s leadership. “Nobody used to think of North Carolina as a dangerous state, criminally dangerous… And now it’s one of the most violent and one of the worst in the whole
Courtesy of Reuters
President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in support of Republican Senate candidate Michael Whatley in Gastonia, N. C., on Sept. 16, 2026
nation,” Trump said in a remark that drew swift backlash from North Carolina Democrats, including Governor Josh Stein. Trump focused particularly on the 2025 killing of Ukrainian Iryna Zarutska on public transportation in Charlotte, N.C. Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr., the man convicted in Zarutska’s killing, had been arrested at least 14 times over his lifetime. Although Cooper was no longer governor at the time of Zarutska’s killing, Republican politicians have pointed to Brown’s freedom despite his long criminal record as evidence of North Carolina Democrats’ “soft” approach to crime. Since the rally, some news organizations and Democratic politicians have challenged several of Trump’s claims about crime in North Carolina. Spectrum News, for example, noted inconsistencies between Trump’s statements about crime and state and federal data. During the rally, Trump also highlighted the federal response to Hurricane Helene, which devastated much of Western North Carolina shortly before the 2024 election. He creditedWhatley for pushing for assistance to the state and said that PRUH WKDQ ELOOLRQ LQ )HGHUDO (PHUgency Management Agency funding had already been provided. Trump then caught more attention for suggesting that additional disaster aid could depend on the outcome of the Senate race. “And you know, you’re waiting for some additional money to take care of
some of the back, and I’m going to get that to you, Michael,” Trump said to the FURZGV DFFRUGLQJ WR :)$( ´1RZ LI Michael loses, I’m not sending it, OK?” He immediately followed the remark by saying he was “only kidding.” Tess Wise, a politics professor at Wake )RUHVW 8QLYHUVLW\ VDLG 7UXPS·V DSSHDUance illustrates the importance Republicans are placing on the North Carolina Senate race. “The North Carolina Senate race has drawn enormous investment from both parties,” Wise said. “Trump’s third visit to North Carolina in less than a year is a sign of how much this seat matters to Republicans.” Wise added that she was “struck” by the amount of campaign materials she has seen, particularly advertisements that attack Cooper rather than promote Whatley. ´7KDW ÀWV D SDWWHUQ SROLWLFDO VFLHQWLVWV have studied for a long time: negative advertising can be an effective way to depress enthusiasm for an opponent, even if its net effects on turnout are debated,” she said. In recent polls, Cooper leads Whatley E\ VHYHUDO SRLQWV +RZHYHU ZLWK (OHFtion Day approaching, Trump’s appearance placed the president directly in the middle of North Carolina’s Senate race and gave Whatley an opportunity to campaign alongside the Republican 3DUW\·V PRVW SURPLQHQW ÀJXUH
Contact Anoushka Nambiar at nambap26wfu.edu
Journalism professors react to Trump’s media ban Media professionals criticize attempt to block CNN, MS Now and Politico from White House AVA DALTON Contributing Writer On Sept. 18, President Trump announced on Truth Social that he was banning news outlets CNN, MS Now and Politico from White House Press access effective immediately. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly has since ruled against the restriction, ordering Trump to reinstate the organizations’ press credentials for GD\V ZKLOH WKH QHZV RXWOHWV ÀOH D )LUVW Amendment lawsuit. Trump and his administration have argued that the ban was not a violation of the )LUVW $PHQGPHQW ZLWK WKH :KLWH +RXVH describing access to its grounds as a “privilege – not a right.” But many media professionals see Trump’s actions as an infringement on the freedom of the press. ,Q DQ HPDLOHG VWDWHPHQW :DNH )RUHVW Journalism Program Director Ivan Weiss said the ban crossed a line by “punishing news organizations because of their reporting.” “Journalists have always faced criticism from people in power,” Weiss said. “The bigger concern is when that pressure interferes with their ability to work independently… If journalists fear retaliation, lawsuits or losing access, that can affect what they’re willing or able to report.” 7KLV LVQ·W WKH ÀUVW WLPH FULWLFV KDYH DFcused Trump of intimidating the press. In -DQXDU\ )%, DJHQWV VHDUFKHG WKH KRPH RI a Washington Post reporter who covers
Trump’s changes to the federal government and seized her two laptops, phone and watch. Reporters Without Borders, an internaWLRQDO QRQSURÀW SURPRWLQJ WKH IUHHGRP RI information, describes the United States as H[SHULHQFLQJ D ´VLJQLÀFDQW DQG SURORQJHG decline in press freedom” and says that Trump is conducting a “war on the press.” ,Q DQ HPDLOHG VWDWHPHQW :DNH )RUest journalism Professor Justin Catanoso wrote that Trump has mishandled his administration’s relationship with the press. “Trump has long misunderstood the irreplaceable role of free and independent journalism in American society,” Catanoso said. “His constant description of real, SURIHVVLRQDO MRXUQDOLVWV IXOÀOOLQJ WKHLU )LUVW $PHQGPHQW REOLJDWLRQV DV ¶HQHPLHV of the people’ is a sure sign that he deeply fears such journalists’ ability to illustrate his administration’s global failures with YHULÀHG IDFWV µ He added that he sees the ban on CNN, 06 1RZ DQG 3ROLWLFR DV D VLJQLÀFDQW GHparture from precedent. “Once again, a federal judge – this week, one he appointed – has had to remind Trump that the press rights enshrined in the Constitution and upheld through generations of case law are more important to our democracy than the petulant whims of any temporary occupant of the White House, especially this one,” Catanoso said. But some critics worry that measures
Courtesy of Reuters
CNN, MS Now and Politico sue the Trump administration, citing a First Amendment violation following a ban from White House. like a press ban could open the door to more blatant censorship down the line, degrading the quality of American news over time. Another concern is the public’s view of the press. Gallup reported in October 2025 that just 28% of Americans have a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in mass media—a record low. Weiss said that the future of the press relies both on a robust press and on citizens who thoughtfully engage with the news. “We’re surrounded by enormous amounts of information – much of it lacking context, mixed with opinion and spin, or unclear about who created it and why,” KH VDLG ´:KHQ LW·V GLIÀFXOW WR NQRZ ZKDW information to trust, having independent journalists who can do their jobs becomes
even more important.” Other news organizations have jumped to defend CNN, MS Now and Politico by signing an amicus brief that supports the outlets’ suit against Trump. Signees inFOXGH )R[ 1HZV 9R[ 0HGLD 7KH :DVKington Post, The Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times – a collection Politico described as spanning the “ideological gamut.” )RU QRZ WKH MRXUQDOLVWV KDYH WKHLU DFcess restored, and Kelly appears reasonDEO\ FRQÀGHQW WKDW WKH SODLQWLIIV KDYH enough evidence to successfully bring their case. “This is a high bar, but Plaintiffs have met it,” Kelly said.
Contact Ava Dalton at daltae26@wfu.edu
City & State | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, October, 1, 2026 | Page 7
A student’s guide to voting in North Carolina for the 2026 midterm elections What to know when preparing to cast your ballot MIRIAM FABRYCKY Deputy Editor With just over a month until Election Day, political campaigns are in full swing across North Carolina and beyond, but in the press of class, extracurricular activities and social gatherings, it’s easy for voting to slip to the bottom of a busy student’s to-do list. However, according to Deb Marke, associate director DW :DNH )RUHVW¶V 2I¿FH RI &LYLF DQG &RPPXQLW\ (QJDJHment, a little planning can go a long way when preparing to exercise one’s civic rights — and even a single ballot can shape the future of one’s city, state and country. “I personally think that the midterms are some of the more important elections because these are the folks who are making decisions on your day-to-day life,” Marke said. “If you care about education, if you care about environmental justice, if you care about voting rights — whatever it is that you are passionate about or thinking about, it’s at stake in this election cycle.” Marke said she has seen more interest in the 2026 midterm elections than for any other midterm during her time at Wake Forest. She and the student directors of Deacs Decide, a nonpartisan voting advocacy group at :DNH )RUHVW DUH HDJHU WR NHHS WKDW HQHUJ\ ÀRZLQJ “Deacs Decide’s stance is that we want you to vote wherever, whenever, as long as you do it,” Marke explained. Wherever and whenever students intend to vote, it’s vital to stay on top of deadlines and requirements. Here’s what student voters should know about participating in the 2026 midterms. I’m from out of state. Should I vote at home or in North Carolina? All eligible voters studying at Wake Forest may vote in North Carolina. Some students from areas of the country that lean more solidly Democratic or Republican choose to vote in North Carolina because they feel that their vote will have more sway in a competitive state. Others prefer to vote in the jurisdiction to which they feel most connected. “There are people who have races in their hometown [that] they are feeling super excited and passionate about,” Marke said. “But [other] folks are like, North Carolina is where I’m calling home for the next four years. Even on the local front, [there’s] a lot happening in Winston-Salem with the school board [and] our county commissioners.”
