Wake Forest Football: Week 13 PFF Grades Roundup

We take a look at the top performers from each unit in Wake's loss to Duke according to Pro Football Focus

Wake Forest finished the regular season with a hard-fought loss to Duke, falling to the Blue Devils 34-31. The Deacs fought valiantly but sputtered on both sides of the ball late in the game en route to their fifth loss of the year. Here’s how each unit graded out according to Pro Football Focus.

READ: ACC Football Power Rankings: Week 14

Quarterbacks:

1. Sam Hartman- 88.7

As this grade would indicate, Hartman doesn’t deserve the blame for this loss. He was fantastic in his final regular season game as a Demon Deacon, throwing for 347 yards and three touchdowns. Hartman made big-time throws all game long, eventually delivering a strike through a tight window in the back of the end zone to A.T. Perry that put the Deacs up 31-27 late in the fourth quarter. Though the Deacs couldn’t come away with the win, Hartman’s performance pushed him into a tie for first place in ACC history with Tajh Boyd for career passing touchdowns (107). Hartman’s grade of 88.7 was his highest of the season.

READ: Unit Grades from Wake Forest's 34-31 loss to Duke

Running Backs:

1. Christian Turner- 69.2
2. Justice Ellison- 61.9
3. Quinton Cooley- 59.0

The run game wasn’t exceptionally effective against Duke — Ellison was the leading rusher and carried the ball 10 times for 42 yards and a touchdown. Behind him, Turner and Cooley combined for 41 yards on 12 carries. The run game has been somewhat inconsistent all season, and though the halfbacks picked up some key first downs in short yardage situations on Saturday, they were lacking in big plays on the ground. The longest run of the day from this trio was a nine-yard carry by Christian Turner. Turner’s grade was actually his second-highest of the season, Ellison’s was his third-lowest, and Cooley’s was tied for his second-lowest.

READ: Takeaways from Wake Forest's 34-31 loss to Duke

Pass Catchers:

1. Taylor Morin- 89.9
2. Blake Whiteheart- 75.4
3. A.T. Perry- 66.7

PFF has loved Morin recently — Saturday marked his second game in the last three weeks with a grade of over 85. He finished with 6 catches, 93 yards and a touchdown in the loss. Whiteheart made several big catches as well, including a 30-yard grab on a 3rd-and-7 early in the game to move the Deacs into Duke territory. Perry’s (8 rec., 87 yards) touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter was his biggest of the game — he broke open in the back of the end zone on a crossing route and hauled it in to give Wake a four-point lead. These are the highest grades of the season for Morin and Whiteheart, while Perry’s was middle of the pack.

Offensive Line:

1. Michael Jurgens- 69.0
2. Loic Ngassam Nya- 67.4
3. Spencer Clapp- 61.8

The offensive line looked solid in pass protection on Saturday, giving up just three sacks. All three of these players graded above 74 in the pass blocking category. Run protection was a different story — no one in this trio was graded at higher than a 65.5. It’s been an up-and-down season for this unit, and they’ve struggled to string together consistent performances. Jurgens’ grade was his fourth-highest of the season, Ngassam Nya’s was his third-highest, and Clapp’s was in the bottom half of his marks for this season.

Defensive Line:

1. Kobie Turner- 77.6
2. Kendron Wayman- 68.6
3. Jasheen Davis- 68.4

It’s only fitting that Kobie Turner (4 tackles, 0.5 TFLs) notched the highest grade on the defensive line — and the entire defense — in Wake’s final game of the season. Turner was graded 70 or higher a whopping nine times throughout the season, eclipsing 87 in three of those contests. Kendron Wayman finished with two solo tackles, while Jasheen Davis added three total tackles and Wake Forest’s lone sack of the day. Both Wayman’s and Davis’ grades were middle of the pack.

Linebackers:

1. Quincy Bryant- 75.0
2. Dylan Hazen- 67.0
3. Ryan Smenda Jr.- 63.2
4. Chase Jones- 60.5

Quincy Bryant led this group despite only playing 10 snaps, adding a solo tackle in his limited role. Hazen didn’t record a tackle, but raided over 60 in the categories of run defense and pass rush. Smenda and Jones combined for 16 total tackles (4 solo) and Jones added half a TFL. Smenda and Jones are now ranked first and second on the team in total tackles, combining for 172 on the year.

Defensive Backs:

1. Jermal Martin Jr.- 76.7
2. AJ Williams- 69.9
3. Evan Slocum- 66.2

Martin was the second-highest graded Deac on the defense and deservedly so — he made the most impactful defensive play of the game when he picked Riley Leonard off in the end zone late in the fourth quarter. AJ Williams and Slocum both added two solo tackles. Aside from Martin’s pick, however, the secondary struggled mightily, giving up 391 passing yards and four touchdowns to the Duke offense. The presence of Malik Mustapha at safety was sorely missed once again.

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