Wake Forest is about to spend the rest of the summer and early fall figuring out exactly what this new group can become, and Steve Forbes gave a few early clues last week when he met with the media for the first time since the offseason began.
The schedule he laid out gives the Deacs three chances to get their footing before the regular season opens on November 2nd. Wake will host Georgetown on October 4 in an exhibition that should offer fans their first look at the revamped roster. Georgetown has rebuilt through the portal as well, so that one should feel like a true early test for two teams still learning each other.
A little more than a week later, Wake heads to Rock Hill on October 15 to face South Carolina. That matchup adds another new-look roster to the mix and gives the Deacs an SEC opponent in the preseason. Forbes also said the team will play a closed-door scrimmage near the start of the season, rounding out a stretch that should help the group come together even if the non-conference slate does not feature quite as many headline games as some fans might have wanted.
The biggest buzz from Forbes’ comments centered on freshman Gavin Placide, and it was hard to miss how much he likes the young forward. Forbes said:
"He's probably the most talented freshman I've coached, maybe since Tobias Harris. Just that type of size, build, skill.
I mean, he can do so many things with the ball in his hands off the dribble. He can shoot it, rebound it, pass it, good defender.
Really, really, really like him."
That is a huge statement from a coach who has seen plenty of talent over the years, and Placide sounds like the kind of frontcourt piece Wake has been missing. His size, athleticism and skill give the Deacs a different look inside, and Forbes made it clear he sees real upside there.
Forbes also set the tone for how the program views itself heading into the season. He said:
"Expectations are built on what we see every day on and off the court, and they're high. They're high.
Expectations aren't given to you. They're created by us."
That message lines up with what Jamari McDowell said as well, when he noted that this team is "definitely not last in the ACC." The outside projections may not be kind to Wake, but the program clearly isn’t buying into that. With a roster that has been reshaped and upgraded in key areas, especially size and defensive ability, there’s a sense that this team can be better than the preseason chatter suggests.
Wake Forest still has to prove it on the court, and the real judgment won’t come from offseason rankings. It will come once November arrives and this group starts showing what it can do together. For now, the message from inside the program is pretty clear: there’s more here than the outside world seems to think.
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ACC Forced To Rewrite Title Race Rules After Last Seasons Chaos
The ACC spent part of its media days cleaning up a mess it created last season, when its title-game path drew heavy scrutiny after a five-loss Duke team advanced over Miami under the old tiebreaker setup. Conference officials said the overhaul is meant to better ensure the two best teams reach the championship game, while also accounting for the leagues expanded and uneven schedule and keeping the process more in step with College Football Playoff thinking.
For Wake Forest and the rest of the league, the practical change is that the conference is trying to define ties in a way that makes more sense in a 17-team setup, where some schools will play eight league games and others nine. The ACC is also leaning more heavily on a measure the playoff selection committee uses, even if it is not formally adopting CFP rankings as the tiebreaker, a sign the league knows last seasons confusion cannot be repeated. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State's Patience With Mike Norvell Is Becoming An ACC Story
Florida States decision to stay the course with Mike Norvell has become one of the more talked-about patience tests in the ACC. After a 13-1 breakthrough, the Seminoles have gone through back-to-back losing seasons, including a 2-10 collapse and then a 5-7 follow-up after Norvell reshaped his staff, leaving the program in a place where the promise of that near-playoff run feels increasingly distant.
Paul Finebaum has only sharpened the conversation by openly questioning why Florida State has not already moved on, arguing that Norvell has not shown enough since that peak to justify the wait. For a league that is always watching how its powers handle pressure, the Seminoles stance is now part football decision, part conference-wide referendum on how long a major program will keep betting on a coach to rediscover what once looked like a fast track back to the top. [Read more 🡒]