Grobe hopes to continue dominance over other in-state programs

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Posted 9:33PM on Tuesday, October 25, 2005

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) Like any new coach, Jim Grobe intended to dominate recruiting in his school's home state after he started at Wake Forest four years ago. The results so far have been mixed. Sure, about a quarter of this year's roster 26 players is from North Carolina, but only six players could be called starters. And one of those is long-snapper Nick Jarvis. Of course, one way to improve his draw is to beat the other schools, something Grobe has done regularly. The Demon Deacons are 15-5 in these matchups, and while seven of the victories have been outside of the Atlantic Coast Conference, only North Carolina State (3-2) has a winning record against Grobe. ``I think we try as hard as we possibly can to recruit the state of North Carolina first and foremost,'' Grobe said Tuesday. ``You're always competing against the other schools, so obviously, the better you do on the field, the more it helps.'' On Saturday, Wake Forest (3-5, 2-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) gets a chance to extend its dominance over Duke, which has yet to win against Grobe. And it comes at a critical time for the Deacons, who after beating the Wolfpack last week still need to win their last three games of the season to qualify for a bowl game. Following the trip to meet the Blue Devils, they travel to Georgia Tech before finishing up their schedule at home against No. 6 Miami. ``We kind of went on a skid there,'' said Wake Forest tailback Chris Barclay, who is 113 yards away from breaking the school's all-time rushing record. ``Being able to capitalize this past week against State was a big thing for us. We talked all week about closing games out, and I think we really did that.'' For most teams, the challenge against the Blue Devils (1-7, 0-5) is simply taking them seriously. They are finishing out another forgettable season their 11th consecutive with a losing record and have yet to beat a Division I-A opponent. The lone victory came against VMI of the Southern Conference, although Duke did put up a competitive fight against Florida State last week before the Seminoles pulled away for a 55-24 victory. But the Deacons sometimes get overlooked, too, so they plan to give the Blue Devils all their attention. ``Any given Saturday, anyone can win,'' safety Patrick Ghee said. ``I think we can't look at what the record shows. If we go in there and be slack, then we're going to lose the game. Because this is ACC ball and everybody has great athletes.'' Grobe, though, is a few bodies short because of injuries. Quarterback Cory Randolph still is trying to recover from a high ankle sprain that kept him out of the victory over N.C. State, and while Ben Mauk filled in more than capably, Grobe would like to have two healthy players down the stretch. Unless Randolph shows some improvement over the next couple of days, Mauk again will get the nod. ``Can we give Cory enough full-speed reps to go Saturday?'' Grobe said. ``My guess right now would be no.'' He may also struggle to put together a credible offensive line. Tackle Steve Vallos (concussion) and guard Arby Jones (knee) both left the game against the Wolfpack with injuries, stretching an already thin depth chart a bit more. Grobe hopes both will return this week, but he also understands Wake Forest is a couple of bumps and bruises away from serious problems. ``That would officially be a disaster,'' he said with a big smile. (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)