[TH Spangler]

Here we go! Looking forward to it!

Wake Forest drew a pretty cupcake opponent for Week 1, when FCS Liberty comes for a visit.

Over the past few seasons, Liberty has been a preseason favorite in the Big South, even managing to crack the FCS Top 25 from time to time, only to fall flat as the season wore on.

The Big South Conference was recently awarded a coveted automatic berth in the FCS playoffs, and despite the added incentive of capturing that elusive conference title, the Flames have fallen just short year after year.

While Liberty will likely be a solid seven or eight-win team again this season, the Flames just won't have the manpower to keep up with Wake Forest.

Don't expect this game to be a blowout, though. Liberty has beaten an FBS program (Ball State in 2010) and played tough against NC State (losing 43-21 in 2011) and West Virginia (losing 33-20 in 2009).

If the Deacons aren't careful, Liberty could manage to throw one past them.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1077 ... ame/page/8

[michaeleyou]

It's interesting that the Deacons are only an 8 point favorite in that game. (If you go to the link thw writers prediction is at the bottom.) Sure would love to go in there and pull the upset.

[ballcoach15]

Lu has held tough against WF, WV, and NC State in years past. with some luck, LU could have came away with a win. I think LU will once again play WF tough and maybe even sneak away with a win.

[jinxy]

Wake Forest is nowhere near as talented as state was and they dont have the fan support that state has either. I think we know Allen and Abnar are running the ball and have a good idea who is catching the ball, Kelly Fergie, Cordasco (spelling) plus all the new receivers and tight ends. QB ist he big question mark, if we have solid qb play this is a winnable game. Of course thats a big if at this point.

[jbock13]

So, they start by calling us a "cupcake", but point out that we play well against FBS competition?

I'm not saying we will win, but a "cupcake" would seem to me like someone who is destined to lose by at least 30.

[NotAJerry]

Wake Forest is nowhere near as talented as state was and they dont have the fan support that state has either. I think we know Allen and Abnar are running the ball and have a good idea who is catching the ball, Kelly Fergie, Cordasco (spelling) plus all the new receivers and tight ends. QB ist he big question mark, if we have solid qb play this is a winnable game. Of course thats a big if at this point.

This is a very talented Wake Forest team. They beat that supposedly more talented NC State team and fell apart at the end of last year due to injuries. They'll be returning 7 offensive starters and 8 defensive starters. They've got a superb QB in Tanner Price (3017 yards, 60%, 20 TD/6 INT). We'll be in a pretty much the same position we would be against NC State.

I'm not sure how fan support really matters in football, or any other sport, except to the fans. Any team that is that affected by the crowd isn't very good.

[jinxy]

completely disagree, wake forest is the 2nd least taleneted team in the ACC and it's not even close. State had several NFL prospects on the D line and at wide receiver and kick returner. you wont see very many nfl prospects on Wake. Sure they have a solid QB but there skill position players are not like what we saw with state. Clearly it's an uphill charge, but state is much more explosive potent team

[jinxy]

They went 6 and 7 last year with a win over Gardner Webb, whom we destroyed. They also had State at home and won by 7. I'm not saying were talking about the difference between Tech and Duke. Put State has a much higher talent ceiling than Wake does in my opinion. There other wins were against Duke Md BC and FSU. FSU is a good win the rest were terrible teams last year. They got destroyed 41 to 7 by vandy, and lost to a bad miss state team in a 6 & 7 game. Like i said theres a talent gap there in my opinion.

I actually think with the guys coming in and pending transfers we will have a more talented team this coming year and hopefully better coaching tactics. Summers is the big loss that i dont know that we can replace. MB while electric made a ton of mistakes in our losses especially against state. Who knows, we will see right?

[NotAJerry]

completely disagree, wake forest is the 2nd least taleneted team in the ACC and it's not even close. State had several NFL prospects on the D line and at wide receiver and kick returner. you wont see very many nfl prospects on Wake. Sure they have a solid QB but there skill position players are not like what we saw with state. Clearly it's an uphill charge, but state is much more explosive potent team

And yet Wake beat NC State and was 5-2 before the injuries set in last year. Wake doesn't have the depth of other ACC squads, but their starters are good enough to hang with anyone in the conference.

[BJWilliams]

I think Jinxy's point is that you cant just chalk it up as a 59-3 game for WF NotAJerry

[TH Spangler]

Wake doesn't have the depth of other ACC squads, but their starters are good enough to hang with anyone in the conference.

