2021 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team

The 2021 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by eighth-year head coach Dave Clawson, and played their home games at Truist Field at Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Demon Deacons clinched the Atlantic Division for the first time since 2006 and appeared in the ACC Championship game against Pittsburgh.

2021 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
ACC Atlantic Division champion Gator Bowl champion
ACC Championship Game, L 21–45 vs. Pittsburgh
Gator Bowl, W 38–10 vs. Rutgers
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Division	Atlantic Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 14
AP	No. 15
Record	11–3 (7–1 ACC)
Head coach	Dave Clawson (8th season)
Offensive coordinator	Warren Ruggiero (8th season)
Offensive scheme	Slow mesh
Defensive coordinator	Lyle Hemphill (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Truist Field at Wake Forest
Seasons ← 2020 2022 →

2021 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Atlantic Division
No. 15 Wake Forest xy		7	–	1					11	–	3
No. 20 NC State		6	–	2					9	–	3
No. 14 Clemson		6	–	2					10	–	3
Louisville		4	–	4					6	–	7
Florida State		4	–	4					5	–	7
Syracuse		2	–	6					5	–	7
Boston College		2	–	6					6	–	6
Coastal Division
No. 13 Pittsburgh xy$		7	–	1					11	–	3
Miami (FL)		5	–	3					7	–	5
Virginia		4	–	4					6	–	6
Virginia Tech		4	–	4					6	–	7
North Carolina		3	–	5					6	–	7
Georgia Tech		2	–	6					3	–	9
Duke		0	–	8					3	–	9
Championship: Pittsburgh 45, Wake Forest 21
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Preseason

ACC poll

The ACC media days were held on July 26, 2021. In the conference preseason polls, the Demon Deacons were predicted to finish in fifth place in the Atlantic Division.^[1]

Atlantic

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Clemson	1,028 (146)
2	NC State	804 (1)
3	Boston College	638
4	Florida State	510
5	Wake Forest	472
6	Louisville	462
7	Syracuse	202

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	7:00 p.m.	Old Dominion*		Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC	ACCN	W 42–10	25,673
September 11	12:00 p.m.	Norfolk State*		Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC	ACCNX/ESPN+	W 41–16	21,896
September 18	3:30 p.m.	Florida State		Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC	ESPN	W 35–14	29,564
September 24	7:00 p.m.	at Virginia		Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	ESPN2	W 37–17	38,699
October 2	12:30 p.m.	Louisville	No. 24	Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC	ACCRSN	W 37–34	29,077
October 9	3:30 p.m.	at Syracuse	No. 19	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY	ESPN2	W 40–37 OT	38,554
October 23	12:00 p.m.	at Army*	No. 16	Michie Stadium West Point, NY	CBSSN	W 70–56	38,019
October 30	4:00 p.m.	Duke	No. 13	Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC (rivalry)	ACCN	W 45–7	31,613
November 6	12:00 p.m.	at North Carolina*	No. 9	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)	ABC	L 55–58	50,500
November 13	7:30 p.m.	No. 16 NC State	No. 12	Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC (rivalry)	ACCN	W 45–42	34,503
November 20	12:00 p.m.	at Clemson	No. 10	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ESPN	L 27–48	81,048
November 27	12:00 p.m.	at Boston College	No. 18	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	ESPN2	W 41–10	25,854
December 4	8:00 p.m.	vs. No. 15 Pittsburgh	No. 16	Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, NC (ACC Championship Game)	ABC	L 21–45	57,856
December 31	12:00 p.m.	vs. Rutgers*	No. 17	TIAA Bank Field Jacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl)	ESPN	W 38–10	28,508
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll (and CFP Rankings, after November 2) - Released prior to game All times are in Eastern time

Source:^[2]

^ The game against North Carolina, a fellow member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, was played as a non-conference game and did not count in the league standings.^[3] This was done because the two rivals otherwise only play once every six years due to conference divisional alignment.

