WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – VMI Football opened its 2022 season on the national stage Thursday night, battling the No. 22 Wake Forest Demon Deacons all the way to the end at Truist Field, ultimately falling 44-10.
The Keydets (0-1) rushed for 83 yards on the night and the VMI quarterback tandem of Seth Morgan and Collin Ironside combined for 139 passing yards, but the Keydets fought a powerful Wake Forest offense that finished with 212 net rushing yards and 294 yards through the air.
"I thought we played really hard," said VMI head coach Scott Wachenheim. "I thought we went toe-to-toe with a team that played for the ACC Championship last year. We played our tail off. We played red swarm defense and ran to the ball all night. Offensively, we moved the ball well most of the game, but were just too inconsistent, but thought we played extremely well and we got to play a whole lot of players, so I'm happy with that."
Standout Stats
- Keydets total 222 yards of offense, including a 34-yard touchdown from Collin Ironside to Grant Swinehart
- Rashad Raymond has eight carries for 38 yards, Hunter Rice goes six for 24 yards
- Seth Morgan registers 101 all-purpose yards, eight receivers register a catch
- Chance Knox hauls in four receptions for 33 yards; Leroy Thomas has five catches for 29 yards
- 28 players record at least 1 tackle, led by Alex Oliver's 11
- Evan Eller (9 tackles), Christian Dunn (8 tackles), Stone Snyder (6 tackles) all register tackles for loss
- Jerry Rice connects on a 42-yard field goal, Jack Culbreath averages 41.4 yards per punt
How it Happened
The Demon Deacons got on the board first early in the opening quarter when Matthew Dennis converted a 33-yard field goal to put Wake Forest up, 3-0, at the 10:43 mark, tacking on a pair of touchdowns to go ahead 17-0.
After a VMI defense stood tough and forced two field goals, the Keydets took the ensuing drive and marched deep into Wake Forest territory to yield a 42-yard Jerry Rice field goal and put the Keydets on the board at 23-3 going into the break.
After forcing a VMI punt, Wake Forest advanced down a short field to score on a one-yard dive to go up, 30-3, at the 9:46 mark of the third quarter.
VMI cut the lead to 30-10 after sophomore running back Grant Swinehart took a pass from Collin Ironside at the WFU 34-yard line and found a wide-open right sideline to run in for the score nearly untouched. Earlier in the drive, Swinehart kept the drive alive with a 15-yard rush on a 3rd-and-11 to keep VMI on the field.
Wake would answer on their next drive, taking a 37-10 lead into the fourth, adding another score to take the game 44-10.
Catching up with Coach
On competing in an environment like this
"I know it makes me confident, I hope it makes our players confident. I think when we look at the film we'll see a lot of good things."
On who jumped out
"I thought Christian Dunn played extremely, extremely hard. Jahleel Porter (7 tackles, 2 breakups) played great at corner. Josh Knapp's a really good player, Stone Snyder always plays well. And I was really impressed with how our d-line held up with the running game."
What's Next
VMI shifts its focus to next Saturday, when the Keydets welcome Bucknell for their home opener at Foster Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
"I'm thankful that we have a couple of extra days to rest and get healthy for our home opener with the Bucknell Bison," said Wachenheim.
Get your game and season tickets today at vmi.universitytickets.com.
