Wake Forest Shows Their New Brand of Complementary Football to Beat North Carolina
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Wake Forest played a complete game and took care of UNC on Saturday night. It was a great win against a rival opponent. This was a game where the Deacs never trailed and held the Tar Heels to just 12 points, all field goals. The Deacs were also able to block two kicks.
This game exemplified what Jake Dickert preaches about "complementary football." I feel it was the most complete game they played all season, and all three phases stepped up to make huge plays.
Offensively, the Deacs had a much more balanced approach with their run and pass game. Ashford threw for 191 yards and a touchdown. Maybe more importantly, he did not throw an interception. One of Ashford's biggest throws came on a flea flicker where he found Carlos Hernandez downfield for a touchdown. This is the kind of consistency Wake was hoping for from a starting quarterback. Ashford has had injury concerns throughout the middle of the season, but he looks to finally be trending towards full health.
In the run game, Claiborne ran for 98 yards and a touchdown, while Ashford used his legs to get 52 yards on the ground, also with a touchdown. Ty Clark provided 22 yards for the run game as well. When it was over, the Deacs finished with 223 rushing yards to go with the 191 yards through the air. The balance between the pass and the run allowed the Deacs to have long and sustained drives, including a 13-play drive that resulted in a touchdown and burned over five minutes off the clock.
Robby called game 2️⃣ pic.twitter.com/J3iiqNPFeg
— Wake Forest Football (@WakeFB) November 16, 2025
In terms of the defense, we know what we are going to get from Wake week in and week out. They have consistently shown the ability to rush the quarterback and play well in coverage. They have not given up a touchdown since the Florida State game, which shows the resiliency of this unit. Against UNC, Wake's defense had six tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries. All of these seemed to come in big moments of the game. They also held UNC to just 56 yards rushing. Aiden Hall led the team in tackles while having an exceptional day in his own right.
Finally, Wake Forest did not just play offense and defense well against the Tar Heels; their special teams unit also stepped up in a big way. Nick Andersen and Mateen Ibirogba both blocked field goals that kept the Tar Heels off the board. These guys have been elite all year defensively, but it is incredible to see them come in and make such big special teams plays when it matters. This shows the team-first mentality the group plays with, and the pieces are all fitting together.
Nando does it all 😤 https://t.co/Q1z9lU3gZb pic.twitter.com/mWHUwCgyOd
— Wake Forest Football (@WakeFB) November 15, 2025
If we can take anything from Wake's big rivalry victory, it's that Jake Dickert's complementary football theme is clearly resonating with the locker room. Every unit on this team left 100% on that field Saturday night. Was it perfect? No, but the progression from the beginning of the season is staggering. Offense, defense, and special teams all did some great things in this game, and maybe that's what makes this rivalry win feel just a bit sweeter.
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Justin is a student at Wake Forest University. He is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and aspiring finance major interested everything sports. In his freshman year, Justin completed an internship with the Wake Forest Ticketing Department where he gained some valuable insight into the sales and operations aspects of collegiate athletics. Before working with Wake Forest On SI, Justin was a contributing writer for Wake Forest’s student publication The Old Gold and Black. Currently, Justin serves as a student manager on the Wake Forest Men’s Tennis team. In his free time Justin enjoys spending time with his family and friends on the golf course and traveling.