|
Guard Sam Settar had
played 1,729 consecutive
offensive snaps until his
injury against NCSU.
|
Wake Forest Football's Iron Men
Offensive linemen Sam Settar and Brian Wolverton have played more than a few snaps together.
Nov. 3, 1999
by Sam Walker
Gold Rush Front Page
Wake Forest advertises Sam Settar and Brian Wolverton as the "iron men" of
the football team. The iron
man title refers to their streak of consecutive offensive plays that dates
back over two seasons, but it
probably better testifies to their durability rather than their stamina.
Both Settar, affectionately known as
"Sparky" by the other linemen, and Wolverton are offensive guards. They are
destined to hit and be hit on
every play simply because of the nature of their position.
Entering the 1999 season, Settar and Wolverton had both played every
offensive down since 1997. Settar's
streak ended on Sept. 25 when he sprained his knee and ankle and had to
leave Wake Forest's game against
N.C. State. He had participated in 1,729 consecutive offensive snaps before
the injury.
Wolverton's streak also began in 1997 and was broken when he left the game
for a well-earned rest after
the Demon Deacons had all but finalized their 47-3 victory over the
University of Alabama-Birmingham
on Oct. 23. Wolverton's "iron man" streak dated back to the fourth quarter
of Wake Forest's 1997 game
against East Carolina.
"I just like to play and be on the field," Settar said. "In high school I
played both ways so I never got taken
out unless we were killing a team or something. But if they want to put me
in there, I want to do my job
and help the team. The team is the most important thing."
Settar's sprained knee and ankle ended the streak of consecutive snaps. Not
being able to play has been
frustrating, and Settar has been aggressively rehabilitating his leg. He
practices as much as the injury and
trainers will allow, but the healing process has not happened as fast as
Settar would like.
"I've never been out this long, and it's a different perspective I guess,"
Settar said. "I haven't seen the
game from here (the sidelines) since 1996, but I'm not getting down on
myself, and I'll be back soon."
Wolverton, who grew up near the Wake Forest campus and graduated from North
Forsyth High School,
also played both offense and defense in high school. He has played so many
snaps for the Deacons because
he is versatile enough to play both tackle and guard. The "iron man" moniker
is simply the result of
diligent work.
"I don't, and I'm sure Sam doesn't, care about the 'iron man' thing,"
Wolverton said. "We want to win.
We don't care who is out there as long as the job is getting done. It's an
honor to have a title like that, but
what is most important is winning."
The change in offensive philosophy has been a welcome change, according to
both Settar and Wolverton.
The pass-happy days at Wake Forest are over for now, and running the ball
has been the Deacons' primary
weapon. Wake Forest's large offensive line is now attacking more and pass
blocking less, which is the
brand of smash-mouth football the "hogs" like.
"We have been wanting this for a long time," Settar said. "We think it's
great we're going mostly run. We
just wanted 50-50 at least. It's hard on the lower back when you're pass
blocking all the time, and it's a lot
more fun when you run block because you're attacking the opponent instead of
just sitting back and letting
the defensive guy just do whatever he wants to you."
Wake Forest has rolled up 1,305 yards rushing in seven games this year,
helping its leading rusher, Morgan
Kane, to 778 yards for the season. Last season Wake averaged 65.4 yards per
game on the ground. This
season the Deacons have averaged over 186 yards per game, largely because of
the commitment of the
linemen to the running game.
"I'm really excited about running the ball this season," Wolverton said.
"In the past we had some
opportunities but were not really prepared to run the ball, and that's what
we're doing this season. Also this
is about Wake Forest turning the corner officially. Wake Forest football
really doesn't leave a mark in
anyone's mind, but (turning the corner) that is why all these guys came
here."
Wake Forest can match its largest win total in the Jim Caldwell era with one
more victory. In 1997 Wake
Forest went 5-6 and hoped that season marked a turning of the corner. With
27 seniors helping put Wake
Forest two victories away from ensuring a winning season, the corner seems
just a few steps away.
"The biggest thing I see within the team is composure," Wolverton said.
"Before when bad things would
happen people would lose their calm, and now we stay focused and go on to
the next play. And we expect
good things to happen instead of just hoping they will happen. We expect to be
effective."
"We go into games and we're not saying, 'Oh no, it's Florida State or it's
North Carolina,' " Settar said.
"We go into games saying 'we're going to beat these guys no matter what
their tradition is.' They don't
know about us. We're a cocky group and do what we have to out on the field."
There may be a little more swagger when the Wake Forest offense comes onto
the field through the
smoke-filled inflatable tunnel simply because the Deacons know they're going
to come off the ball and hit
somebody. The "iron men" of Wake Forest football think so.
