WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest just can’t get anything going on offense without receiver Michael Campanaro.
The Demon Deacons were held without a touchdown for the second consecutive week and threw six interceptions in a 59-3 loss to No. 2 Florida State on Saturday - their most lopsided in BB&T Field history.
“Today,” Coach Jim Grobe said, “was just a comedy of errors.”
Wake Forest (4-6, 2-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) turned it over seven times and didn’t get past the Florida State 44 until the fourth quarter.
Only a 23-yard field goal by Chad Hedlund with 9:07 left allowed the Demon Deacons to avoid their first consecutive shutouts since the 1974 team was blanked five games in a row.
Campanaro, who has accounted for nearly 30 percent of Wake Forest’s total offense, broke his collarbone last week in a 13-0 loss at Syracuse in which the Demon Deacons didn’t advance further than the Orange 42.
Nobody expected anything to be easier against a Florida State (9-0, 7-0) team that’s on track for a spot in the BCS title game.
But they didn’t expect this self-destruction, either.
“Obviously, that’s a great team,” offensive guard Frank Souza said. “But on offense, we just kind of killed ourselves. A bunch of turnovers. We’ve got to take care of the ball better.”
Florida State’s six interceptions tied a school record, and the Seminoles returned turnovers for touchdowns on consecutive plays in clinching an ACC title game berth.
Nate Andrews took an interception 56 yards for a touchdown one play before Jalen Ramsey returned a fumble 23 yards for another score - keeping the yardage down but the point total way up.
In other Atlantic Coast Conference games Saturday, Marquise Williams recorded a touchdown passing, rushing and receiving to help North Carolina beat Virginia 45-14. … Boston College tailback Andre Williams, who ran for 295 yards, scored on two long runs in the fourth quarter Saturday to help the Eagles pull away from a stubborn New Mexico State team and escape with a 48-34 victory. … Jerome Smith ran for 118 yards and two touchdowns, and Syracuse used a strong defensive effort to beat error-prone Maryland 20-3. Smith scored from the 1 in the first quarter and added a 21-yard TD with 10:33 left to put the Orange up by 17. … DeVon Edwards scored three touchdowns, two on interception returns in a span of 16 seconds, to help Duke beat North Carolina State 38-20, securing the Blue Devils’ first winning season in nearly two decades.
Sports, Pages 36 on 11/10/2013