Coaching staff

Position	Name	First Year at Wake
Head coach	Dave Clawson	2014
Asst head coach / Receivers	Kevin Higgins	2014
AHC Defense/defensive line	Dave Cohen	2014
Offensive coordinator / quarterbacks	Warren Ruggiero	2014
Defensive coordinator / Safeties	Lyle Hemphill	2017
Special teams coordinator / tight ends	Wayne Lineburg	2017
Assistant special teams coordinator / Nickelbacks	Ryan Crawford	2018
Running backs	John Hunter	2014
Offensive Line	Nick Tabacca	2014
Cornerbacks	Paul Williams	2020
Linebackers	Greg Jones	2016
Special teams analyst	LaTroy Lewis	2021
Source:[4]

Roster

2021 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 0 Christian Turner  So WR 2 Donald Stewart  Sr WR 5 Jaquarii Roberson  Jr WR 7 Donovan Greene  Fr WR 9 A. T. Perry  So QB 10 Sam Hartman  So QB 11 Santino Marucci Fr QB 12 Mitch Griffis Fr WR 13 Ke'Shawn Williams Fr RB 14 Justice Ellison Fr QB 15 Michael Kern  Fr QB 17 Leo Kelly  Fr QB 18 Billy Edwards Jr. Fr TE 20 Cameron Hite  Fr TE 23 Brandon Chapman  Sr WR 24 Dez Williams Fr WR 25 Horatio Fields Fr RB 28 Quinton Cooley Fr WR 29 Christian Greene Fr WR 32 Jarrett Brown  Fr WR 34 Walker Ferguson Fr RB 37 Will Towns Fr WR 38 Nick Ragano Fr WR 39 Zavier Simpson Fr TE 40 Gavin Ellis Fr RB 42 Zach Igwebe Fr TE 44 Ryan Dupont Fr OL 50 Zach Tom  Jr OL 52 Spencer Clapp  Jr OL 53 Je'Vionte' Nash  Sr OL 54 Matt Gulbin Fr OL 55 Michael Jurgens  So OL 59 Loic Ngassam Nya  Jr OL 60 Hampton Tanner Fr OL 62 DeVonte Gordon  Fr OL 63 Jack Pascual Fr OL 67 Trey Turner  So OL 68 Thomas Grippo Fr OL 70 Nick Sharpe Fr OL 71 C. J. Elmonus  Fr OL 72 Erik Russell Fr OL 73 Zach Vaughan Fr OL 74 Luke Petitbon Fr OL 75 Terrance Davis  Sr OL 76 Jaydon Collins Fr OL 77 George Sell Fr OL 78 Christian Forbes Fr OL 79 Sean Maginn  Jr WR 80 Jahmal Banks Fr TE 82 Trey Boll Fr WR 83 Taylor Morin  Fr WR 84 Jackson Hensley Fr TE 85 Blake Whiteheart  So TE 86 Michael Frogge Fr WR 87 Teddy Centofanti  So WR 88 Andy Elkins Jr.  Fr TE 89 Alec Rowan  So	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 0 Tyriq Hardimon  Jr DL 1 Sulaiman Kamara  Sr DL 2 Luiji Vilain GS DB 3 Nasir Greer Jr DE 4 Jacorey Johns  So LB 5 Ryan Smenda Jr. Jr DB 6 Ja'Sir Taylor Sr DL 7 Tyler Williams  Jr DB 8 Isaiah Wingfield GS DB 9 Chelen Garnes So DB 10 DaShawn Jones Fr DL 11 Miles Fox  Sr LB 12 Luke Masterson  Sr LB 15 Jaylen Hudson  Fr DB 17 Traveon Redd  Sr DB 18 K. J. Trujillo So DB 20 Coby Davis  So LB 21 Chase Jones So DB 22 A. J. Williams  Fr DB 23 Jarret Alston Jr.  Fr DB 24 Gavin Holmes Fr DB 25 J.J. Roberts Fr LB 26 Quincy Bryant Fr DB 27 Malik Mustapha Fr DB 28 Zion Keith  So DB 29 Caelen Carson Fr DL 30 Jasheen Davis Fr DB 32 Evan Slocum Fr LB 34 Zach Ranson  Fr DL 35 Kendron Wayman Fr DB 36 Annuj Shah Jr DB 37 Christian Masterson Fr DB 38 Trent Nicholson Fr DL 39 Royce Francis  So DL 40 Rondell Bothroyd  So DB 41 John Peterson III Fr DL 43 B. J. Williams Fr DL 44 Justin Williams  Fr DB 45 Nick Anderson Fr DB 48 Alex Murphey Jr DB 49 Cody Cater Fr LB 50 Dylan Hazen Fr DL 51 Will Smart  Fr LB 55 Max Miller Fr LB 56 Mark Balbis Fr LB 57 Joshua Sosanya Fr LB 58 Chase Monroe  Jr DL 59 Jonathan Saklad Fr DB 80 Justin Simpkins Fr DB 81 Anthony Borriello Fr DB 84 Troy Hoilman Fr DB 89 Luke Terrell Fr DL 91 Kevin Pointer  Fr DL 92 Bernard Gooden Fr DL 93 Isaiah Chaney  Fr DL 94 Zach Lohavichan Fr DL 95 Dion Bergan Jr. Jr DL 96 Claude Bragg Fr DL 98 Wyatt Crespi Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 4 Nick Sciba Jr P, K 36 Ivan Mora  Fr LS 54 Will Cobb Fr P, K 88 Jack Murphy  Jr LS 90 Jacob Zhur Fr K 99 Matthew Dennis Fr	Head coach Dave Clawson Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