[Residence Hall Name] [Room #] Winston-Salem, N.C. 27109
their ballots. (DUO\ YRWLQJ LV WKH PRVW ÀH[LEOH RI WKH WKUHH 8QOLNH RQ Election Day, when voters must report to their assigned polling location, voters can vote anywhere in Forsyth And their mailing address as follows, omitting the County during the early voting period. The closest early “1834 Wake Forest Rd” street address typically included voting location is Polo Park Community Center. in Wake Forest mailing addresses: Voters can also register to vote or update their registration at the polls during the early voting period, which Campus Box [x] - WFU isn’t the case on Election Day. Winston-Salem, N.C. 27109 Early voting runs from Oct. 15 to Oct. 31. The full schedule and list of locations are available on Forsyth Since Wake Forest is split between two precincts, stu- County’s website. dents should update their registration after moving beIn-person voting will also take place on Election Day tween South and North Campus. Those intending to vote itself – Tuesday, Nov. 3. The polls will be open from 6:30 in person or by mail must complete their registration by a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and any registered voter who is in line 5 p.m. on Oct. 9. by 7:30 p.m. will be allowed to vote. Students who elect to vote in another state should conOn election day, students who live in Angelou, Bost¿UP WKH UHJLVWUDWLRQ DQG YRWLQJ SURFHVVHV ZLWK WKHLU ORFDO ZLFN &ROOLQV 'DYLV (¿UG +XIIPDQ -RKQVRQ .LWFKLQ board of elections. Luter, Poteat, South and Taylor Halls will cast their votes Students may also vote if they are studying abroad. Marke advised students in this situation to reach out to at Precinct 903’s polls in Harvest Bible/Salem Chapel. the U.S. diplomatic mission in their host country for as- Students who live in Dogwood, Magnolia, Martin or Polo Halls, or at Deacon Place, North Campus Apartsistance in requesting their ballots. ments, the Polo Road Houses or Student Apartments will cast their votes at Precinct 905’s polls at Bethabara What should I bring with me when I vote? Moravian Church. Deacs Decide will offer shuttles to the polls on Nov. 3. 9RWHUV VKRXOG EULQJ D IRUP RI LGHQWL¿FDWLRQ DQG SURRI Those who choose mail-in voting must request their of residency to the polls. North Carolina accepts Deacon OneCards as a valid ballots by Oct. 20 and return them by 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. IRUP RI LGHQWL¿FDWLRQ LQ WKLV HOHFWLRQ Although President Trump has attacked mail-in balFor on-campus students, the proof of residency reTXLUHPHQW PD\ EH IXO¿OOHG E\ SULQWLQJ D SURRI RI UHVL- ORWV LQ UHFHQW PRQWKV HOHFWLRQ RI¿FLDOV DVVXUH YRWHUV WKDW dency document from the Residence Life and Housing the method is secure and reliable. However, there is a long list of requirements to keep portal. Students who live off-campus should bring a utilLW\ ELOO EDQN VWDWHPHQW RU RWKHU RI¿FLDO GRFXPHQW DG- in mind when casting one’s absentee ballot. Full instrucdressed to their residence. tions are available at the N.C. State Board of Elections website. What are my options for voting in North Carolina? Contact Miriam Fabrycky at North Carolina residents have three options for casting fabrml24@wfu.edu
Who’s on my ballot in North Carolina? Students who decide to vote in North Carolina may view a sample ballot using this voter search tool from the North Carolina State Board of Elections. Those in the precincts on and around campus will see a variety of federal, state and local races ranging from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to Forsyth County positions. There are also three referenda on November’s ballot, polling voters on three proposed constitutional amendments. Websites like Vote411 offer information guides about the candidates listed. 0DUNH XUJHG VWXGHQWV WR UHVHDUFK WKHLU HOHFWHG RI¿cials and their stances on the issues that are important to them. “Regardless of whether you cast a ballot or not, this person represents you, and they represent your interests,” she said. How do I register to vote in North Carolina? North Carolina residents may check their registration status using the voter search tool. They may apply to register or update their registration in person at a North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles location, by mail by completing this form and submitting it to the N.C. State Board of Elections or online through the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s website. Students who live on-campus should format their residential address as follows:
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FEATURES PAGE 8 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Rishi Vanka, vankrk24@wfu.edu Bianca Reznic, reznba24@wfu.edu
A conversation with Gloria K. Muday, Ph.D Biology professor talks about her teaching career and the importance of her research RISHI VANKA Features Editor
Gloria K. Muday, Ph.D is a professor of biology and the director of the Center for Molecular Signaling as well as the Muday Lab at Wake Downtown. She joined the biology department in 1991. In addition to her teaching and research, Muday is the director of the biochemistry and molecular biology major. Muday partners with Campus Garden to grow purple tomatoes as part of her research on thermotolerant plants. Muday sat for an interview with Features Editor Rishi Vanka on Sept. 24, 2026. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity. Rishi Vanka: What made you interested in biology? Gloria Muday: I had an amazing AP Biology teacher. I can remember some of the lessons like they were yesterday, and it was a very long time ago. I had him for both Intro Biology and AP Biology and just really loved it. I became more interested in biochemistry and that was what my degrees were all in. Vanka: How would you describe your research? What do you do in the lab? Muday: [My team and I are] interested in understanding the molecules that control growth and development. We have a range of different projects in the lab: development and technology, how these structures form, [identifying] what -genes tell a plant to make a root and what -hormones tell the root to develop in different ways. We also look at reproduction and we study that in tomatoes.
Daniela Baker/Old Gold & Black
Gloria K. Muday, Ph.D is the director of the Muday Lab at Wake Downtown.
We got interested in that because we had a tomato plant with a mutation. And we would start cutting the fruits open in the summer and there were no seeds, which might be good if you’re making tomato sauce but bad if you’re trying to get seeds to do an experiment. So that was about 10 years ago and that has turned into a major focus of the lab: trying to understand why these molecules that a plant no longer makes were so important for successful reproduction. Vanka: Seeing that mutation, what did you take away from that? How did that impact your research? Muday: The mutation was in a gene that made an enzyme that produced purple pigments called anthocyanins. We’re supposed to eat purple fruits and vegetables because these anthocyanins are antioxidants. What [antioxidants] do is neutralize reactive oxygen species, which react with our DNA and cause damage. That’s even more of a problem for a plant that lives outdoors because they’re in constant sunlight. That sunlight leads to higher levels of reactive oxygen species. When the temperature’s high, you get more of those reactive oxygen species. These antioxidants, which are purple, are the opposite of that muWDQW , KDYH SXUSOH WRPDWRHV LQ P\ RI¿FH GRZQVWDLUV because everybody always asks about those. 6R ZKDW ZH¶YH EHHQ GRLQJ LV ZH ¿[HG WKH PXWDWLRQ that we have by putting the missing gene back in, and it actually makes more of these molecules than the wild type. And those plants are thermotolerant, so in the summer they produce more fruits and more seeds and are more successful than wild types. The idea is that this information can be used to breed and engineer plants that are more able to reproduce when it’s hot. Vanka: What are the broader implications of your research? Muday: We’ve been getting any seeds from any plant from the literature that are said to be more therPRWROHUDQW DQG WU\LQJ WR ¿JXUH RXW LI LQ IDFW WKH\ are [thermotolerant]. So the idea is that we could breed those plants that are thermotolerant with other tomatoes to make them more thermotolerant. Or genetically engineer plants by taking the genes that are needed to make more of those molecules that are protective so that they are more tolerant to high temperatures and continue to produce seeds. What we grow in Campus Garden are only things that are grown out in nature. You have to have a lot RI UHJXODWLRQV LI \RX KDYH D JHQHWLFDOO\ PRGL¿HG FURS :H GR KDYH VRPH *02 *HQHWLFDOO\ 0RGL¿HG Organism) crops that a research lab in the UK engineered, and they’re approved for sale in the U.S. So the purple tomatoes that we grow are commercially available. Most anything we engineer and put a gene in, we can’t grow outside because there are regulations, so it’s grown in a locked greenhouse. But we grow a lot of those purple tomatoes in Campus Garden because they’re cool. They’re freaky. People love them. “What? That tomato was purple.” I mean, they are like, seriously purple. Part of what we’re doing in Campus Garden is trying to get a dialogue going about how plants make these pigments, how they’re good for us and maybe even better for the plant. Vanka: How do you balance teaching and your
research? Muday: Every course I can, I bring a purple tomato early in the semester. The thing about Wake Forest is we are always teaching. That’s an important part of our responsibilities. I love connecting with students and I think biochemistry is amazing and cool. That’s what I’m teaching this semester and it’s fun to have people go, “Biochemistry. Oh, that was cool. That explains why when I don’t eat my blood sugar drops, and I feel bad.” Vanka: What’s it like switching between being on campus and going to your lab? Muday: Right here, we’re sort of separate so it’s nice to have two differ- ent worlds to live in. We designed Wake Downtown 10 years ago, and all the scientists designed it for the way science is done now. We have shared lab spaces where there are four faculty in one lab, three faculty in another and two in DQRWKHU RQH 7KH\¶UH GHVLJQHG WR EH HI¿FLHQW IRU WKH way we do science now, rather than the way we did science in the 1950s. Winston Hall is great as well, but it’s fun to be in the space that builds collaboration. We have lots of shared eating areas and those kinds of things. Vanka: Can you tell me more about the current researchers in your lab? Muday: There are graduate students and sometimes there are postdoctoral researchers. I have four graduate students working on their PhDs, and I have about ¿YH RU VL[ XQGHUJUDGV $OPRVW DOO RI WKHP DUH DEURDG because it’s the fall of their junior years. So there are XVXDOO\ ¿YH RU VL[ XQGHUJUDGV ZKR ZRUN LQ WKH ODE but there are just two this semester. We all work together to come up with the [research] questions, but then there’s a whole lot of hands-on work. We do a lot of imaging, so we love to take pictures of the developmental anatomy within a tomato ÀRZHU :H KDYH JUHHQKRXVH VSDFH ZKHUH ZH JURZ plants for pollen, for seeds, for fruits. We grow things in Campus Garden to get some fruits for research but also because they’re cool. Vanka: Is there anything else you want readers to know? Muday: Campus Garden is a great place. I want more students to know about that. It is a really great cohort of people who work [there]. You get to go spend time outdoors and you do something productive but in a fun and friendly context. As a plant biologist, plants are essential — we would be dead without them to eat. Many students are thinking more about treating patients and humans and medicine but it is equally important that we can feed the world as well as cure the world of disease. Students come to the lab and more of them want to go to med school when they leave than work on plants for the long term. You learn all the same methods whether you’re working on cell cultures or if you are just working on a tomato fruit instead. People who work in the lab sometimes come in with a love of plants already and sometimes not, but they all leave with an appreciation for plants, both their importance in our world and how cool they are as organisms. Contact Rishi Vanka at vankrk24@wfu.edu
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7KXUVGD\ 2FWREHU | Page 9
