Managing to end a season swallowed by the Wakeyleaks scandal on a positive note, Wake Forest knocked off No. 24 Temple 34-26 in the Military Bowl at Annapolis, Maryland, on Tuesday and reaching a couple of milestones in the process:
- Wake (7-6) notched its first winning season since going 8-5 in 2008.
- The victory was the Demon Deacons' first vs. opponent since 2011 and first vs. a ranked opponent outside its conference since 1997.
Wake Forest averaged 19.3 points during the regular season, and in its first game since firing radio announcer Tommy Elrod for giving out its secrets, the Demon Deacons scored 31 in the first half against a Temple team that had allowed only 17.2 points per game.
Wake needed every single one of them.
Quarterback John Wolford and fullback Cade Carney had huge first halves for Wake, helping the Deacons take advantage of a couple of Temple turnovers. Wolford threw two touchdowns in the first quarter, and Carney had a touchdown to give the Deacons a 31-10 halftime lead, but that offense disappeared in the second half.
Part of it was because Wolford left because of a reported neck strain. As a result, Wake went from averaging 6.1 yards per play in the first half to only picking up 3.7 yards per play in the second half, as the offense got a bit conservative without its starting quarterback.
Consequently, Temple was able to work its way back into the game, closing within 31-23 late in the fourth quarter when the Wake defense made a big stop.
On a second-and-goal from the Wake Forest 6 yard line, Temple's Phillip Walker dropped back to pass, and he just kept dropping further back with pressure in his face. Walker could not escape and took a 22-yard loss on a sack. Temple settled for a field goal to cut the lead to 31-26.
Wake Forest's John Armstrong returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards to the Temple 15. While Wake Forest couldn't get a touchdown out of the possession, it kicked another field goal to extend the lead back to eight points, and Temple's final possession went nowhere.