I thought it was possible that by taking a couple of days off somehow something might change and Wake wouldn't have lost to Maryland on Saturday. Clearly it was wishful thinking. The loss happened, and it was just as ugly as it seemed to be at the time. Yep. 26-0. It's true.

The last few weeks have been deceptive. The Florida State game started making people nervous about a lack of offense, but the defense played so well and the Deacs won such an important game that it was easy to forgive. Against Navy it was easy to blame Riley Skinner's incredibly poor day for most of the offensive problems, and it wasn't a conference game so losing that game is less painful. Every team has a really bad game at some point, right? Against Clemson the Deacs finally got in the endzone, and even though it wasn't a pretty offensive performance, it seemed to be headed in the right direction. The defense played very well once again, and a Thursday night ACC victory made it all good.

There aren't any excuses left. There aren't any rose colored glasses. There aren't any silver linings, either. The Deacs were dominated by Maryland in every aspect of the game, with no one to blame but themselves. Okay, sure, had Swank been available to play Wake scores at least 6 points in the first half and maybe things play out differently, but I don't think anyone can honestly say that Sam Swank would have been enough to turn this one around.

The defense didn't play as well as they did against FSU and Clemson, but I don't think it's fair to expect that kind of performance from them every week. At some point the offense has to be able to put points on the board.

Perhaps the hard part about this one is that there isn't any one place to lay the blame. There isn't an easy fix where we can hope for one change to make a big difference. Skinner was not at his best, but he didn't throw a bunch of interceptions. The receivers dropped passes, the offensive line missed blocks, and the running backs didn't help themselves out. It was just a terrible performance by every measure.

It's not surprising that it has left many fans somewhat hopeless. Where a week ago people were thinking about making reservations for Tampa and/or Miami, now people are wondering if this team can win a few more games and stay on the east coast for bowl season.

Certainly Wake could go down to Miami on Saturday and have a great performance that changes everything, but that is nothing but wishful thinking at this point. This offense cannot put points on the board. It's never easy to win games that way.

As usual, let's see what the answers to the burning questions were:

1. Will the defense keep up the near-perfect performances?
Nope, not this week. That's not to say it was a terrible performance. They were on the field for the entire game and did some good things, but it was far from perfect. Aaron Curry seemed to have an off day, Maryland game planned effectively and stayed away from Alphonso Smith, and the defensive line wasn't able to get any pressure on Maryland's quarterback. It may have been a fine performance, but the level of expectation this defense created for itself in two previous ACC games was certainly not met.

2. Will the red zone play calling improve?
Usually you ask a question like this assuming that at least sometime in the game you'll be in the redzone. At least once. Wake never got closer than Maryland's 23. I'd have much rather seen bad red zone play calling than no red zone play calling. Perhaps playcalling in general was poor?

3. Is Saw Swank going to play? Will the rest of the team stay healthy?
No Swank. No Points. We need Swank back in the worst of ways. Maybe he could jumpstart the scoring. Maybe he could go out there and block. Something, anything. The rest of the team did stay healthy. That's nice, I guess.

Predictions: I predicted 20-13 Wake. Maryland had their 13 points in the first half. The Deacs are still looking for any of theirs.

I'm pretty sure I'll have the chance to watch some film of this one and try to figure out where some of the offensive problems are coming from, but that doesn't mean I'll have any solutions. We'll see what we come up with.

Read More...

Should be fun a fun one today - Let's get some good discussion going. I'll get things started about 11:45

Read More...

It's an early one tomorrow, with the Deacs taking on the Maryland Terrapins in a noon matchup on Raycom sports (find out what network it will be on in your area). If we're going to play a noon game, though, I'd rather it be on the road.

It's incredibly difficult to figure out this Maryland team. They beat Clemson and then get crushed by Virginia. They're 4-2 overall and 1-1 in the ACC. They start out with a bad win over Delaware and a loss to Middle Tennessee State before bouncing back for a win over Cal. Who is this team?

Clearly they're capable of big wins, which means Wake cannot be taking them lightly. At the same time, I feel pretty confident Wake is the better team in this game. Certainly Maryland has caused problems for the Deacs over the years, and playing in College Park isn't always easy, but I definitely feel like Wake has the upper hand.

Burning questions about this week's game:

1. Will the defense keep up the near-perfect performances?
For three straight games the defense has been the only thing keeping Wake afloat. I know we all want to see the offense improve, and hopefully they will, but th defense has to keep up the intensity.

2. Will the red zone play calling improve?
The offense showed some pretty significant improvement last week against Clemson, but still only managed 12 points. The other offensive statistics would indicate a better performance, so what was wrong? The Deacs couldn't make anything happen once they got in the red zone. Running the "Wild Deac" from the 1 yard line? Bad idea. Fix it.

3. Is Saw Swank going to play? Will the rest of the team stay healthy?
Swank is still questionable for this week's game, and I know we all want to see him kicking. I'm okay with having Popham handle the punting duties, and even the kickoffs if necessary. As long as Swank can kick the field goals I'll be happy. It isn't being talked about all that much, but this two game road swing is really one of the more important stretches of the season. The Deacs aren't playing the biggest names, but these are two good ACC teams on the road, and coming out with two wins is huge. A key to that is keeping everyone else healthy for both games. Hopefully that happens tomorrow.

Predictions: I think Wake will score more points this week, but it may be with a bunch of field goals (Heather Dinich predicted 21-20 Wake, but I have no idea how she expects Wake to score 3 TDs and no field goals. In the last two seasons Wake has scored only touchdowns one time - against Army early in the 2007 season). Wake could score three touchdowns, but there will be a couple of field goals too. I'm predicting a Wake win, 20-13.

Let me know what you think. Have your own prediction? Share with the class.

Read More...