Wake Forest tests mobile student ID app University considers digitizing Deacon OneCards MAGGIE MCHALE Contributing Writer At Wake Forest, it is not a rare occurrence for students to pass an abandoned Deacon OneCard as they ZDON WR FODVV WR IHHO RQH ÀRDWLQJ DURXQG LQ WKH PXUN\ ZDWHU RI D EDFN\DUG SRRO RU WR ZDNH XS WR D JODULQJ LPDJH RI WKHLU IDFH DQG VWXGHQW ,' QXPEHU IRU DOO WR VHH RQ WKH VRFLDO PHGLD SODWIRUP )L]] 1RZ WKH XQLYHUVLW\ LV LQ WKH LQLWLDO VWDJHV RI ODXQFKLQJ DQ DSS WKDW DOORZV VWXGHQWV WR XVH PRELOH 'HDFRQ 2QH&DUGV UDWKHU WKDQ SK\VLFDO ,'V )RU ERWK VWXGHQWV WHVWLQJ WKH QHZ V\VWHP DQG WKRVH VWLOO XVLQJ SK\VLFDO ,'V GHPDQG IRU PRELOH ,'V LV KLJK 6RSKRPRUH %U\DQ (VSLQR]D LV RQH RI WKH DSS¶V ¿UVW WHVWHUV +H VDLG KH WHQGV WR SUHIHU GLJLWDO WRROV UDWKHU WKDQ NHHSLQJ PXOWLSOH ,'V DQG EDQN FDUGV LQ KLV SRFNHWV ³,W MXVW IHHOV VXSHU XQFRPIRUWDEOH HVSHFLDOO\ ZKHQ , KDYH WR ZDON DFURVV FDPSXV DOO WKH WLPH ´ KH VDLG +H VDLG WKH ELJJHVW GUDZEDFN RI D SK\VLFDO FDUG LV WKH OLNHOLKRRG RI ORVLQJ LW ³, DOZD\V FDUU\ P\ SKRQH QR PDWWHU ZKHUH , JR ´ KH VDLG ³2I FRXUVH \RXU SKRQH LV D SUHWW\ ELJ REMHFW IRU \RXU SRFNHW VR \RX ZRXOG QRWLFH LI LW V JRQH ´ (VSLQR]D VDLG WKDW WKH PRELOH 'HDFRQ 2QH&DUG LV DEOH WR VFDQ ZLWKRXW WKH XVHU RSHQLQJ WKH DSS RU WXUQLQJ WKHLU SKRQH RQ ,Q IDFW WKH FDUG KDV WKH DELOLW\ WR XQORFN GRRUV IURP D IHZ IHHW DZD\ LI WKH SKRQH LV WLOWHG DW D GHJUHH DQJOH ZKLFK (VSLQR]D VHHV DV D EHQH¿W :LWK WKLV FDSDELOLW\ WKH FDUG FDQ DOVR XQORFN GRRUV XQLQWHQWLRQDOO\ DV VWXGHQW WHVWHUV ZDON E\ ZKLFK (VSLQR]D VDLG KH KDV PL[HG IHHOLQJV DERXW (VSLQR]D VDLG KH KDV DOVR H[SHULHQFHG FKDOOHQJHV WKURXJKRXW WKH WHVWLQJ SURFHVV )RU H[DPSOH KH FDUULHV D SRUWDEOH FKDUJHU WR DYRLG WKH ULVN RI EHLQJ ORFNHG RXW RI EXLOGLQJV GXH WR D GHDG SKRQH $GGLWLRQDOO\ ZKHQ KH ZDV ¿UVW WHVWLQJ RXW WKH DSS EHJLQQLQJ $XJ (VSLQR]D ZDV VWLOO XQDEOH WR DFFHVV WKH 3LW RU WKH :HOOEHLQJ &HQWHU RQ FDPSXV :KHQ VFDQQLQJ LQWR EXLOGLQJV (VSLQR]D¶V $SSOH :DOOHW DOVR RIWHQ RSHQHG RQ LWV RZQ GHVSLWH WKH PRELOH ,' EHLQJ KRVWHG RQ D GLIIHUHQW SODWIRUP 7KH 'HDFRQ 2QH&DUG 2I¿FH LQVWUXFWHG VWXGHQWV HQFRXQWHULQJ GLI¿FXOW\ ZLWK XQORFNLQJ GRRUV WR WXUQ WKHLU SKRQHV WR D GHJUHH DQJOH (VSLQR]D VDLG :LWKLQ WKUHH ZHHNV RI WKH EHJLQQLQJ RI WKH WHVWLQJ SHULRG (VSLQR]D VDLG PDQ\ RI WKH LVVXHV KH H[SHULHQFHG ZHUH UHVROYHG Students react to possibility of mobile IDs Many students who were not included as testers of
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ϐ Contact Maggie HcHale at ID system. mcham226@wfu.edu
Page 10 | Thursday, October 1, 2026
Old Gold & Black | Features
John Green captivates Bookmarks attendees ϐ Bestselling author and internet personality brings book tour to Wait Chapel
MIRIAM FABRYCKY Deputy Editor
At the end of his remarks in Wait Chapel as the keynote speaker of the 21st Annual Bookmarks Festival of Books & Authors, John Green urged each member of the 2,000-strong audience to share their unique creative perspective with the world. “Do not think of how many humans there are, but of how few,” the best-selling author and internet personality said to the crowd of fans so large it had lined a full lap around Hearn Plaza before a sold-out Wait Chapel even opened its doors. “There are more viruses in a cup of seawater than there have ever been people. You are rare. So please make art if you can, despite the cost of doing so. And if you are lucky, someone—maybe many someone, but maybe just one rare and important someone—will receive the gift of your art with generosity and care.” Green is the author of nine books, ranging from his 2005 debut “Looking for Alaska,” a young-adult novel which is one of the most banned books in the country, to 2025’s “Everything is Tuberculosis,” a pop history calling for increased investment in the effort to eradicate the world’s deadliest communicable disease. He is currently touring the nation to celebrate the Sept. 22 release of his latest book, “Hollywood, Ending.” Over the course of the evening, Green spoke from prepared remarks, read an excerpt from “Hollywood, Ending,” engaged in a moderated conversation with Angie Thomas, the acclaimed author best
known for her 2017 young adult novel “The Hate U Give,” led a pretend “chemistry reading” between two “actors” selected from the audience and even held a faux “press junket” in which additional audience members read submitted questions. Much of his reflections focused on his writing process for “Hollywood, Ending,” which is his first novel since “Turtles All the Way Down” in 2017 and his first-ever novel for adults. Green dismissed claims that he has “decided to grow up” by venturing into general literature. “I’m 49,” he quipped. “There’s no part of me that’s unaware of the situation.” “There is no way in which writing for adults is better or bigger or more sophisticated or any of that than writing for teens,” he explained. “It just happened that the people in this novel did not have adolescent problems.” With his signature combination of wistful, selfdeprecating humor and unapologetic sincerity, Green brought wide-ranging meditations on life, art and fame to the conversation. “I hope this book is a love letter to movies, but I hope it also acknowledges that I’m distressed by some of the ways that creative projects get commercialized,” Green said. “[I’m] especially distressed by the way private experience is turned into public discourse, feeding the attention economy in the hopes that our private traumas and pain will sell movie tickets, or, indeed, tickets to author events.” Green said that when he began writing “Hollywood, Ending,” he was thinking “about celebrity culture, and the machine that commodifies human
Piper Saunders / Old Gold & Black
Authors John Green and Angie Thomas converse during the keynote event of the 21st Annual Bookmarks Festival of Books & Authors in Wait Chapel on Sept. 28, 2026.
experience even against the will of those experiencing it.” He and Thomas both celebrated and commiserated their shared status as two of the most successful authors in young-adult literature. Green noted that, while he is grateful for what he has been able to achieve through his writing and videos, he has felt uncomfortable with some of the trappings that have accompanied his fame, like strangers photographing his house and his family. While not dismissing the value of his hiatus from fiction, and giving a particular shout-out to the “TB Fighter” activists who had assembled in the Wait Chapel lobby to distribute literature about ways to combat tuberculosis, Green said he was overjoyed to return to novel-writing. He implored the audience to join him in exercising their creative muscles. “I know that making art makes you vulnerable, and that can hurt, but I am grateful to you for making it anywhere,” Green said. “...Art is worth it, just as life is worth it.” Junior Thomas Raiford, a critical and creative media and mathematics double major who said he was aware of Green for his nonfiction books as well as the “Crash Course” YouTube series, said he found these words affirming. “I love art,” Raiford said. “I love making it. I love consuming it. I love sharing it. Hearing John Green quote poet Kaveh Akbar was profoundly moving. ‘Art is where what we survive survives,’ he said. What words could be more comforting to an artist? It’s a reassurance that my work, my creative work, is just as, if not more, important than my ‘real’ work.” In tandem with his reflections on art, Green returned frequently to the value of hope. “Despair tells such a simple story–that the reason everything sucks is because everything sucks… and the reason that life is hard is because nothing matters and you should stay in bed and never do anything,” Green said. “Everything will be swallowed up by time,” he continued. “But as Andy Warhol memorably put it, ‘so what?’ We don't live and make art and other forms of expression in the false hope that our work might last forever. We make art to ease each other's burdens, to visit rooms in our minds that are otherwise inaccessible to us, and to express what's hardest to express. And we make art because every human voice matters.” To conclude the night, Green looked out into the captivated crowd and invited the room to join in a simple song. “We’re here because we’re here, because we’re here, because we’re here,” the thousands sang along with Green to the tune of “Auld Lang Syne.” “We’re here because we’re here, because we’re here, because we’re here.” Green said he learned the plaintive chorus from his friend Amy Krouse Rosenthal, a writer who died almost ten years ago from ovarian cancer. While the reimagined lyrics originated in a fatalistic trench song among British soldiers in the First World War, Green said that Rosenthal had transformed their meaning into a “battle cry for hope.” “Amy changed the meaning of that song without ever changing the words,” Green said. “It’s true that we can’t say with certainty why we are here, but we can nonetheless celebrate being here and proclaim and hope that we are here, especially in community.” Contact Miriam Fabrycky at fabrml24@wfu.edu
ENVIRONMENT OLD GOLD & BLACK
Ella Jennings, jennem25@wfu.edu
PAGE 11 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
2026 Fat Bear Week is here Competition’s 12th year delights the internet KATE CASTLE Contributing Writer The brown bears in Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve have spent the summer gorging themselves on salmon in preparation for their winter hibernation. The annual competition pits these residents of the Brooks River against each other in a battle of the most oversize. A then-Park Ranger named Mike Fitz started the Fat Bear tradition in 2014 as a one-day event. Today, the competition has evolved into an annual week of bracket-style voting that garners over one million participants every year. This year, voting began on Tuesday, Sept. 22 on explore.org, and attracted so much attention that the webVLWH WUDI¿F H[FHHGHG WKH XVHU OLPLW IRU PRVW RI RSHQLQJ day. Fitz said that Fat Bear Week had rescheduled the early matches to accommodate the outage. The explore.org website says “fat bears are successful bears.” In the months before hibernation begins, brown bears must bulk up their fat reserves in order to survive the winter. /DVW \HDU WKH HQRUPRXV %HDU ¿WWLQJO\ QDPHG ³&KXQN ´ ZRQ WKH FRPSHWLWLRQ IRU KLV ¿UVW WLPH ZHLJKing in at over 1,200 pounds. He earned 96,000 votes in WKH ¿QDOV HDVLO\ EHDWLQJ KLV FRPSHWLWLRQ E\ RYHU 30,000 votes. Chunk stole voters’ hearts last year by impressively
chowing down on salmon with a broken jaw. He remains a strong contender this year among other bears — namely male competitor Bear 151, or “Walker,” who is known to be one of the most dominant bears along the river. Bear 59, known as “Backpack,” who gained his name after an injury he sustained as a cub forced him to ride around on his mother’s back, is also a fan favorite.
Column: Happy Environment News The news is full of doom and gloom, so let’s hear about some environment wins this week!
Last year, the enormous Bear 32, fittingly named “Chunk,” won the competition for his first time weighing in at over 1,200 pounds.
“I like Fat Bear Week because I think it’s so fun to celebrate bears,” said sophomore Eugenia Larson. “I’m voting for Backpack — I hope he wins!” Fans can vote single-elimination style for the fattest bear at fatbearweek.org. Contact Kate Castle at castkl25@wfu.edu
ELLA JENNINGS Environment Editor It can be discouraging to constantly hear about pollution, extinctions and natural disasters. While it’s vital to stay informed on environmental problems, there’s a lot of good news we don’t often hear about! Read along to learn how we are making progress and feel hope for the future. Fall leaves incoming! 7XHVGD\ 6HSW LV WKH ¿UVW GD\ RI IDOO $V WKH days get shorter, trees receive less sunlight and their chlorophyll breaks down, turning into yellow, orange and red pigments and creating the beautiful season we all know and love. The vibrant forests and cooler temperatures make fall a perfect time to get outside and enjoy nature! Some wonderful places nearby to see the foliage are the Reynolda Trails, Pilot Mountain and Hanging Rock State Parks. Or \RX FRXOG YHQWXUH IXUWKHU D¿HOG ZLWK GD\ WULSV WR Boone, N.C., and Asheville, N.C. Great day to be an oyster Chesapeake Bay used to be home to one of the largest oyster populations in the world. Due to pollution, overharvesting and other environmental degradation, however, this habitat now retains just 3% of its historic native oyster population. But a collective effort from government agencies, academic JURXSV DQG QRQSUR¿WV KDV UHVWRUHG RYHU WZR VTXDUH miles of oyster reefs in this region, marking the beginning of a campaign to protect over 2,300 acres of habitat. Other species in the Chesapeake Bay will also EHQH¿W IURP WKLV UHVWRUDWLRQ EHFDXVH R\VWHUV FDQ ¿OWHU WR[LQV RXW RI RFHDQ ZDWHU DQG UHPRYH H[FHVV nutrients from fertilizers, which would otherwise cause a huge buildup of algae, killing plants and wildlife. Large numbers of oysters also pile together to form reefs, complex 3D structures that serve as vital nursery grounds for several species.