Add a great coach .... Jim Grobe, and they can beat anyone in the ACC. The interesting WF game to me last season was the Notre Dame loss 24-17. They matched up well with ND. If LU goes FBS how long do you think it will take for us to see the LU, ND showdown? Do you think LU with the extra FBS scholarships will be ready for ND in a couple of years?

[NotAJerry]

Wake doesn't have the depth of other ACC squads, but their starters are good enough to hang with anyone in the conference.

Add a great coach .... Jim Grobe, and they can beat anyone in the ACC. The interesting WF game to me last season was the Notre Dame loss 24-17. They matched up well with ND. If LU goes FBS how long do you think it will take for us to see the LU, ND showdown? Do you think LU with the extra FBS scholarships will be ready for ND in a couple of years?

Yeah, Grobe could likely do wonders in a higher profile location as long as they gave him 3 years to get his guys in place. He's been successful at Ohio and Wake Forest, that's a sign that you're just good at what you do. Wake had been in 4 bowl games prior to Grobe and has been in 6, with a 4-2 record, since he got there. They average over 100% capacity, they've made major upgrades to their football facilities, and could be looking at stadium expansion for the first time since the place was built in 1968 due to the success under Grobe.

If ND was still cycling through coaches like Willingham and Weiss, then it wouldn't take long to catch them. I like Brian Kelly quite a bit as a coach and think ND is set for an upswing under him that could get them back to the fringe of BCS title contention. Of course, that means LU being competitive with ND make take a little longer, but I don't doubt that we'll get there at some point.

[NotAJerry]

I think Jinxy's point is that you cant just chalk it up as a 59-3 game for WF NotAJerry

You can't do that against NCSU either. The idea that Wake is somehow an easier game, especially since NC State is only 33-30 under Tom O'Brien, doesn't mesh. The last 2 years have been better, but Wake is definitely on their level.

[LUPunter0105]

completely disagree, wake forest is the 2nd least taleneted team in the ACC and it's not even close. State had several NFL prospects on the D line and at wide receiver and kick returner. you wont see very many nfl prospects on Wake. Sure they have a solid QB but there skill position players are not like what we saw with state. Clearly it's an uphill charge, but state is much more explosive potent team

Very false statement...WF is quite talented. They are at worst a middle of the pack ACC team as far as talent...definately not the 2nd least talented. State is more talented, but Wake, I believe, is a much better team. A lot of that has to do with coaching, but the players still have to execute. NC State has been a BIG disappointment with some of the recruiting classes they have had. Also, what you pointed out about Wake last year is that they lost to a very good and talented Vandy team and to a Mississippi State team that finished 7-6 playing in the hardest conference/division in all of college football. Overall, Wake is a much better team than State

[FlamesBeBallin]

Heres the entire ACC schedule this year. Wake seems to have a very well put together schedule.

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/acc ... hedule.pdf

[bradyfan]

Talent does not equate to wins. If wins means you have more talent or vice versa, Purdue should have a B1G championship by now and Florida State should have won the ACC three years in a row. I wouldn't say that Wake is the 2nd least talented team in the ACC, Maryland and BC are terrible. Wake is just a step ahead of Duke in 8th. However, you can find out just how talented teams are by who they put in the NFL. Nobody on this WF will start a full NFL season, yet one could argue differently for NC State. The difference between Wake and State is that Wake has a much better coach and much more chemistry. That does NOT mean they have more talent.

With that said, it's going to take alot for our guys to beat Jim Grobe and the Deacs. This will be a nice test for Gill and whoever takes the QB job.

[Purple Haize]

Talent does not equate to wins. If wins means you have more talent or vice versa, Purdue should have a B1G championship by now and Florida State should have won the ACC three years in a row. I wouldn't say that Wake is the 2nd least talented team in the ACC, Maryland and BC are terrible. Wake is just a step ahead of Duke in 8th. However, you can find out just how talented teams are by who they put in the NFL. Nobody on this WF will start a full NFL season, yet one could argue differently for NC State. The difference between Wake and State is that Wake has a much better coach and much more chemistry. That does NOT mean they have more talent.

With that said, it's going to take alot for our guys to beat Jim Grobe and the Deacs. This will be a nice test for Gill and whoever takes the QB job.

Purdue? Really? That's where you are going for a talent/wins argument? Smdh

[jcmanson]

Purdue? Really? That's where you are going for a talent/wins argument? Smdh

What's the d stand for, Purple?