Game summaries

Old Dominion

See also: 2021 Old Dominion Monarchs football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Monarchs	3	0	0	7	10
Demon Deacons	14	14	7	7	42

Statistics

Statistics	ODU	WAKE
First downs	17	20
Total yards	272	352
Rushing yards	145	164
Passing yards	127	188
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	32:19	27:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Old Dominion	Passing	Hayden Wolff	11/17, 88 yards, TD
	Rushing	Elijah Davis	12 rushes, 69 yards
	Receiving	Stone Smartt	3 receptions, 26 yards
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	18/27, 188 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Christian Beal-Smith	11 rushes, 74 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	4 receptions, 81 yards, TD

Norfolk State

See also: 2021 Norfolk State Spartans football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Spartans	3	6	0	7	16
Demon Deacons	7	17	17	0	41

Statistics

Statistics	NORF	WAKE
First downs	19	22
Total yards	336	413
Rushing yards	141	161
Passing yards	195	252
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	38:39	21:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Norfolk State	Passing	Juwan Carter	19/31, 195 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	J. J. Davis	6 rushes, 42 yards
	Receiving	Justin Smith	5 receptions, 66 yards
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	17/25, 244 yards, TD
	Rushing	Christian Beal-Smith	9 rushes, 60 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jaquarii Roberson	4 receptions, 97 yards, TD

Florida State

See also: 2021 Florida State Seminoles football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seminoles	7	7	0	0	14
Demon Deacons	14	13	8	0	35

Statistics

Statistics	FSU	WAKE
First downs	16	27
Total yards	317	484
Rushing yards	91	225
Passing yards	226	259
Turnovers	6	2
Time of possession	20:47	39:13

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Florida State	Passing	McKenzie Milton	11/16, 119 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Treshaun Ward	6 rushes, 48 yards
	Receiving	Ontaria Wilson	3 receptions, 91 yards, TD
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	22/31, 259 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Christian Beal-Smith	19 rushes, 95 yards, TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	7 receptions, 155 yards, TD

At Virginia

See also: 2021 Virginia Cavaliers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Demon Deacons	10	10	14	3	37
Cavaliers	0	3	14	0	17

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	UVA
First downs	24	31
Total yards	473	506
Rushing yards	203	99
Passing yards	270	407
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	29:27	30:33

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	17/29, 270 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Justice Ellison	13 rushes, 86 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jaquarii Roberson	4 receptions, 91 yards
Virginia	Passing	Brennan Armstrong	33/59, 407 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Mike Hollins	6 rushes, 36 yards
	Receiving	Dontayvion Wicks	8 receptions, 114 yards, TD

Louisville

See also: 2021 Louisville Cardinals football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	10	7	0	17	34
No. 24 Demon Deacons	10	10	7	10	37

Statistics

Statistics	LOU	WAKE
First downs	25	26
Total yards	517	501
Rushing yards	208	177
Passing yards	309	324
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	34:36	25:24

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Louisville	Passing	Malik Cunningham	19/26, 309 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Jalen Mitchell	17 rushes, 89 yards
	Receiving	Tyler Harrell	1 reception, 75 yards, TD
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	23/40, 324 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Justice Ellison	15 rushes, 67 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jaquarii Roberson	6 receptions, 135 yards

At Syracuse

See also: 2021 Syracuse Orange football team

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
No. 19 Demon Deacons	3	14	9	8	6	40
Orange	7	14	6	7	3	37

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	SYR
First downs	21	33
Total yards	426	514
Rushing yards	96	354
Passing yards	330	160
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	26:10	33:50

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	19/32, 330 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Christian Beal-Smith	17 rushes, 63 yards, TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	3 receptions, 137 yards, 3 TD
Syracuse	Passing	Garrett Shrader	15/27, 160 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Garret Shrader	29 rushes, 178 yards, TD
	Receiving	Courtney Jackson	5 receptions, 64 yards