Annabelle Tan/Old Gold & Black
Every year, Katmai’s brown bears bulk up on salmon all summer to prepare for hibernation, sparking national discourse on which bear is the fattest.
Welcome to Wake Forest, monarchs! At Wake Forest’s Campus Garden monarch waystation, several monarch caterpillars are beginning to pupate for the season, the last step before they beFRPH EXWWHUÀLHV DQG À\ VRXWK IRU WKHLU PLJUDWLRQ $V D FHUWL¿HG PRQDUFK ZD\VWDWLRQ WKH &DPSXV *DUGHQ has dozens of milkweed plants and nectar sources in DGGLWLRQ WR DGHTXDWH VXQOLJKW PDNLQJ LW WKH SHUIHFW stop for monarchs on their journey south. 0RQDUFK EXWWHUÀLHV GHSHQG RQ PLONZHHG WR UHproduce; it is the only plant that their caterpillars FDQ HDW :LWK UDSLG KDELWDW ORVV PRQDUFK EXWWHUÀLHV may face extinction. Perhaps because of the popularity of the “Save the Monarch” movement, however, monarch populations are slowly increasing!
Contact Ella Jennings at jennem25@wfu.edu
OPINION OLD GOLD & BLACK
PAGE 12 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
Caroline Gottsman, gottca23@wfu.edu Hannah Ordan, bradsc24@wfu.edu
The views expressed in all opinion columns represent those of the article’s author, not the opinions of the Old Gold & Black Editorial Board
Venezuela taught Trump the wrong lesson The president has underestimated Iran’s willpower BRADY METZGER Contributing Writer President Trump’s successful operation against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro should have demonstrated the value of exploiting the weaknesses of American adversaries. Instead, it appears that Trump’s extraordinary success in Venezuela taught him a dangerous lesson that opposes the narratives of history: that the American military muscle can compel almost any hostile adversary to yield quickly, cheaply and on his terms. Venezuela appeared to be a vindication of Trump’s impulse-driven foreign policy. Iran exposed the dangers of treating a one-off extraordinary success as a reusable model toward other adversaries. Operation Southern Spear culminated in Operation Absolute Resolve, which captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and brought them to the United States to IDFH IHGHUDO GUXJ WUDI¿FNLQJ DQG QDUFR WHUURULVP FKDUJHV Measured against its immediate objective, the operation was an incredible military achievement. The operation underwent months of planning, involved more than 150 aircraft and ended without any American fatalities. Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, assumed power and accommodated major U.S. demands, including major U.S. expansions into Venezuela’s oil industry. This operation achieved something U.S. operations often fail to accomplish: removing a hostile leader without engaging in a prolongHG FRQÀLFW Following Operation Absolute Resolve, Trump DSSURDFKHG DQ\ SRWHQWLDO FRQÀLFW LQYROYLQJ ,UDQ ZLWK VLJQL¿FDQW FRQ¿GHQFH LQ WKH $PHULFDQ PLOLWDU\ 7KH :DOO Street Journal reported that Gen. Dan Caine repeatedly warned Trump before the war that Iran would likely move to close the Strait of Hormuz using mines, drones and missiles. However, Trump told his team that the U.S. military could maintain control of the situation, even if Iran attempted to close the Strait. 7KH -RXUQDO UHSRUWHG WKDW 7UXPS¶V FRQ¿GHQFH LQ &DLQH increased following the success of the operation to capture Maduro, along with the June 2025 nuclear site strikes against Iran. 7KH :DOO 6WUHHW -RXUQDO¶V UHSRUWLQJ RQ ODWH FRQ¿GDQW Sen. Lindsey Graham’s lobbying offers further insight
into Trump’s decision-making process. Graham had spent months urging Trump to strike Iran and told the -RXUQDO WKDW WKH SUHVLGHQW SRVVHVVHG JUHDWHU FRQ¿GHQFH LQ the military during his second term. Graham connected Venezuela to Trump’s increasing willingness to consider IXUWKHU LQWHUYHQWLRQV :KLOH WKDW ZDV QRW D GRFXPHQWHG admission from Trump, Graham was one of Trump’s closest allies and his assessment shows how Trump’s attitude has shifted over the years. The bottom line is that Trump was clearly emboldened by Maduro’s capture and how quickly the rest of the Venezuelan government fell in line thereafter. The central question was not whether the U.S. could obtain tactical success in Iran. They clearly could, and already had in June 2025. It was whether tactical success could produce the same political compliance that followed Maduro’s removal from power. However, the cirFXPVWDQFHV EHWZHHQ WKHVH WZR FRQÀLFWV DUH QRW VLPLODU Maduro entered 2026 with deeply contested legitimacy, as the U.S. State Department concluded that Edmundo González earned the most votes in the 2024 election by ³DQ LQVXUPRXQWDEOH PDUJLQ ´ :KLOH WKH ULJKWIXO ZLQQHU is not in power, President Delcy Rodriguez has proved vital to U.S. interests, as she has conceded to major U.S. demands, especially regarding U.S. rights and investment in Venezuelan oil. Iran presents a different political structure from the Venezuelan narco-state. Although the supreme leader SRVVHVVHV XOWLPDWH FRQWURO WKH UHJLPH LV ¿HUFHO\ GHIHQGed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the regular Iranian military, clerical institutions and an extensive bureaucracy that Venezuela simply does not have. Therefore, in Iran, removing their leader did not remove the system that supported him. ,UDQ ZDV DOVR SUHSDUHG IRU WKH FRQÀLFW KDYLQJ developed many strategies for retaliation. The 12-day war in 2025 gave Iran recent experience responding to American and Israeli attacks. Through missiles, drones and regional partners in the Houthis and Hezbollah, the Iranian regime has diverse mediums of attack to use DJDLQVW ,VUDHO WKH 8 6 DQG RWKHU :HVWHUQ DOOLHV LQ WKH region. Most importantly, Iran has always known that it could threaten shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. This vital waterway gives the Iranians key leverage over
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global energy markets, which has proven to be their greatest weapon in the war. As a result of these various factors, Iran developed resistance rather than capitulating like Venezuela. Seven PRQWKV LQWR WKH FRQÀLFW ,UDQ KDV QR SODQV WR VXUUHQGHU leaving the United States caught between escalation, a continued stalemate with a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports or attempting to negotiate, which is unlikely to prove favorable for the U.S. Additionally, the cost of the war has continued to accumulate. The Congressional %XGJHW 2I¿FH HVWLPDWHG WKDW WKH ZDU KDG FRVW WKH 'Hfense Department more than $38 billion through Aug. 1 and projected that disruptions to energy markets could DGG KDOI D SHUFHQWDJH SRLQW WR LQÀDWLRQ E\ HDUO\ The Strait of Hormuz became the clearest example of the Trump administration’s miscalculation. Caine had explicitly warned Trump about the danger, and U.S. of¿FLDOV KDG ORQJ DVVHVVHG WKDW ,UDQ SRVVHVVHG WKH ZHDSRQU\ QHFHVVDU\ WR GLVUXSW WKH ZDWHUZD\ $V ¿JKWLQJ LQ WKH UHJLRQ LQWHQVL¿HG \HW DJDLQ RQ 6HSW 5HXWHUV UHported only three commercial vessels that had transited the Strait the previous day, far below the recent average RI 5LVLQJ RLO DQG JDV SULFHV KDYH EHFRPH ERWK PDMRU economic and political problems for the Trump administration. Another difference is that while the operation in Venezuela produced no American fatalities, the war in Iran KDV 2Q 6HSW WKH :DVKLQJWRQ 3RVW UHSRUWHG WKDW LQternal Defense Department records showed at least 22 8 6 PLOLWDU\ GHDWKV VR IDU GXULQJ WKH FRQÀLFW ² IRXU more than the 18 publicly listed in the Pentagon’s database. The Post based its reporting on interviews with six 8 6 RI¿FLDOV DQG 5HXWHUV KDV VXEVHTXHQWO\ UHSRUWHG WKH VDPH ¿QGLQJV American forces have continued attacking targets across Iran, but tactical destruction has not automatically produced Trump’s desired political outcome. Military superiority can serve to eliminate leaders and infrastructure. However, it cannot, by itself, persuade Iran to concede to U.S. demands or surrender. This is not to say that Venezuela was the sole cause of Trump’s decision to attack Iran. The successful limited strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025 also inFUHDVHG KLV FRQ¿GHQFH $GGLWLRQDOO\ ODWH 6HQ /LQGVD\ Graham and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spent months aggressively lobbying for military action. They portrayed Iran in an unusually vulnerable spot, only a couple of months removed from a stateVDQFWLRQHG VODXJKWHU ZKLFK VRPH ORFDO KHDOWK RI¿FLDOV say could have claimed the lives of over 30,000 protesWRUV :LWK ,VUDHOL DQG $PHULFDQ LQWHOOLJHQFH LW ZDV FOHDU that the Iranian regime was in a weak spot, and February seemed like the perfect time to attack. All of this is to say that Venezuela did not create Trump’s interventionist impulse toward Iran; however, it reduced his caution at the decisive moment. Operation Absolute Resolve will remain an impressive military achievement. However, its danger was becoming a precedent for circumstances it did not resemble. Venezuela showed how the U.S. could exploit a YXOQHUDEOH UHJLPH H[HFXWH D QDUURZO\ GH¿QHG RSHUDWLRQ and secure cooperation for a ready successor. It did not demonstrate that all hostile governments will back down or collapse after losing their leaders. By using Venezuela as a template, Trump has overshadowed the success of WKDW RSHUDWLRQ ZLWK WKH RYHUFRQ¿GHQFH LW SURGXFHG
Contact Brady Metzger at metzbe26@wfu.edu
Opinion | Old Gold & Black
7KXUVGD\ 2FWREHU | Page 13
Think you know sports? Prove it. A breakdown of Sydney Sweeney's new controversial sports ad RUBY STOOPS Contributing Writer
