WakeyLeaks was a college football scandal involving leaked playbook information from the Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Claims that the playbook had leaked first surfaced on November 16, 2016 after an investigation was opened into allegations that Louisville had access to the Demon Deacons playbook from documents found in the Cardinals locker room following their 44-12 win in Winston-Salem.
A tweet by Outer Banks-based news broadcaster and writer Sam Walker using #Wakeyleaks the same day was the first to reference the scandal as such on social media, with the hashtag going viral one month later. [5]
On December 13, 2016, Wake Forest University announced that Tommy Elrod, a former Demon Deacon player and assistant coach, had provided or attempted to provide confidential game preparations to opponents several times starting in 2014. Elrod had been fired from the program prior to the 2014 season, leading many to speculate that revenge was his motivation. However, Elrod has never publicly commented on the matter. [6] [4]
Many were caught in the scandal's fallout. Elrod was fired from the IMG Radio Network and banned from Wake Forest athletics and facilities. [6] The University of Louisville, Virginia Tech, Georgia assistant coach Shane Beamer, and Army defensive coordinator Jay Bateman were all fined $25,000. [7] [8] [9] However, WakeyLeaks has been noted for receiving surprisingly little attention. It has been described as "the scandal that should have rocked college football". [4]
WakeyLeaks has been credited with sparking the program to unprecedented success. Wake Forest changed from being one of the most open programs in the country to being one of the most secure. Offensive coordinator Warren Ruggiero created a new scheme that drastically improved Wake Forest's average points-per-game. By 2021, the program had reached its highest final ranking ever in the AP Poll. [4]
George Edward "Skip" Prosser was an American college basketball coach who was head men's basketball coach at Wake Forest University at the time of his death. He was the only coach in NCAA history to take three separate schools to the NCAA tournament in his first year coaching the teams. In 21 years as a collegiate coach, he made 18 postseason appearances.
Jim Britt Grobe is an American college football coach and former player who was most recently the defensive coordinator of the San Antonio Commanders of the Alliance of American Football. His previous position to that was as head football coach at Baylor University. From 2001 to 2013, Grobe served as the head football coach at Wake Forest University. In 2006, he was named ACC Coach of the Year by a unanimous vote and AP Coach of the Year for coaching Wake Forest to an 11–2 regular season and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) title.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represents Wake Forest University in the sport of American football. The Demon Deacons compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Wake Forest plays its home football games at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium and is coached by Dave Clawson.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Wake Forest University, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball team represents Wake Forest University in NCAA Division I college basketball and competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Through the years, the program has produced many NBA players, among them are Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, 12× All-Star Chris Paul, 1× All-Star Jeff Teague, Sixth Man of the Year Rodney Rogers, and 1× All-Star Josh Howard. The Demon Deacons have won the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament four times, in 1961, 1962, 1995, and 1996. Wake Forest has appeared in 23 NCAA tournaments, most recently appearing in 2017. The current coach is Steve Forbes, who was hired on April 30, 2020.
Dino Joseph Gaudio is an American former men's college basketball coach and broadcaster who was most recently an assistant coach at the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky.
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons baseball team represents Wake Forest University in NCAA Division I college baseball. The program competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). They won the 1955 College World Series. They are coached by Tom Walter.
David Paul Clawson is an American retired college football coach and former player. He most recently served as the head football coach at Wake Forest University, where he was named the 2021 ACC Coach of the Year. Clawson previously served as the head football coach at Fordham University from 1999 to 2003, at the University of Richmond from 2004 to 2007, and at Bowling Green State University from 2009 to 2013. At Wake Forest, his annual salary was $3.6 million.
The Wake Forest University Demon Deacons men's soccer team is an NCAA Division I college soccer team composed of students attending Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They achieved their greatest result in 2007, winning the 2007 Division I Men's College Cup. Like all sports teams from Wake Forest, men's soccer competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Deacons play their home matches at Spry Stadium on the campus of Wake Forest.
The 2011 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Jim Grobe, who was coaching his eleventh season at the school, and played its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference, as they have since the league's inception in 1953, and are in the Atlantic Division. They finished the season 6–7, 5–3 in ACC play to finish in a tie for second place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Music City Bowl where they were defeated by Mississippi State 17–23.
The 2012 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Jim Grobe, who was coaching his twelfth season at the school, and played its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference, as they have since the league's inception in 1953, and are in the Atlantic Division.
The 2014 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Dave Clawson, who was coaching his first season at the school, and played its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference as part of the Atlantic Division, as they have since the league's inception in 1953. They finished the season 3–9, 1–7 in ACC play to finish in a tie for sixth place in the Atlantic Division.
The 2015 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team is coached by Dave Clawson, who is coaching his second season at the school, and plays its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference as part of the Atlantic Division, as they have since the league's inception in 1953. They finished the season 3–9, 1–7 in ACC play to finish in sixth place in the Atlantic Division.
The 2016 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Dave Clawson, who was in his third season at the school, and played its home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference, as they have since the league's inception in 1953. They finished the season 7–6, 3–5 in ACC play to finish in a tie for fourth place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Military Bowl where they defeated Temple.
The 2016 NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game was the final game of the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship, determining the national champion for the 2016 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The match was played on December 11, 2016, at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas, a soccer-specific stadium that is home to Major League Soccer club, Houston Dynamo. Stanford of the Pac-12 Conference won the match, and successfully defended their national championship. Stanford defeated Wake Forest of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The crowd of 6,315 saw the match decided on penalty kicks, where Stanford prevailed on a 5–4 scoreline, following a 0–0 draw in regulation and overtime. The title was Stanford's second ever title, in their fourth-ever appearance. It was Wake Forest's second appearance in the final.
The 2017 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by fourth-year head coach Dave Clawson, and played their home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference as they have since the league's inception in 1953. They finished the season 8–5, 4–4 in ACC play to finish in a three-way tie for third place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Belk Bowl, where they defeated Texas A&M.
The 2018 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by fifth-year head coach Dave Clawson, and played their home games at BB&T Field. Wake Forest competed in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference as they have since the league's inception in 1953. They finished the season 7–6, 3–5 in ACC play to finish in a tie for fifth place in the Atlantic Division. They were invited to the Birmingham Bowl where they defeated Memphis.
Jay Bateman is an American football coach who is currently the defensive coordinator for the Texas A&M Aggies. He was previously the inside linebackers coach for the Florida Gators and the co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A former Broyles Award finalist, he has also had assistant coaching stints at Ball State, Army as well as a head coaching stint at Siena from 2000 to 2003.
The 2022 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football team represented Wake Forest University during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Demon Deacons played their home games at Truist Field at Wake Forest in Winston–Salem, North Carolina, and competed as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They were led by head coach Dave Clawson, in his ninth season.
Miles Fox is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Prior to playing for Wake Forest as a graduate transfer, he attended and played football for the Old Dominion University Monarchs of Conference USA (C-USA). At Old Dominion, he earned 2017 All-Conference USA Honorable Mention honors. In 2020, at Wake Forest, he was named to the Associated Press’ (AP) All-ACC First Team, ACC Media and Coaches’ All-ACC Third Team, Phil Steele’s All-ACC Fourth Team, as well as nominated for the ACC's Piccolo Award, which recognizes the Conference's Comeback Player of the Year, based on Fox's 2020 season performance after having suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in Spring 2019 and missing the entire 2019 season due to the injury. In 2021, he was named to the All-ACC Second Team by the AP, Phil Steele, Athlon Sports, and Lindy's Sports.
college football's most bizarre scandal in recent memory, in which Wake Forest's radio broadcaster — a former assistant coach — was secretly passing along insider information to the opposition