Sports | Old Gold & Black
Thursday, November 1, 2012 | Page 13
Wake Forest faces a struggling Boston College Wake football looks to rebound after tough loss to Clemson on national TV BY NICK WELDON Staff Writer weldnr11@wfu.edu “I think we have some teams that are beatable coming up in the schedule,” junior nose guard Nikita Whitlock said, following Wake Forest’s 42-13 loss to Clemson. “We have two games to win, at least, in order to be bowl eligible.” Whitlock is right. The Demon Deacons still need two victories to have a chance at reaching a bowl game this winter. However, contrary to what the Wylie, Texas native says, with the strength of their remaining schedule, this might not be possible. Their future opponents include No. 3 Notre Dame, a N.C. State squad that dealt Florida State its only loss and a Vanderbilt team that played respectable games against No. 7 Florida and No. 8 South Carolina. But before all these games comes a Nov. 3 home matchup against Boston College, the most beatable of the group. The Eagles just won their first ACC game last weekend, against Maryland, who has resorted to playing a true freshman linebacker at quarterback due to injuries. Wake Forest lost to this same Maryland squad just a month ago. A year ago when the Demon Deacons traveled to Chestnut Hill, they narrowly escaped with a 27-19 victory. This year the Eagles will make the trip down south to BB&T Field, where the result could very well be the same. At times, Boston College has played like the Wake Forest team of last year — they put up 31 points against Clemson and lost by just two scores. Then, two
weeks later, they got blown out by Florida State in Tallahassee, but they did at least manage to find the endzone, unlike the Demon Deacons of this year. The game will ultimately come down to the performance of junior quarterback Tanner Price and the offense, which at the moment is faced with more questions than answers. Will the makeshift offensive line be able to protect Price? Will the wide receivers prove they are meant to play their position and actually catch the ball? Will the team convert on a tough third-down play? The success of the offense will also heavily depend on the health of its one true playmaker, redshirt junior wide receiver Michael Campanaro. After missing two games with a broken hand, the flanker returned several weeks early to take on Clemson. He finished with a respectable six catches for 56 yards. He is the team’s only receiver that doesn’t drop balls at an alarmingly high rate. As for Boston College’s offense, Wake Forest will have to keep up with an explosive unit that ranks 34th in the nation in passing yards, averaging just under 280 yards per game. Junior Chase Rettig leads the attack, having already eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark this season. He has thrown 15 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions. His favorite target is fellow junior Alex Amidon, who has exploded for almost 60 catches and nearly 1,000 yards on the year. Shutting down this duo, along with stimulating his own offense, will be among head coach Jim Grobe’s greatest challenges in preparing for the game. “We have a chance to win games,” Grobe said. “We just have to play better and coach better.” Unfortunately, this is often easier said than done.
Rachel Severence/Old Gold & Black
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons hope for a good result against the Boston College Eagles Nov. 3 for the last home game.
Press Box: Celtics, Clippers and Thunder expect success Continued from Page 11
Photo courtesy of tv.yahoo.com
Dwight Howard is hoping to bring a championship trophy to the city of Los Angeles in his first season with the Lakers.
The newest team to take this approach is the Los Angeles Lakers. The acquisitions of All-Star center Dwight Howard and perennial play-maker Steve Nash make the Lakers the best team in the Western Conference and place them in the top tier of teams in the league alongside the Miami Heat. While the Heat, who added the sharp shooting guard Ray Allen in the offseason, and Lakers are the likely favorites to make the finals this year, there are some teams that still pose a strong threat to these goliaths. The Los Angeles Clippers are a team that will be playing for more than another play-off appearance this season. With point guard Chris Paul’s contract coming to a close, the Clippers will be looking to have the type of season that will not only satisfy the Wake Forest alumnus, but convince him to resign and maintain ties with Blake Griffin and Clipperland. For this reason, the Clippers will be an aggressive team this season vying for a top spot heading into the playoffs. As the raw talent in Griffin and DeAndre Jordan continues to develop under the tutelage of veterans Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler, the Clippers will only improve upon their already impressive 40-26 finish last season. The Oklahoma City Thunder is a team that has avoided the emerging concept of “roster stack-
ing” and has found success through depth and home grown talent. With the duo of two-time scoring champion Kevin Durant and high flying point guard Russell Westbrook at the helm, the Thunder epitomizes team chemistry. The recent acquisition of guards Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb cost the Thunder the reigning Sixth Man of the Year in James Harden, but added even greater depth to this roster that is poised to make another run deep into the post season. While the original “Big 3” of Boston has aged and is no longer intact, the Celtics are a team that has quietly put together one of the most productive off seasons in the league. After losing Ray Allen, the C’s quickly signed three point shooting specialist Jason Terry and versatile swingman Courtney Lee. These moves, in tandem with the return of the talented forward Jeff Green, who missed all of last season after needing heart surgery, provide the Celtics with a deep bench to accompany their already talented starting five. The big question looming is whether or not Kevin Garnett can hold his own in the post. If he can, the Celtics will once again be contenders for the title. With Derrick Rose still injured and likely to miss a good portion of the season, the Chicago Bulls are a household name you will likely not see on the court this spring. While the Clippers, Thunder and Celtics were all threatening to upset the monolith that is the Miami Heat last season, you can expect them to be back at it this season with even greater intensity.