Women's sports are one of the most underappreFLDWHG DQG RYHUORRNHG ¿HOGV ,V WKH ZD\ WR VKHG OLJKW RQ WKLV SRZHUKRXVH RI DQ LQGXVWU\ QXGLW\" 6\GQH\ 6ZHHQH\ VXUH WKLQNV VR Novig, a sports trading app, released a provocaWLYH DG VWDUULQJ WKH DFWUHVV RQ 6HSW VHQGLQJ DQ XQVHWWOLQJ PHVVDJH 7KH DG IHDWXUHG 6ZHHQH\ UHSHDWHGO\ VD\LQJ 1RYLJ LV ³MXVW VSRUWV´ DV VKH FRYHUHG KHUVHOI ZLWK RQO\ VSRUWLQJ HTXLSPHQW :KLOH WKH DG SURPRWHG D PLQRU VSRUWV EHWWLQJ FRPSDQ\ RQH FDQ RQO\ LPDJLQH WKH XSURDU WKDW WKH PDUNHWLQJ FDPSDLJQ KDV FDXVHG²PDQ\ DUJXLQJ WKDW 6ZHHQH\ KDV UHVHW WKH IHPLQLVW WLPHOLQH 7KH DG¶V VW\OH RI PDUNHWLQJ GRHV HQFRXUDJH PHQ WR REMHFWLI\ ZRPHQ KRZHYHU WKLV VSHFL¿F H[DPSOH LVQ¶W DQ\ PRUH RXWUDJHRXV WKDQ WKH PHGLD ZH FRQVXPH GDLO\ 6R WUXO\ WKH SUREOHP GRHV QRW OLH LQ WKH IDFW WKDW 6ZHHQH\ SRVHG QDNHG ZLWK IRRWEDOOV UDWKHU WKH SUREOHP LV WKDW RXU VRFLHW\ KDV EHFRPH VR GHVHQVLWL]HG WR RYHUO\ VH[XDOL]HG ZRPHQ 6R D surge of hate erupts over this dehumanization, and PHQ GLVPLVV WKH RXWUDJH ZRPHQ IHHO 7KH LGHD WKDW VH[ VHOOV LV IDU IURP QHZ ZLWK WKH earliest use of this marketing tactic to grab the atWHQWLRQ RI PHQ GDWLQJ EDFN WR WKH ODWH WK FHQWXU\ Starting in the 1880s, tobacco companies beJDQ SXWWLQJ SLFWXUHV RI ZRPHQ LQ OLQJHULH LQVLGH FLJDUHWWH SDFNV 7KLV WDFWLF QRW RQO\ SXVKHG WKH QDUUDWLYH WKDW D PDQ FDQ EX\ D ZRPDQ V YXOQHUDELOLW\ EXW DOVR FUHDWHG D VWURQJ IDQEDVH IRU WKLV W\SH RI PDUNHWLQJ 0HQ VRRQ EHFDPH OR\DO WR WKH companies that did this, increasing their sales, ulWLPDWHO\ VROLGLI\LQJ WKH ³VH[ VHOOV´ PDQWUD 6LQFH WKHQ WKHUH KDV EHHQ DQ RYHUÀRZ RI FRPSDQLHV WKDW SRVLWLRQ ZRPHQ LQ H[SOLFLW ZD\V DV D PHDQV WR ERRVW WKHLU QXPEHUV XVLQJ WKHLU VH[XDOLW\ DV D ODXQFKSDG IRU VXFFHVV $QG ZKLOH WKLV LV EHQH¿FLDO IRU DOO WKH VDOHVPHQ V TXDUWHUO\ UHSRUWV WKLV FRQWLQXHG REMHFWL¿FDWLRQ GULOOV UHVSHFW IRU ZRPHQ LQWR WKH JURXQG 2YHU WLPH ZRPHQ KDYH IRXJKW WLUHOHVVO\ WR VKDNH WKH QRWLRQ WKDW WKH\ DUH MXVW D PDOOHDEOH ¿JXUH RI PHQ¶V FRQWURO $OWKRXJK ZRPHQ LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV DUH QR ORQJHU ¿JKWLQJ IRU WKH PDLQ FRUQHUVWRQHV RI HTXDOLW\ OLNH VXIIUDJH WKH IHPLQLVW PRYHPHQW LV VWLOO IDU IURP RYHU :RPHQ DOO RYHU WKH ZRUOG DUH VSHDNLQJ XS WR WHOO \RXQJ JLUOV WKDW WKH\ DUH QRW LQIHULRU EHFDXVH RI WKHLU JHQGHU LQVWHDG WKH\ DUH VWURQJHU EHFDXVH RI LW $ WUDLOEOD]LQJ FRQWHPSRUDU\ H[DPSOH LV &KULVWLQD .RFK WKH PLVVLRQ VSHFLDOLVW RQ $UWHPLV ,, DQG WKH ¿UVW ZRPDQ WR À\ DURXQG WKH PRRQ 7KH YLUDO SKRWR RI .RFK¶V EUDLG VLOKRXHWWHG RQ WKH VKXWWOH ZLQGRZ VSRNH WR EUHDNLQJ GRZQ EDUULHUV DQG WDNLQJ VWHSV WRZDUG DQ HTXDO SOD\LQJ ¿HOG IRU ZRPHQ 'HVSLWH WKHVH VZLQJV WRZDUG HTXDOLW\ D VLQJXODU HYHQW OLNH WKH UHFHQW 6ZHHQH\ DG FDQ GLVUXSW DOO WKH SRVLWLYH KHDGZD\ 0DQ\ IHPDOH DWKOHWHV VSRNH XS LQ UHVSRQVH WR WKLV DG *\PQDVW *UDFLH .UDPHU¶V PRQWDJH RI KLJKOLJKWV IURP KHU DWKOHWLF FDUHHU ZLWK WKH FDSWLRQ , GRQ W NQRZ ZKDW >6ZHHQH\@ ZDV GRLQJ EXW WKLV LV ZKDW ZRPHQ LQ VSRUW ORRN OLNH LJQLWHG D WUHQG
Annabelle Tan/Old Gold & Black
Sydney Sweeney’s ad was a direct hit on the efforts of feminists because it provides an arena for men to lash out at the women who won’t stand for dehumanization.
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Page 14 | 7KXUVGD\ 2FWREHU
2OG *ROG %ODFN | Opinion
The fall of “Gilmore Girls” +RZ VKRXOG , SURFHHG ZKHQ P\ FRPIRUW VKRZ KDV EHHQ WDNHQ RII 1HWÀL[" ALI JUBELIRER Contributing Writer
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Annabelle Tan / Old Gold & Black
Lorelai and Rory Gilmore sit together among pumpkins and fall decorations in a classic “Gilmore Girls” scene.
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We are forgetting how to talk Talk more, don’t talk bore RYAN ROLLE Contributing Writer Small talk is on its deathbed, and I’ll happily dig its grave. We all engage in small talk, yet we all seem to hate it. At least, we hate the munGDQH DQG XQIXO¿OOLQJ FRQYHUVDWLRQV ZH FDOO VPDOO WDON These days, when people post personal details about their lives online, I think we DV D VRFLHW\ KDYH VWRSSHG RZLQJ HDFK RWKHU WULYLDO ERULQJ DQG PHDQLQJOHVV FRQYHUsations. If people are so open and free on WKH LQWHUQHW ZK\ GR RXU LQWHUDFWLRQV KDYH to be reserved and awkward in person? (VSHFLDOO\ DV FROOHJH VWXGHQWV RXU WLPH and energy are at an all-time low, and ZH VKRXOG FUHDWH PRUH PHDQLQJIXO DQG thought-provoking questions than “Beautiful day, huh?” , ZRXOG DUJXH WKDW VRFLHW\ LQ JHQHUDO KDV grown lesV IRUPDO RYHUDOO )RU WKH UHFRUG , DP WRWDOO\ ¿QH ZLWK WKLV , DSSUHFLDWH the freedom in leaving the house with ÀLS ÀRSV VZHDWSDQWV DQG JUHDV\ KDLU knowing nobody will bat an eye. ,Q DGGLWLRQ WR FORWKLQJ WKH (QJOLVK language itself has evolved to the point ZKHUH FHUWDLQ ZRUGV KDYH VHHPLQJO\ ORVW their meanings altogether. The point is that PDQ\ WUDGLWLRQV DQG FXVWRPV WKDW ZHUH RQFH QHFHVVDU\ KDYH EHFRPH REVROHWH VR ZK\ GR ZH FRQWLQXH WKLV EHKDYLRU RI saying things that don’t hold meaning? ,¶P QRW VD\LQJ WKDW HYHU\ FRQYHUVDWLRQ you have with a neighbor is going to UHFUHDWH WKH SKLORVRSKLFDO SRQGHULQJV RI
boring when they engage in small talk. The whole point is that it’s mundane but a way to dig deeper. ,W¶V DV VLPSOH DV ¿QGLQJ FRPPRQ ground depending on the situation you meet people in. :KHQ \RX PHHW VRPHRQH LQ FODVV DVN if they like the professor or even if they’re SDVVLRQDWH DERXW WKH VXEMHFW :KHQ \RX PHHW VRPHRQH DW WKH 3LW WU\ DVNLQJ ZKLFK meal from home they miss the most. To PH ZKDW LV PRVW SRZHUIXO DQG VSHFLDO DERXW UHJXODU FRQYHUVDWLRQ LV JHWWLQJ WR EXLOG PHDQLQJIXO FRQQHFWLRQV DQG WR IHHO related to. +XPDQ FRQQHFWLRQ HYHQ LI VKRUW WHUP LV VRPHWKLQJ WKDW FDQ PDNH DQ\RQH IHHO more valuable and seen. :KHWKHU \RX ZDQW WR VWULNH XS D FRQYHUVDWLRQ RYHU WKH SKRQH LQ FODVV RU DW D IRRWEDOO JDPH , XUJH \RX WR WU\ DQG FUHDWH D PHDQLQJIXO FRQQHFWLRQ 7KHVH GD\V WUXH KXPDQ FRQQHFWLRQ LV D SRZHUIXO WRRO WKDW LV WRR RIWHQ RYHUORRNHG :KHQ HQFRXQWHUMattie Stillerman / Old Gold & Black LQJ D OXOO LQ FRQYHUVDWLRQ GRQ¶W JLYH XS Opinion writer Ryan Rolle says that small talk is the moment things feel awkward. You are not boring, and neither is the on its deathbed, and that he’ll happily dig its grave. person you’re talking to. 1RW HYHU\ FRQYHUVDWLRQ QHHGV WR EH SHU$ULVWRWOH DQG 6RFUDWHV QRU DP , VD\LQJ LW thHVH FRQYHUVDWLRQV DOZD\V VHHPV WR HQG EXW P\ KRSH IRU WKH KXPDQ UDFH LV with, “Well, it was good to meet you!” If IHFW should. to dig deeper and resist the urge to revert But maybe instead of asking someone \RX¶UH OXFN\ E\ WKH HQG \RX ZLOO VZDS to the ease of small talk. It would be a lot vaguely about the game last night or the 6QDSFKDWV RU ,QVWDJUDPV more meaningful to the people around 9LFWRU\ .LQG RI" ZHDWKHU FRQVLGHU FRPSOLPHQWLQJ WKHLU you to take a moment and be intentional To me, it feels worse to end an awkward ZLWK \RXU FRQYHUVDWLRQV LQVWHDG RI DVNLQJ RXW¿W RU VLPSO\ WRXFK RQ VRPHWKLQJ D period of small talk than to avoid the shallow and simple questions. OLWWOH PRUH H[FLWLQJ 6LQFH VWDUWLQJ FROOHJH , KDYH KDG FRQYHUVDWLRQ LQ WKH ¿UVW SODFH Something to remember, though, is that Contact Ryan Rolle at PRUH FRQYHUVDWLRQV DERXW P\ PDMRU DQG KRPHWRZQ WKDQ , FDQ FRXQW DQG HDFK RI on the inside, everyone feels like they are rollrg26@wfu.edu
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OLD GOLD & BLACK
PAGE 15 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
Football comes up with road upset at No. 16 Louisville 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV EORFN JDPH W\LQJ ¿HOG JRDO LQ ¿QDO PLQXWH WR ZLQ GRIFFIN LAMPHIER Sports Editor
Kienholz found wideout Jaleel Skinner down the near sideline for a 61-yard score to punch right back, 2421. Despite a bit of late drama, the score would hold into halftime. The Demon Deacons got the ball out of halftime, but weren’t able to get anything going before punting it away. Louisville took advantage, as a deep ball from Kienholz to wideout Tre Richardson helped get the Cardinals well into Wake Forest territory. Fortunately, the defense stood tall there, as a third-down sack from OLQHPDQ *DEH .LUVFKNH IRUFHG D JDPH W\LQJ ¿HOG goal. Getting the ball back with just under 10 minutes to go, the Wake Forest offense needed points. A meWKRGLFDO GULYH ZRUNHG LW GRZQ WKH ¿HOG DQG /DZUHQFH EURNH IUHH IRU D \DUG UXVK WR JLYH WKH 'HDFV ¿UVW DQG JRDO +RZHYHU WKH QH[W WKUHH UXVKHV FRXOGQ¶W ¿QG the end zone, and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty to offensive lineman Will Way took away the option to go for it on fourth down. So Wake Forest opted to NLFN WKH ¿HOG JRDO D \DUGHU WKDW &DOYHUW SODFHG through the uprights to retake the lead at 27-24. Right back the other way, Louisville led a drive down to the Demon Deacon 29-yard line, but on third-and-6, defensive end Langston Hardy got home for the sack due to an intentional grounding penalty RQ .HLQKRO] ,W VHW XS D ULVN\ \DUG ¿HOG JRDO IURP Cardinals kicker Carson Hilbert, which he made for a career high and a tied ballgame at 27-27. The fourth quarter started with chaos. Lopez found Hernandez, but the Deacon star fumbled the football, recovered by the Louisville defense. The Wake Forest defense stood tall, however. They forced a fourthand-4, and then an incompletion for a turnover on downs. /DZUHQFH ZRUNHG LW RQ WKH JURXQG IRU D TXLFN ¿UVW
down, then a Lopez completion got the Demon Deacons deep into Cardinals territory. Things stalled there DIWHU D IHZ VKRUW UXQV ZHUH VWRSSHG VKRUW RI D ¿UVW GRZQ VHWWLQJ XS D \DUG JR DKHDG ¿HOG JRDO XQWLO disaster struck for the Cardinals. Defensive lineman Clev Lubin jumped offsides beIRUH WKH NLFN JLYLQJ WKH 'HDFV D FUXFLDO ¿UVW GRZQ They advanced it a bit further into Louisville territory before being forced to kick it again, this time for real. Calvert’s 32-yard boot was true, and Wake Forest took a 30-27 lead with just 6:21 to go in regulation. The Cardinals drove deep into Demon Deacon territory again, as Kienholz’s arm brought them all the way to the Wake Forest 13-yard line. The ensuing pass was incomplete, and a quarterback keeper was stuffed. Then on a crucial third down, Deacon lineman Zach Lohavichan came up almost untouched for D PDVVLYH VDFN IRUFLQJ D \DUG ¿HOG JRDO ZKLFK Hilbert missed wide left. Unfortunately, the Cardinals got the ball back with a chance to win it after the Deacs went three-and-out. They got all the way to the Wake Forest 30-yard line, but a holding penalty pushed them back to the 40. Three incompletions later, and the game culminated LQ D \DUG ¿HOG JRDO DWWHPSW WR WU\ DQG WLH LW With the game on the line, the Demon Deacons swarmed the kicking lane, and the defensive lineman Kirschke blocked the kick to give Wake Forest a massive ranked road win, 30-27. “It was so far from perfect,” Dickert said after the game. “As a matter of fact, it was ugly, but it was so beautiful because our guys found a way to win the game. I’m really proud of our whole program.”
