Jan. 24, 2003

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest head football coach Jim Grobe, who has put together consecutive winning seasons and a bowl victory in his first two years with the Demon Deacon program, has been awarded a new 10-year contract, Athletics Director Ron Wellman announced today.

"It is comforting to know that Jim Grobe is going to be with us for many years," Wellman said. "He has done an excellent job in his first couple of years with us and our future is extremely bright with him."

Grobe recently completed his second season with the Demon Deacons with a 7-6 record, capping it off with a 38-17 victory over Oregon in the 2002 Seattle Bowl. Grobe has led WFU to two straight winning seasons in his first two years at the school, something only five other coaches in WFU history have accomplished.

With a bowl-eligible 6-5 ledger in 2001, Grobe became just the eighth coach in WFU history to post a winning record in his first season at the helm. His 13 combined victories in 2001 and '02 also ties as the best win total by a Wake Forest coach in his first two years with the program. Hank Garrity (1923-24) and Bill Dooley (1987-88) each tallied 13 victories in their first two seasons at WFU.

With the Demon Deacons' Seattle Bowl appearance, Grobe joined an elite group of Wake Forest head coaches - only four other coaches have taken WFU to a bowl, including D.C. "Peahead" Walker (1946, '49), John Mackovic (1979), Bill Dooley (1992) and Jim Caldwell (1999). Grobe and Mackovic are the only coaches who earned a bowl berth with the Deacs in their second year with the program.

Grobe's record at WFU now stands at 13-11 and he owns a 46-44-1 career mark after eight seasons overall as a head coach.

"I'm proud of what we have accomplished in our first two seasons," Grobe said. "We still have a lot of work left to do and I'm happy Wake Forest has shown confidence in us to get the job done. I'm excited about the future of Wake Forest football."

Wake Forest will return 40 letterwinners and 12 starters (three offense, seven defense, two specialists) from the 2002 squad when it returns to action this fall, opening August 30 at Boston College. The Demon Deacons will look to post their third consecutive winning season in 2003, a feat that has not been matched since the 1950-52 seasons.