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Wake Forest November 28, 2005
Grobe is fond of the saying, "when people used to see Wake Forest on the schedule, they used a pen to mark down a `W.' We're at the point now where we at least make them use a pencil." That is a vast understatement of the program's progress that, in four short years, has seen Wake Forest develop into a team that competes with every opponent every week. The levels of excitement and expectation surrounding Demon Deacons football have reached unprecedented heights. That is a tribute to Grobe and his staff. In the past four years, Wake Forest has defeated seven of nine ACC pre-expansion rivals, plus opponents from the Big Ten (Purdue), Pac-10 (Oregon) and Big East (Boston College). The Deacons have performed very well against in-state opponents, posting a 13-5 record. Since Grobe's arrival, Wake Forest is has defeated every Division I opponent in the state, including a 4-0 mark against East Carolina, 4-0 vs. Duke, 2-2 vs. North Carolina, 1-3 vs. NC State, plus victories against I-AA Appalachian State and North Carolina A&T. During that same time period against in-state rivals, NC State in 10-3, North Carolina is 9-5, Duke is 2-9 and East Carolina is 0-8. Wake Forest's 22 wins during the last four years are one of the best four-year totals in school history. In short, Grobe has put Wake Forest in position to be extremely competitive in the best football conference, the ACC, for many years to come. Grobe and his wife, Holly, have two sons, Matt and Ben. Matt is a 1995 graduate of Marshall graduate who works as the tournament director at Dragon Ridge Country Club in Las Vegas. He and his wife, Melanie, have a daughter, Mackenzie, and a son, Cameron. Ben graduated from Ohio University in 2002 with a degree in health care administration. He currently resides in Charlotte and works for Jefferson-Pilot Financial.
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Entering his fifth season as head coach in 2005, Jim Grobe has established Wake Forest as one of the rising programs, not just in the Atlantic Coast Conference, but on a regional and national basis.