Grobe makes changes for Wake Forest, including quarterback

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Posted 7:02PM on Tuesday, September 27, 2005

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) Some changes were inevitable at Wake Forest. After three losses in the first four games, coach Jim Grobe had a more drastic plan in mind. The most telling difference will be at quarterback, where Grobe plans to let Cory Randolph get his share of snaps at the expense of starter Ben Mauk. Other positions could swap this week, too, as nearly everything in the program gets re-evaluated. ``When you're 1-3, at least for us, we're not going to stay status quo,'' Grobe said Tuesday. ``We have to find a combination that helps us win football games, and so we're not going to just sit on our hands for 11 games and look back on the season and wonder what happened.'' Randolph shared playing time with Mauk last season, then got dropped to No. 2 on the depth chart in the spring. When the Demon Deacons arrived for preseason practice in August, Grobe asked Randolph to add wide receiver to his duties, in part to get the talented senior on the field as much as possible. So far in 2005, Mauk has taken every snap from center, and while Grobe was quick not to blame him for Wake Forest's struggles, it was clear something needed to be done. Mauk has only one touchdown pass and four interceptions, including two that were returned for TDs against Nebraska. ``I'm not in any way pointing a finger at anybody,'' Grobe said. ``I think that Ben Mauk will be a really good quarterback for us. But for whatever reason, we're not playing with a lot of energy on offense right now.'' Although Grobe won't name a starter until later in the week, it appears the edge goes to Randolph at this point. His experiment at wide receiver had mixed results one catch for 25 yards in four games but he should be much more comfortable at quarterback. Randolph has thrown for more than 3,000 yards during his career, including 344 in a victory over East Carolina early last season. He also ran for 107 in that one, becoming the third player in Atlantic Coast Conference history to pass for at least 300 yards and to rush for more than 100 in the same game. That came during a run of 20 straight starts at quarterback, but he slowly lost his grasp on the position. Mauk took over for the final three games a year ago, and now, they're going to switch again. ``We'd love to have Cory Randolph step up and do some great things in his senior year,'' Grobe said. ``It may actually help Ben. I may take the pressure off and allow him to catch his breath.'' Whoever gets the nod should have some other new faces in the huddle against Clemson on Saturday. Grobe is committed to allowing more younger players get on the field, including wide receivers D.J. Boldin, Kenneth Moore and Chip Brinkman. Boldin is the only of the three to have a catch this season, and he has exactly one. ``Our receiver group is wide open for anybody to step in and show some consistency,'' Grobe said. ``Everybody's under the gun right now.'' That's what happens following a tough start, one made all the more difficult by what is ahead. After getting Clemson at home, the Deacons go on the road for four of the next five games, including trips to No. 6 Florida State and to No. 21 Boston College. Ending a string of two consecutive losing seasons looks doubtful. ``My expectations for his year were all about finishing 11-0, and a BCS game, and hopefully the national championship and the ACC championship,'' freshman cornerback Alphonso Smith said. ``Now, I look at it like we still are going to go 8-3.'' That type of attitude among his players is one reason Grobe refuses to give up on this season. ``No matter how down you are as a coach, they pick you up,'' he said, ``just when you're thinking you might need to pick up them.'' (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)