After proving they could hang with top-tier opponents eight days prior in a loss to Miami, Wake Forest had high hopes for their Sept. 26 road bout at No. 16 Louisville. A noontime kickoff on ESPN meant that audiences all around the United States got to start their Saturday slate with a thriller, a back-and-forth affair that ended in a 30-27 Demon Deacon upset. Head Coach Jake Dickert’s squad came out swinging on defense. The Cardinals received the opening NLFNRII DQG WKHLU ¿UVW WZR GULYHV ZHUH FRPSOHWHO\ VWLÀHG :DNH )RUHVW¶V GHIHQVLYH OLQH DSSOLHG FRQVWDQW pressure on star Louisville quarterback Lincoln Kienholz, resulting in the Cardinals losing 5 offensive \DUGV WKURXJK WKHLU ¿UVW WZR VHULHV Unfortunately for the Deacs, their own offense was unable to heavily capitalize on early defensive success. After a set of chunk plays got them into LouisYLOOH WHUULWRU\ RQ WKHLU ¿UVW GULYH WKH\ ZHUH VWXIIHG RQ fourth-and-1 to force a turnover on downs. The second drive wasn’t too much better as the Demon DeaFRQV KDG WR VHWWOH IRU D ¿HOG JRDO DIWHU JHWWLQJ LQVLGH the Cardinals’ 25-yard line. Sophomore kicker Connor Calvert’s 39-yard try was good, and Wake Forest led 3-0. 7KH /RXLVYLOOH RIIHQVH WKHQ ¿QDOO\ VWDUWHG WR JHW PRYLQJ .LHQKRO] ZDV DEOH WR ¿QG UHFHLYHUV PXOWLSOH times for 15-plus-yard gains, including a 15-yard strike to Lawayne McCoy down to the 6-yard line. Then it was a quarterback keeper to the near side that got Louisville on the board, taking a 7-3 lead. Not to be outdone, Wake Forest quarterback Gio Lopez started off the ensuing drive with a 17-yard &RQWDFW *ULI¿Q /DPSKLHU DW completion to tight end Kamrean Johnson. Then, after ODPSJP #ZIX HGX penalties on both sides, the Deacon captain found star wideout Carlos Hernandez wide open on a 38-yard deep ball and advanced 10 more yards down to the 10yard line. Two plays later, tailback Ty Clark III found paydirt for a touchdown to retake the lead, 10-7. Kienholz and the Cardinals didn’t slow down. They ZRUNHG LW GRZQ WKH ¿HOG ZLWK OLWWOH WURXEOH ZLWK DOO but three of their eleven plays going for six or more yards en route to another quarterback keeper touchdown. Not even two minutes later, the lead changed hands DJDLQ $IWHU D /RSH] ¿UVW GRZQ FRQYHUVLRQ RQ WKH ground, he found Hernandez wide open once again, and this time he wouldn’t be caught. It was a 77-yard touchdown reception, stunning the home crowd and making it 17-14 Demon Deacons. Momentum continued to swing in favor of the visiting Wake Forest squad, as after a Demon Deacon penalty negated a third-and-long stop, freshman defensive back Somad Eaddy made a great play in coverage and found himself with a tip drill interception, WKH ¿UVW RI KLV FROOHJLDWH FDUHHU /RSH] NHSW WKH RIIHQVH PRYLQJ ¿QGLQJ +HUQDQdez on a screen that he took down the sideline for 31 yards into Cardinals territory. Then it was time for the ground game, as freshman tailback Deuce Lawrence JRW \DUGV DQG D ¿UVW IROORZHG XS E\ D \DUG JDLQ IURP &ODUN +H ZDVQ¶W ¿QLVKHG DV WKH YHU\ QH[W SOD\ Photo Courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics saw him churn into the end zone and extend the lead, The Demon Deacons celebrate a touchdown run from junior tail24-14. Then it was the Cardinals’ turn for a home run ball— back Ty Clark III (4) in front of the hostile Louisville crowd.
Page 16 | October 1, 2026
Old Gold & Black | Sports
Lorentz’s late heroics push the Deacons past Virginia Men’s Soccer wins a thriller 3-2 to stay unbeaten at Spry Stadium ZAN JONES Contributing Writer :DNH )RUHVW PHQ¶V VRFFHU HDUQHG D GUDPDWLF $&& YLFWRU\ RYHU FRQIHUence foe Virginia on Saturday, Sept. 19, at Spry Stadium, with Tate Lorentz conYHUWLQJ D SHQDOW\ NLFN ZLWK MXVW VHFRQGV UHPDLQLQJ 7KH YLFWRU\ PRYHG WKH 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV¶ UHFRUG WR RYHUDOO and 2-1 in ACC play. Additionally, the YLFWRU\ NHSW WKH WHDP¶V XQEHDWHQ KRPH record intact. :DNH )RUHVW ZDV RQ WKH DWWDFN HDUO\ EXLOGLQJ D OHDG GHVSLWH 9LUJLQLD KDYLQJ SRVVHVVLRQ LQ LWV IDYRU HDUO\ 6RSKRmore Ronnie Garcia opened the scoring in the 16th minute, heading home a Jose 3HUH] SDVV EHIRUH VRSKRPRUH -RE\ 5HLG GRXEOHG WKH DGYDQWDJH LQ WKH WK PLQXWH DIWHU ¿QLVKLQJ D UHERXQG RII WKH SRVW 7KH HDUO\ VXFFHVV JDYH :DNH )RUHVW D DGYDQWDJH JRLQJ LQWR KDOIWLPH +RZHYHU 9LUJLQLD TXLFNO\ UHERXQGHG LQ WKH VHFRQG KDOI DV VHQLRU 0DUFR 'RV
Santos scored in the 53rd minute off asVLVWV E\ %UHQGDQ /DPEH DQG 'UHZ 6DUD¿QR 7KH JRDO VFRULQJ GLGQ¶W VWRS IRU WKH &DYDOLHUV -XVW RYHU D PLQXWH ODWHU VHQLRU $- 6PLWK HTXDOL]HG DQG HYHQHG the score back at 2-2. Virginia kept their foot on the gas as they drew a penalty LQ WKH WK PLQXWH JLYLQJ WKHPVHOYHV DQ opportunity to take the lead late into the second half. Smith looked for his second goal of the half, but his penalty kick ZDV IRLOHG E\ 'HDFRQ JRDONHHSHU -RQDK 0HGQDUG NHHSLQJ WKH VFRUH HYHQ The match looked like it was heading for a draw until the closing seconds. :LWK MXVW VHFRQGV OHIW D VKRW VWUXFN the arm of a Virginia defender in the box, HDUQLQJ WKH 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV D SHQDOW\ and one last shot to take the game back. 6HQLRU PLG¿HOGHU 7DWH /RUHQW] VWHSSHG XS WR WKH VSRW DQG FRQYHUWHG WR JLYH WKH 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV D YLFWRU\ LQ IURQW RI 2,100 faithful at Spry Stadium. 6WDWLVWLFDOO\ WKH PDWFK ZDV HYHQ %RWK WHDPV ¿QLVKHG ZLWK VKRWV DOWKRXJK 9LUJLQLD KDG HLJKW VKRWV RQ JRDO WR :DNH
Sophomore ute goal,
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Garcia (23) the Demon
Forest’s four. The game carried a physical tone throughout with 27 combined fouls paired with eight yellow cards. 'HVSLWH 9LUJLQLD¶V VHFRQG KDOI SXVK :DNH )RUHVW VWD\HG FRPSRVHG HQRXJK to withstand the comeback and capitalize when its opportunity came. Lo-
Bekie Sussman/Old Gold & Black
celebrates his 16th-minDeacons in front, 1-0.
rentz’s late penalty ultimately separated the two sides that were closely matched IRU WKH HQWLUH QLJKW VHDOLQJ RQH RI :DNH Forest’s most dramatic wins in a while.
