Deacon fans ready to bowl

When more than 17,000 Wake Forest fans pour into Dolphin Stadium for the biggest football game in school history on Jan. 2, it will be the largest gathering ever of alumni outside Groves Stadium. The Orange Bowl is a dream come true for many long-suffering Deacon football fans, from Winston-Salem to California.

"The thought of Wake Forest playing in the Orange Bowl still gives me goose bumps," said John W. Graham ('83) of Greensboro, N.C. "We used to say 'wait 'til next year' and next year never came. Coach (Jim) Grobe has given us the 'next year' we have been thinking and talking about for over 30 years!"

For the thousands of Wake Forest fans descending on Miami for the showdown against Louisville, the alumni office is compiling an online registry to help alumni locate one another. There are a number of official and unofficial alumni gatherings planned in Miami, including New Year's Eve parties on Dec. 31; a golf tournament, alumni gatherings and the WaMu Orange Bowl Fan Fest on Jan. 1; and a tailgate party and pep rally before the game on Jan. 2. Alumni are encouraged to come by the welcome centers at the Hyatt Regency in Miami and the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa in Hollywood, when they arrive.

For alumni such as Gaither M. Keener Jr. (JD '77) of Mooresville, N.C., who's attended football games since the late 1960s, Wake Forest's first appearance in the Orange Bowl has been a long time coming. "I have been living this dream since 1970 when we won our first ACC title and students blasted the home turf with oranges, and we did not get the call. Then again in 1979 we blasted the home turf with oranges, and we did not get the call, just tangerines. Now we have The Call and the oranges are so SWEET. You bet your sweet bippie (a 1970s' expression) my wife and family will be there!"

For many fans, there's never been a better time to be a Demon Deacon. Sue Bray ('83) of Greensboro, N.C., has been proudly displaying her vintage "Proud to be a Deacon" bumper sticker from the '80s for the last few weeks. She's organized a large group of former hallmates who lived together on Babcock 2B in the early '80s and other friends who will be driving and flying to the game from various cities, but all sitting together.

Many Deacon fans began planning their trip to the Orange Bowl as Wake Forest was running out the clock to defeat Georgia Tech, 9-6, in the ACC Championship game and secure the ACC's automatic bid to the Orange Bowl. "As soon as the last seconds ticked down on Dec. 2, all of our phones started ringing at once," said Julie Harmon Yasaki ('99) of Greensboro, who will be attending the game with her husband, Gen ('97, MBA '03), and several classmates, including Dave Davis ('98, MBA '06) and Brian Jones ('97). "On the spot, we decided to join our friends and make a road trip down to sunny Florida for the Orange Bowl."

Other fans have been eagerly anticipating a bowl game since early in the season. "I told my family months ago, when possible bowl bid rumors started, that what I wanted for Christmas was a trip to watch Wake play in a bowl game," said Patti Petree ('76), of Winston-Salem. "It didn't matter which bowl or where it was. We all four agreed that would be our family's Christmas. Then that Saturday night, our freshman son, John, was in Jacksonville watching us win the ACC championship, and with two minutes to go, I was online booking our flights to Miami!"

The Wake Forest campus will likely be deserted Jan. 2 with students home on winter break or at the game, and a sizable number of faculty and staff at the game. "Wake Forest's student-athletes contribute a great deal to our academic environment and campus community," said Assistant Professor of Anthropology Paul Thacker, who will be at the game. "My family's trip to the Orange Bowl is a small symbol of my appreciation for the football team's enhancement of campus life."

Professor of Biology Bill Conner will be combining football and research – he'll be spending a couple of days at a research station near Lake Placid, Fla., to conduct research for a book he's writing on insect communication, then going to Miami for the game, then back to the research station before returning to campus. "I had a football player in my first-year seminar, and it peaked my interest in the program," said Conner, who will attending the game with his wife, Mindy. "It's a wonderful opportunity for the team, and I want to support them the best I can."

Professor Emeritus of Speech Communication Julian Burroughs ('51) will be there, too, with his wife, Jean, and their daughters, Lee Broadway ('83), her husband, Scott ('83), and their two sons; and Catherine Burroughs ('80) and her husband, Rick Bogel and their son. Burroughs said the success of this year's team is one of the most exciting things he can remember in his nearly 60 years associated with Wake Forest. "It's really been quite special."

About 1,000 students—a fourth of the undergraduate student body—will be coming from across the country to the game. Freshman Katie Bickel, who lives in Louisville, Kentucky, has been proudly wearing her Wake Forest sweatshirt everywhere she's gone while home on winter break the last two weeks, "much to the dismay of U of L fans," she said. She'll be watching the Orange Bowl from "enemy territory" in the middle of the Louisville section with her father, who attended the University of Louisville.

— Kerry M. King ('85)
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