COLLEGE FOOTBALL It's no surprise that Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson has a soft spot for the players who are loyal to his program. And it's no surprise he has a soft spot for offensive lineman DeVonte Gordon, a sixth-year player who had plenty of options after last season. He could have tested the transfer portal or taken a chance with the NFL draft, but he did neither and is back this season to help right the ship for the Demon Deacons.
To get that ship righted, however, it starts in the trenches, and the offensive line will have to be better. It allowed 49 sacks last season in going 4-8 and missing a bowl game for just the third time in Clawson's 10 seasons. Entering his 11th season in Winston-Salem, Clawson has an experienced offensive line, but it has to be more consistent.
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"I think the thing we've focused on more than anything this camp is having depth," said Gordon, who is one of nine sixth-year players for the Demon Deacons. "We have a lot of guys ready this year and we didn't last year and that was a problem for us. We had a few injuries early last season and we had to move a lot of guys around, but I like the way we are looking.
" Gordon, who is from Washington, D.C., will be playing his natural position at left tackle.
It's a key spot on the line in pass protection, but Gordon is also a good blocker in the running game. "I can play on both sides of the line, but I'm more comfortable on the left," said the 24-year-old Gordon, who in 2022 was honorable mention All-ACC. Even though Gordon wasn't in the transfer portal, he said coaches from other schools reached out.
But loyalty to Clawson, his teammates and offensive line coach Nick Tabacca made it an easy decision. "I wasn't going anywhere," he said. Gordon actually ended up redshirting his first two seasons at Wake Forest, which included the COVID-19 year of 2020.
That's how he has an extra year of eligiblity. "This is a place that supported me since I got here and I was just a big, tall kid that couldn't play at all," said Gordon, who is 6-foot-5 and 315 pounds. "This coaching staff stuck by me, so it I thought it was my time to pay them back.
" Gordon, who is close to his mother, Darlene, said he learned early in life that loyalty counts for something. "My mom raised me like that, and I've loved it here, so loyalty is something that I believe in," he said. The likely starting offensive line will be Gordon on the left side with George Sell at left guard, center Luke Petitbon along with right guard Nick Sharpe and Erik Russell at right tackle.
The Demon Deacons open on Thursday night at 7 p.m. against N.
C. A&T at Allegacy Stadium. Tabacca says seeing how far Gordon has come is a testament to developing players.
"We've had a lot of loyal guys on this team through the years, especially on the offensive line," Tabacca said. "I think he feels that appreciation of us being loyal to him and the other way around. We've also had stability, but we love DeVonte and he's done everything we've wanted and he's a really good player.
" One of the reasons he chose Wake Forest coming out of high school was it's not that far from Washington, where his mom works for the Internal Revenue Service. While she's good at math, Devonte, who has been All-ACC academic team in his career, has a double major in business and enterprise management and economics and is minoring in communications. "My mom is my heart, and she raised me and my brother," Gordon said.
"That's one reason why I stayed not too far from home so I can get to D.C. when I need to.
" Tabacca says the luxury of having somebody like Gordon, who has been in the program so long, is his knowledge of the offense. "To play offensive tackle at any level, you have to move, but to have him at left tackle now is the evolution of his career, so he's good on that blind side," Tabacca said. There was a significant dropoff in scoring last season for the Demon Deacons, who averaged just 20 points a game.
Making sure that either quarterback Michael Kern or Hank Bachmeier have more time to throw will be key. "Sacks are a team statistic, and everybody has to do a better job," Tabacca said. "We have to protect better, and the running backs have to protect better, and you've got to get the ball out on time, so that's something we've got to be better at.
" Gordon smiled when asked about his final preseason training camp. He says it's hard to believe it's been six years since he came to Wake Forest. He also has plenty of go-to places to eat around town but singled out his favorite.
"I'm a big fan of Putter's," Gordon said. "That's a great place to eat and I'll miss that for sure." As for how the Demon Deacons can be better this season, he says the veteran offensive line that is also deeper is a good place to start.
"I think we have the potential to be as good as we want to be," Gordon said. "We have a veteran offensive line, and we have more guys that can play, and we have two quarterbacks who have been in college forever just like me, so that's going to help us." jdell@wsjournal.
com 336-727-4081 @johndellWsJ Get local news delivered to your inbox!.