Contact Zan Jones at jonezm26@wfu.edu
Sam Hartman, back on the Practice Squad A former Demon Deacon navigates another NFL setback WILL KUNISAKI Contributing Writer The stories of players stuck on the NFL roster bubble usually go untold. It is a repeated cycle of rejection that pushes former college stars into the background. Sam Hartman knows that reality better than most. ,Q KLV ¿UVW WZR VHDVRQV ZLWK WKH :DVKington Commanders, Hartman understood why he was on the outside looking LQ :KHWKHU LW ZDV LQMXULHV WXUQRYHUV or simply not playing well enough, the IRUPHU :DNH )RUHVW DQG 1RWUH 'DPH quarterback felt fortunate to be on the practice squad. 7KLV WLPH KRZHYHU +DUWPDQ VDZ things differently. After what he called his “most complete” preseason with the :DVKLQJWRQ &RPPDQGHUV KH EHOLHYHG
Evan Harris/Old Gold & Black
Former quarterback Sam Hartman navigates another NFL setback.
he had made a legitimate case for a spot on the 53-man roster. :KHQ +DUWPDQ ZDV LQIRUPHG WKDW KH KDG EHHQ FXW IRU WKH WKLUG FRQVHFXWLYH year, he was left surprised, confused and searching for answers. “It’s back to square one, which is extremely frustrating and extremely disapSRLQWLQJ ´ +DUWPDQ VDLG LQ DQ LQWHUYLHZ ZLWK :DNH )RUHVW MRXUQDOLVP VWXGHQWV “I’m not really disappointed in myself. I’m probably more disappointed in the way that this league works.” Hartman entered the NFL in 2024 as RQH RI WKH PRVW SUROL¿F SDVVHUV LQ )RRWEDOO %RZO 6XEGLYLVLRQ KLVWRU\ WKURZLQJ for 15,656 yards and 134 touchdowns DFURVV KLV ¿YH VHDVRQV DW :DNH )RUHVW DQG RQH DW 1RWUH 'DPH +LV WRXFKGRZQ SDVVHV DW :DNH )RUHVW UHPDLQ WKH most in ACC history. At the same time, his career has been GH¿QHG E\ RYHUFRPLQJ VHWEDFNV +H EURNH KLV OHJ DV D IUHVKPDQ ZLWK WKH 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV DQG ORVW WKH VWDUWLQJ SODFH the following year. As a redshirt junior, KH ZDV GLDJQRVHG ZLWK D VHYHUH EORRG clot near his collarbone that necessitated VXUJHU\ WR UHPRYH RQH RI KLV ULEV $IWHU going undrafted in 2024, Hartman has yet to appear in a regular-season game. ³,¶YH DOUHDG\ EHHQ FDVW DZD\ WR WKH LVODQG RI PLV¿W WR\V ´ +DUWPDQ VDLG ³,¶P an undrafted free agent — 6-foot-1, 210 SRXQGV DYHUDJHO\ IDVW ZLWK DQ DYHUDJH arm. They already wrote me off a long time ago.” Still, Hartman remains in the NFL. $IWHU FOHDULQJ ZDLYHUV KH ZLOO UHWXUQ WR what he referred to as “the most thankless job in the world” on the Commanders’ practice squad. For most NFL fans, the practice squad
exists largely out of sight. Its playHUV SUDFWLFH DORQJVLGH WKH DFWLYH URVWHU preparing the starters by mimicking upFRPLQJ RSSRQHQWV DQG VHUYLQJ DV GHSWK in case of emergencies. $V :DVKLQJWRQ¶V IRXUWK TXDUWHUEDFN +DUWPDQ ¿OOV LQ ZKHUHYHU KH LV QHHGHG during practice. Oftentimes, his role extends well beyond throwing passes. He KDV OLQHG XS DW UHFHLYHU DQG VDIHW\ DQG KDV HYHQ FRYHUHG $OO 3UR UHFHLYHU 7HUU\ McLaurin in the slot. “You’re literally just a utility belt, DQG \RX WU\ DQG JHW LQ ZKHUH \RX ¿W LQ ´ Hartman said. “I could probably just go through an entire practice and do nothing, but I try to be useful as much as I can.” Hartman acknowledged that the practice squad allows him to keep his “foot in the door.” He estimated that there are fewer than 100 quarterbacks on some form of NFL roster. Many more would ORYH WR EH VWDQGLQJ LQ KLV VKRHV 7KDW SHUVSHFWLYH KDV KHOSHG KLP UHFoncile his frustration. “You don’t get to play dress up on Sundays and all that stuff, but you know \RX¶UH VWLOO WKHUH <RX VWLOO KDYH DQ RSportunity,” Hartman said. $QG LI WKDW RSSRUWXQLW\ GRHV DUULYH Hartman will be ready. “I don’t like to change my approach because I would kick myself if somehow it ended up in my hands and I wasn’t ready because I was feeling sorry for myself,” he said. +H UHJXODUO\ ZDWFKHV H[WUD ¿OP VHHNV out additional reps in practice and prioritizes his mental health. In the NFL, Hartman explained, nobody cares where a player started on the depth chart once KH LV IRUFHG RQWR WKH ¿HOG
“You’re the fourth ballet dancer, and the star is always going to be the star,” +DUWPDQ VDLG ³<RX VWLOO KDYH WR JHW your reps in and twirl and dance until maybe one day the spotlight hits you and people are watching.” Before training camp, he wrote a series of reminders in his Notes app: ³'DUH WR À\ ´ ³%H WKH HQHUJ\ ´ ³%H SUHVHQW ´ ³%UHDN GRZQ WKH ER[HV ´ ³3URFHVV RQO\ ´ ³'RXEW LV QRW PLQH , UHIXVH WR carry it” and “There are no free trials in life.” One stands out after another failed bid IRU WKH PDQ URVWHU ³'DUH WR À\ ´ Hartman draws the phrase from the Greek myth of Icarus. It follows Icarus and his father, who escape imprisonment on Crete using wings of feathHUV DQG ZD[ 2YHUFRPH E\ WKH WKULOO RI ÀLJKW ,FDUXV LJQRUHV KLV IDWKHU¶V ZDUQLQJ DQG ÀLHV WRR FORVH WR WKH VXQ PHOWing his wings and sending him falling into the sea. In popular modern adaptations, the story is rethought. Rather than spendLQJ KLV ¿QDO PRPHQWV LQ GHVSDLU ,FDUXV smiles. “He smiles when he falls because he GDUHG WR À\ ´ +DUWPDQ VDLG Back on the practice squad, Hartman will begin another season behind the VFHQHV ZRUNLQJ KDUGHU WKDQ HYHU IRU DQ RSSRUWXQLW\ WKDW PD\ QHYHU FRPH +RZHYHU IDOOLQJ VKRUW GRHV QRW FKDQJH KRZ he measures success. ³, IHOO ÀDW RQ P\ IDFH ´ +DUWPDQ VDLG “But I’m at peace, and I smile because , ZHQW IRU LW DQG , JDYH LW HYHU\WKLQJ , had.” Contact Will Kunisaki at kuniwx23@wfu.edu
Sports | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, October 1, 2026 | Page 17
Women’s Golf jumps to No. 1 in national rankings 'HDFRQV GRPLQDWH WR VWDUW FDPSDLJQ ETHAN TREXLER 6WDII :ULWHU
victory over the runner-up South Carolina Gamecocks. The team was relentless from the start Wake Forest has always had a dis- after establishing an 8-stroke lead in the tinguished golf culture, with four com- ¿UVW URXQG 7KH\ PDLQWDLQHG PRPHQWXP bined national championships between WR ¿QLVK WKH WRXUQDPHQW DV WKH\ ZHUH WKH the men’s and women’s teams. The only team to stay collectively under par school’s reputation is cemented by leg- in each round. Naturally, Wake Forest ends from the trailblazing Arnold Palm- had some impressive individual efforts er in the mid-twentieth century to Cam- that ultimately contributed to the team eron Young, who earned multiple PGA YLFWRU\ 7KUHH 'HPRQ 'HDFRQV ¿QLVKHG LQ WKH WRS ¿YH LQFOXGLQJ MXQLRU &KORH Tour wins in 2026. However, it has been Wake Forest’s Kovelesky, who shot a 54-hole total of women’s team that has most notably ex- XQGHU SDU WR ¿QLVK UXQQHU XS celled in the past decade. The team has IDOOLQJ MXVW RQH VWURNH VKRUW RI 8&/$¶V included stand-out competitors like Jen- Michelle Xing. Additionally, freshman nifer Kupcho, who won the inaugural Havana Torstensson and senior Macy Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 3DWH SODFHG VHFRQG DQG ¿IWK UHVSHFWLYH2019 and the NCAA Individual Title in ly, to round out a solid performance for 2018, and Rachel Kuehn, who set pro- the Deacs. Less than a week later, the team rode gram records while leading the team WR WKHLU ¿UVW QDWLRQDO FKDPSLRQVKLS LQ their wave of momentum into the Jack2023. With a team win and runner-up son T. Stephens Cup at PGA Frisco in ¿QLVK WR VWDUW WKH VHDVRQ :DNH Frisco, Texas. This event consists of 54 Forest’s Women’s Golf team is show- holes of stroke play and a match play ing promising signs of more success to championship between the top two teams. The Deacs continued their stroke come. The team opened the year with a play success with a 54-hole total of 858 dominant outing at Royal Golf Club in (6 under par) to earn a 2-stroke win over Lake Elmo, Minn., at the prestigious the runner-up Gamecocks once again. ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by Additionally, Pate shot an individual 543M. This event hosted some of the best hole total of 212 (4 under par) to tie for programs in the nation, four of which D ¿UVW SODFH LQGLYLGXDO ¿QLVK 6KH VKDUHG were ranked in the top 10. However, the medalist honors with Farah O’Keefe WKH WDOHQWHG ¿HOG SRVHG QR WKUHDW WR WKH of Texas. Deacs, who carded a 54-hole total of After an outstanding stroke play per840 (24 under par) to claim a 10-stroke formance, Wake Forest earned their way
into a match play championship against South Carolina. However, it would be the Gamecocks that would get their revenge over the Deacs and claim the Jackson T. Stephens Cup championship. Despite dominant match wins from Kovelesky (6&5) and freshman Vidhi Lakhawala (4 up), South Carolina narrowly won the other three matches to claim the title. Aside from some minor stumbles in the match play round of the Jackson T. Stephens Cup, the team has been nearly ÀDZOHVV WR VWDUW WKH VHDVRQ HVSHFLDOO\ LQ stroke play competition. As of the Sept.
25 rankings, the Deacs are ranked No. 1 in the nation via the Women’s Congressional Golf Association DI Coaches Poll. A combination of upperclassmen leadership and underclassmen talent seems to have been the key to the team’s success so far. Although the NCAA National Championship is eight months away, the Women’s Golf team is showing all of the signs of being contenders once again.