[bradyfan]

Talent does not equate to wins. If wins means you have more talent or vice versa, Purdue should have a B1G championship by now and Florida State should have won the ACC three years in a row. I wouldn't say that Wake is the 2nd least talented team in the ACC, Maryland and BC are terrible. Wake is just a step ahead of Duke in 8th. However, you can find out just how talented teams are by who they put in the NFL. Nobody on this WF will start a full NFL season, yet one could argue differently for NC State. The difference between Wake and State is that Wake has a much better coach and much more chemistry. That does NOT mean they have more talent.

With that said, it's going to take alot for our guys to beat Jim Grobe and the Deacs. This will be a nice test for Gill and whoever takes the QB job.

Purdue? Really? That's where you are going for a talent/wins argument? Smdh

Drew Brees, Ryan Kerrigan, Kyle Orton, Curtis Painter, Cliff Avril, Ray Edwards, Nick Hardwick, Dustin Keller, Matt Light, Mike Neal (still developing), Rob Ninkovich (selected second team All-Big Ten in 2005), Uche Nwaneri, Greg Orton, Shaun Phillips, Benard Pollard, and Anthony Spencer.

That's a pretty talented bunch if you ask me. With these players, they've been to a total of 4 bowls in the last 8 years. Sure they aren't the most talented team in the B1G and I was exaggerating a little. However, to argue that talent alone leads to wins should indicate that Purdue should have more wins over the past 8 years. This isn't the only example.

Look at how "well" Florida State, Miami and Notre Dame have recruited over the past five years.

Recruit Class rankings
2007: Norte Dame -11, Miami - 13, Florida State - 33
2008: Norte Dame - 2, Miami - 3, Florida State - 8 (also, UCLA was 10th on this list)
2009: Florida State - 18, Notre Dame - 23, Miami 24
2010: Florida State - 9, Miami - 14, Notre Dame - 19
2011: Florida State - 1, Notre Dame - 8, Miiami 35

2011-2012 records: Florida State - 9-4, Miami - 6-6, Notre Dame 8-5.

Are you still arguing that talent alone equates to wins?

[thepostman]

I never can get through CJ's posts when he is arguing with someone. Even if he is right I want him to be wrong.

[flamehunter]

I never can get through CJ's posts when he is arguing with someone. Even if he is right I want him to be wrong.

I'm just trying to figure out who he's arguing with. I don't see where anyone said talent alone = wins.

[bradyfan]

I never can get through CJ's posts when he is arguing with someone. Even if he is right I want him to be wrong.

I'm just trying to figure out who he's arguing with. I don't see where anyone said talent alone = wins.

You don't have to say anything to imply something. Someone made the argument that because Wake Forest beat NC State last year, WF was more talented than State. If they are indicating anything outside of "talent alone equals wins", they did not indicate and should have. They never discussed the coaches at WF compared to State or the chemistry or several other potential factors. If you read and comprehend this thread correctly, it's quite easy to see who I'm arguing with.

[jinxy]

Punter. All i know is state has several nfl prospects on last year team and this years team and has a better resume. Grobe is a good coach but he clearly doesnt have the same talent thats why he redshirts everyone because most of them need time to develop. Grobe does more with less. My point was thatbi believe state is a better program than wake and we competed with them so with a few adjustments i see no reason for uis not to be close

[flamehunter]

I never can get through CJ's posts when he is arguing with someone. Even if he is right I want him to be wrong.

I'm just trying to figure out who he's arguing with. I don't see where anyone said talent alone = wins.

You don't have to say anything to imply something. Someone made the argument that because Wake Forest beat NC State last year, WF was more talented than State. If they are indicating anything outside of "talent alone equals wins", they did not indicate and should have. They never discussed the coaches at WF compared to State or the chemistry or several other potential factors. If you read and comprehend this thread correctly, it's quite easy to see who I'm arguing with.

I've been reading and comprehending things for a lot longer than you've been alive. If you want to constantly read between the lines and argue about things you ASSUME they are saying go right ahead. You only end up looking foolish in the end.

[bradyfan]

I've been reading and comprehending things for a lot longer than you've been alive. If you want to constantly read between the lines and argue about things you ASSUME they are saying go right ahead. You only end up looking foolish in the end.

Then surely you just woke up or you would have easily seen who I was arguing with. Mind explaining how I'm reading between the lines? Or how I'm assuming something that isn't based purely on the information at hand? Also, why would you care so much?