This week, The Chronicle’s Daniel Carp spoke to Old Gold and Black's Sports Editor Nick Weldon about this weekend’s contest between Duke and Wake Forest.
The Chronicle: The first thing worth noting is that this is the first time in a really long time that Duke is favored to win a lot of ACC games. Is Wake Forest looking at this Duke team any differently given their recent success?
Nick Weldon: I know from my perspective, I'm definitely envious of the direction the Duke program is moving in comparison to ours. If you just compare the last couple of years, we seem to be in the downswing. This is definitely a different Duke football team than we're used to seeing.
TC: Duke players definitely consider this game to be a rivalry. Wake Forest had Duke's number for 12 straight years until the Blue Devils won in Winston-Salem last year, and the games always seem to be close. In talking with the team this week, does it feel different than any other game for them because it's Duke?
NW: We always love to beat Duke. Generally in most sports, the rivalry is typically trying to beat UNC, but Wake players love beating Duke. That's definitely something they always look forward to in this game every year, and I know Duke already has its bowl game locked up, but I'm sure the Wake players would love to get a win and knock Duke out of the ACC Championship game. This year especially, it's definitely different than it's been in the past.
TC: Wake Forest still needs two wins to become bowl eligible. Is there a sense of desperation in Wake Forest camp?
NW: You can definitely say there's some desperation. Getting shut out by Syracuse, which is not a very good football team, and then to take the beating we got from Florida State at home, those are two really bad losses. We had the bye last week, and now we need to win two games against football teams that seem to be significantly better than us. I would say there's a very slim chance that we win both those games, so there's definitely a sense of desperation.
TC: Coming off the bye week, speculation has been that Wake Forest might not look like the same team offensively with an extra week to prepare for Duke. What might they change in their schemes?
NW: The one issue that has plagued us is that our only playmaker on offense, Michael Campanaro, is out for the year. The offense ran through him. We didn't really have a running game, but instead would throw short screens to Campanaro and a couple of other guys as our substitute. We can't really do that anymore, and Deandre Martin, one of our top running backs, is also out for the year. If we can't utilize the screen game, we're going to have to rely on Josh Harris and other running backs in some other way. The passing game, there isn't going to be much there without Campanaro.
TC: Duke fans haven't been able to see much of Nikita Whitlock, but just how dominant is he?
NW: I think it's incredible because he's so undersized, and nose tackle is typically one of the biggest player on the field. The fact that he is well under 300 pounds is remarkable, the impact that he can have on games. Part of it is that because he's smaller and quicker, he's able to get around some of these bigger offensive linemen. He's definitely our strongest player on defense and someone Duke is going to have to look out for.
TC: What's a matchup you think could decide this week's game?
NW: I think it's going to come down to quarterback play. There's so many question marks in terms of what we're going to get from Tanner Price. I know it's Senior Day, so it's an emotional day for him as a four-year starter. I'm really curious to see how he performs without Campanaro and how he can control the offense, because this is his last chance to cement his legacy here at Wake.
TC: Finally, what's your score prediction for Saturday's game?
NW: I think that Duke will win, but it could be closer than people think. Blue Devils take it 24-20.
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