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Senior Demon
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WRS ÀYH WHDPV ZKLOH 6\UDFXVH ZDV fresh off a win against No. 9 Virginia. The Deacons started the game It was a gorgeous late-September day RII VWURQJ TXLFNO\ ÀQGLQJ WKH EDFN RI as the Demon Deacons took on the Syr- the cage just two and a half minutes into DFXVH 2UDQJH IRU D ÀHOG KRFNH\ JDPH WKH ÀUVW TXDUWHU ZLWK IUHVKPDQ %LDQFD on Sunday, Sept. 27. The Deacons 5HHV *LEEV VFRULQJ KHU ÀUVW JRDO RI WKH hosted the Orange at Kentner Stadium game. It wouldn’t take long for ReesGibbs to score again. At the end of the for a matchup between two nationally ÀUVW TXDUWHU VKH VFRUHG KHU VHFRQG JRDO ranked teams, No. 3 Wake Forest and off a penalty corner, putting Wake ForNo. 11 Syracuse. Wake Forest entered est up by two. the match on a two-game skid against After a dominant start for Wake
Catherine Faircloth/Old Gold & Black
The ence
Demon Deacons moved to play and 6-3 on the season
1-1 with
in the
confervictory
Forest, the momentum equalized in the second quarter, which remained scoreOHVV XQWLO WKH ÀQDO PLQXWHV ZKHQ 6\UDcuse sophomore Aubrey Turner scored KHU ÀIWK JRDO RI WKH VHDVRQ 7KH 'HDcons led by one going into halftime. The Deacons started the second KDOI ZLWK D ÁXUU\ RI ÀYH SHQDOW\ FRUQHUV LQ WKH ÀUVW PLQXWHV EXW ZHUH XQDEOH WR FDSLWDOL]H RQ WKHLU FKDQFHV +RZHYHU they scored a third goal of the day in the last minutes of the third quarter, this WLPH ZLWK VHQLRU $YD 0RRUH ÀQGLQJ WKH back of the cage, putting the Deacons up by two. The Orange quickly struck back and, with less than a minute left in the third quarter, scored their second goal of the game — freshman Jess /LGHOO·V ÀUVW JRDO RI WKH VHDVRQ The game remained close going into the fourth quarter, and play was back and forth. The Deacons scored a ÀQDO JRDO WR JR XS E\ WZR LQ WKH WK minute, a go-ahead goal by junior Sarah 0XGG The Deacons continued to put presVXUH RQ WKH 2UDQJH IRU WKH ÀQDO PLQXWHV of the game, and Syracuse was unable to respond. The game concluded as a ZLQ IRU :DNH )RUHVW³ WKHLU ÀUVW conference win of the season. The Demon Deacons saw standout performances from multiple players as Rees-Gibbs recorded a brace and 0RRUH DQG 0XGG HDFK WRRN KRPH D goal. With the win, Wake Forest head
FRDFK -HQ $YHULOO LV RQO\ WKUHH ZLQV DZD\ IURP KHU WK ZLQ ZLWK :DNH Forest. $YHULOO ZDV VDWLVÀHG ZLWK WKH Demon Deacon performance, which ZDV D YDOXDEOH WXUQDURXQG DIWHU D KHDUWEUHDNLQJ RYHUWLPH ORVV DW KRPH WR 1R 'XNH MXVW WZR GD\V SULRU “I thought it was a solid performance from the squad after Friday QLJKW µ $YHULOO VDLG LQ DQ LQWHUYLHZ ZLWK Wake Forest Athletics. “Our prep was WR OHDYH WKDW RQH EHKLQG DQG PRYH IRUward.” The Demon Deacons played well in the second half, taking 13 of their 19 shots and holding onto their lead against a hard-charging Syracuse team. “I am pleased to see that when the game got tight, we continued to attack instead of falling away under that presVXUH µ $YHULOO VDLG ´3UHVVXUH LV HYHU\thing in this game.” 7KH ZLQ RYHU 6\UDFXVH ZLOO EH D PDMRU FRQÀGHQFH ERRVWHU DV 'HPRQ 'HDcons enter a tough four-game away VWUHWFK :DNH )RUHVW ZLOO WUDYHO WR %RVWRQ WR WDNH RQ %RVWRQ &ROOHJH DQG 1R +DUYDUG RQ 2FW DQG 2FW UHVSHFWLYHO\ EHIRUH WKH\ KHDG WR &DOLIRUQLD WR IDFH 8& %HUNHOH\ DQG 6WDQIRUG on Oct. 9 and 11. &RQWDFW :LOO 2¶1HDO DW RQHDZN #ZIX HGX
ARTS & CULTURE PAGE 18 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
OLD GOLD & BLACK
Lydia Derris, derrlf23@wfu.edu Henry Yates, yatehs24@wfu.edu
“The Firebugs” challenges our desire for comfort Campus play delivers on laughs and confronts the audience POLLY NANTZ Contributing Writer
There’s a thin line between protecting your peace and complacency, and “The Firebugs” reveals that society treats them as one and the same. Disturbed by Switzerland’s neutrality during World War II, Swiss playwright Max Frisch wrote “The Firebugs” in 1953 to highlight, through absurdism, the danger that underlies complacency. Following many months of preparation, the Wake Forest Department of Theatre & Dance opened their production, directed by Brook Davis, at Tedford Stage on Friday, Sept. 25.
“
Despite the severity of arson, the play uses dark humor to entertain the audience. In “The Firebugs,” mysterious arson attacks beset a town. Model citizen Mr. Gottlieb Biedermann (Bennett Haara) is certain that he will never be affected by these preventable crimes, yet proceeds to welcome the arsonists Sepp Schmitz (Conner Hunt) and Willi Eisenring (Patrick Eaton) into his home to retain his upstanding reputation. Blinded by his self-righteousness, Biedermann repeatedly dismisses the arsonists’ indications that they intend harm and indulges in their requests, allowing them to bring gasoline into his attic and even handing them matches. His complacency ultimately leads to disaster, quite literally
Dz ǡ the audience to be on the lookout
exploding before both him and the audience. The actors’ immersive performance, paired with the thoughtful set design of “The Firebugs,” captivated the audience from beginning to end. At first glance, the set design seemed minimal, having merely an outline of a house, a bench and a dinner table, but the performers transformed this simple stage into a full world. Before the play began, the chorus of firemen warned
Piper Saunders /Old Gold & Black
“The Firebugs” is a memorable experience that you should not miss. Tickets are on sale for shows Oct. 1-3 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, Oct. 4 at 2:30 pm.
Piper Saunders /Old Gold & Black
ϐ for two arsonists.
the audience to be on the lookout for two arsonists. These warnings continued throughout the play in an encounter between the chorus and Biedermann, who dismissed the indications and continued to befriend the arsonists. However, despite the severity of arson, the play uses dark humor to entertain the audience. Babette Biedermann (Nola Adepoju), Biedermann’s wife, captured the audience’s attention with her comedic performance. Additionally, arsonist Eisenring’s whistling of Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” and the arsonists’ socks featuring hot rod flames provoked chuckles from the audience, but by the finale, the audience was not laughing. Before Biedermann handed the matches to the arsonists, he spoke directly to the audience, asking, “What would you have done?” and “When would you have done it?” Biedermann said that as long as he befriended the arsonists, he believed that he would be safe from the attacks, causing the atmosphere in the audience to shift from lighthearted to unsettled. The situation escalated after Biedermann gave matches to the arsonists and smoke rose from his attic. Arsonists Schmitz and Eisenring gazed smugly at the audience. Proud of their destruction, they bowed and left Biedermann, who continued to ignore the situation, reading his newspaper as his home was engulfed by flames. In “The Firebugs,” passivity in the face of potential danger leads to a more detrimental result than proactive action would have caused in the first place. At the beginning of the play, audience members may be comfortable and snug in your seat, but by the end, they will be on the edge of their seats and tense, hoping for a happy ending that will not come. “The Firebugs” is a memorable experience that students should not miss. Tickets are on sale for shows Oct. 1-3 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, Oct. 4, at 2:30 pm. Contact Polly Nantz at nantpm26@wfu.edu
7KXUVGD\ 2FWREHU _ Page 19
Arts & Culture _ 2OG *ROG %ODFN
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Page 20 | Thursday, October 1, 2026
Old Gold & Black | Arts & Culture
“Ragtime”: A show for all times Local theater production has a lot to tell Americans about our moment NOLAN WILLIAMS Contributing Writer There are moments in history where one period ends and the people of a nation must decide their future character and aspirations. Today, artificial intelligence offers to either undo society or unlock newfound prosperity while pundits debate which values Americans should prioritize in the coming years. In these moments, it is incredibly important to reexamine history to learn from our mistakes. The Winston-Salem Theatre Alliance addresses all of these questions and many more in their new production of “Ragtime.” Running until Sept. 27, “Ragtime” depicts a time remarkably like our own — the turn of the twentieth century. The assembly line is poised to bring both social upheaval and greater wealth to the working class. At the same time, thinkers like Booker T. Washington and Emma Goldman argue whether the American values
of optimism or social equality would bring the best future. This epic of American history places the audience in a world much like our own, and asks us to learn from a society that struggled with many of the same problems that ours does. Set in Gilded Age New York, “Ragtime” follows three families — one white, one black and one immigrant — as they each try to find their path in a world of uncertainty. African Americans and immigrants struggle to rise to equal social footing, making established powers uncomfortable. Intolerance robs people of their dreams and sparks conflict, bringing scrutiny to the status quo and its unkept promises. The white family, originally comfortable with their position, realize the unfairness of the situation and have to reconsider their roles in a shifting history. Ultimately, the characters and the audience alike must find the best way to create a stable American family when the headwinds of history threaten to undo everything.
The Theater Alliance's talented cast of volunteer actors brings this story to life. This is a true ensemble piece, and every member of the cast brings unique talent to bring the audience into America's past. Theatergoers follow the lives of characters both historical and hyperreal. Marquell Mack has mastered the role of Coalhouse Walker Jr., a Black man whose sincere optimism is shattered by racism. Gray Smith turns in a fantastic performance as Tateh, a Jewish immigrant willing to bend the rules to create the best future for his daughter. Amber Engel's performance as Mother, a wealthy woman whose empathy allows her to see problems to which her family is blind, is simply inspiring. This amazing show will run until Sept. 27, and I encourage everyone who can to go and see it while the opportunity is still available. Visit the Winston-Salem Theatre Alliance website for tickets.
Courtesy of BLT Communications
Winston-Salem Theatre Alliance ran "Ragtime" from Sept. 11-27.
Contact Nolan Williams at willnj26@wfu.edu
The Crossword
Answers can be found at wfuogb.com
THOMAS TILTON Staff Cruciverbalist
1
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3 Abbr. used for hotel and office numbers 4 Comcast or Verizon, in brief 5 Bit of facial hair, slangily 6 Bon Jovi drummer Tico 7 Fishing weapon 8 Long hallway
9 Overall pick of Tim Duncan in the 1977 NBA draft 10 Army nurse, for one 11 Swampy 12 Piece of jewelry intended to ward off evil 16 Train stop, for short 18 Each themed clue in relation to their answers on today, Oct. 1, 2026 20 ___ out a win (narrowly achieving victory) 22 Place to get pampered 23 ___ and aah 24 Alternative to brand-new 25 x, in math 26 Vega found in the show “Victorious,” figuratively and literally 31 “By ___ means necessary” 32 “Get ___ of this guy!” 34 Teacher’s helper 35 Makes messy 36 Mammal that’s the only living relative of the giraffe 37 Sole 40 Score of zero, informally 41 "___ was saying..." 42 Love in Spanish 43 Most uncommon 44 Bit of shaking of the heart 46 Hanging piece of ice 47 Like many eBay purchases 49 Aussie eucalyptus-eater 50 T-shirt sizes between MDs and XLs 51 They can be found by multiplying base and height 55 “Every kiss begins with ___” (jewelry slogan) 57 Abbr. for a group that operates independent of political control 58 Wear, as clothes 59 Mauna ___ (largest active volcano on Earth) 60 Football field increments, for short
Contact Thomas Tilton at tilttd25@wfu.edu