At Army

See also: 2021 Army Black Knights football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 16 Demon Deacons	14	14	21	21	70
Black Knights	7	14	14	21	56

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	ARMY
First downs	22	31
Total yards	638	595
Rushing yards	180	416
Passing yards	458	179
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	17:17	42:43

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	23/29, 458 yards, 5 TD
	Rushing	Christian Beal-Smith	8 rushes, 71 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jaquarii Roberson	8 receptions, 157 yards, 3 TD
Army	Passing	Jabari Laws	9/11, 140 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Tyhier Tyler	15 rushes, 104 yards, TD
	Receiving	Isaiah Alston	6 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TD

Duke

See also: 2021 Duke Blue Devils football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Blue Devils	0	0	0	7	7
No. 13 Demon Deacons	14	14	10	7	45

Statistics

Statistics	DUKE	WAKE
First downs	12	29
Total yards	315	677
Rushing yards	160	266
Passing yards	155	411
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	23:55	36:05

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Duke	Passing	Gunnar Holmberg	10/18, 110 yards
	Rushing	Mataeo Durant	20 rushes, 103 yards
	Receiving	Jalon Calhoun	3 receptions, 50 yards
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	24/37, 402 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Christian Turner	10 rushes, 75 yards
	Receiving	A.T. Perry	7 receptions, 116 yards

At North Carolina

See also: 2021 North Carolina Tar Heels football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 9 Demon Deacons	10	21	17	7	55
Tar Heels	14	10	10	24	58

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	UNC
First downs	35	31
Total yards	615	546
Rushing yards	217	330
Passing yards	398	216
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	26:27	33:33

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	25/51, 398 yards, 5 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Justice Ellison	13 carries, 81 yards
	Receiving	Jaquarii Roberson	7 receptions, 111 yards, 2 TD
North Carolina	Passing	Sam Howell	16/26, 216 yards, TD
	Rushing	Ty Chandler	22 carries, 213 yards, 4 TD
	Receiving	Antoine Green	6 receptions, 83 yards, TD

No. 16 NC State

See also: 2021 NC State Wolfpack football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 16 Wolfpack	6	14	7	15	42
No. 12 Demon Deacons	7	17	7	14	45

Statistics

Statistics	NCST	WAKE
First downs	25	27
Total yards	482	406
Rushing yards	74	116
Passing yards	408	290
Turnovers	3	3
Time of possession	28:20	31:40

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
NC State	Passing	Devin Leary	37/59, 408 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ricky Person Jr.	8 rushes, 40 yards
	Receiving	Emeka Emezie	10 receptions, 133 yards, 2 TD
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	20/47, 290 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT
	Rushing	Justice Ellison	17 rushes, 57 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	5 receptions, 73 yards, TD

At Clemson

See also: 2021 Clemson Tigers football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 10 Demon Deacons	0	10	3	14	27
Tigers	10	7	21	10	48

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	CLEM
First downs	24	25
Total yards	406	543
Rushing yards	36	333
Passing yards	370	210
Turnovers	3	3
Time of possession	26:08	33:52

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	27/43, 312 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Quinton Cooley	8 rushes, 41 yards, TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	5 reception, 113 yards
Clemson	Passing	DJ Uiagalelei	11/19, 208 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Kobe Pace	24 rushes, 191 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Beaux Collins	4 reception, 137 yards, TD

At Boston College

See also: 2021 Boston College Eagles football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 18 Demon Deacons	14	10	10	7	41
Eagles	7	3	0	0	10

Statistics

Statistics	WAKE	BC
First downs	25	9
Total yards	413	182
Rushing yards	177	163
Passing yards	236	19
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	36:13	23:47

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Wake Forest	Passing	Sam Hartman	20/32, 236 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Christian Turner	18 rushes, 54 yards, TD
	Receiving	A. T. Perry	4 receptions, 81 yards, 2 TD
Boston College	Passing	Phil Jurkovec	3/11, 19 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Phil Jurkovec	11 rushes, 85 yards
	Receiving	Trae Berry	1 reception, 15 yards, TD

Rankings

Further information: 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	—	—	—	RV	24	19	16	16	13	10	13	13	21	18	20	15
Coaches	—	—	—	RV	25	20	16	15	13	9	13	12	21	18	19	14
CFP	Not released									9	12	10	18	16	17	Not released

Players drafted into the NFL

See also: 2022 NFL draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
4	140	Zach Tom	OG	Green Bay Packers
6	214	Ja'Sir Taylor	CB	Los Angeles Chargers

Source:^[5]