Wake Forest Demon Deacons football, 1940–49

The Demon Deacons spent the 1940s as a member of the Southern Conference. The decade saw the Deacons reach their first two bowl games. The first appearance came in the 1945 season, when the team reached the Gator Bowl and defeated the South Carolina Gamecocks 28-14. Three seasons later, the Deacons reached the Dixie Bowl, which they lost to Baylor. The overall record for the Deacons in the 1940s was 57-36-3. The coach of the team for the entire decade was D.C. "Peahead" Walker, who is still the team's all-time winningest coach.

Contents: 1940 - 1941 - 1942 - 1943 - 1944 - 1945 - 1946 - 1947 - 1948 - 1949


Note: * denotes conference game


1940

1940 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1940 record 7-3-0 (4-2-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1939 1941 »
1940 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Clemson † 4 – 0 – 0     6 – 2 – 1
Duke 4 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0
Wake Forest 4 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0
William & Mary 2 – 1 – 1     6 – 2 – 1
North Carolina 3 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
Richmond 3 – 2 – 0     7 – 3 – 0
VMI 3 – 2 – 1     7 – 2 – 1
Furman 4 – 3 – 0     5 – 4 – 0
Washington & Lee 1 – 1 – 1     2 – 7 – 1
Virginia Tech 2 – 3 – 0     5 – 5 – 0
NC State 3 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
Maryland 0 – 1 – 1     2 – 6 – 1
South Carolina 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
Davison 1 – 5 – 0     5 – 5 – 0
The Citadel 0 – 4 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/21/1940 William Jewell Wake Forest, NC W 79-0
09/28/1940* at UNC Chapel Hill, NC W 12-0
10/05/1940* Furman Wake Forest, NC W 19-0
10/12/1940* at Clemson Clemson, SC L 0-39
10/19/1940 Marshall Wake Forest, NC W 31-19
10/26/1940* Duke Wake Forest, NC L 0-23
11/01/1940 at George Washington Washington DC W 18-0
11/09/1940* at NC State Raleigh, NC W 20-14
11/16/1940 at Texas Tech Lubbock, TX L 7-12
11/28/1940* South Carolina Charlotte, NC W 7-6
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1941

1941 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1941 record 5-5-1 (4-2-1 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1940 1942 »
1941 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Duke † 5 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 0
South Carolina 4 – 0 – 1     4 – 4 – 1
Clemson 5 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0
William & Mary 4 – 1 – 0     8 – 2 – 0
VMI 4 – 2 – 0     4 – 6 – 0
Virginia Tech 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 1
Wake Forest 4 – 2 – 1     5 – 5 – 1
NC State 3 – 4 – 2     4 – 5 – 2
Furman 2 – 3 – 2     3 – 4 – 2
Washington & Lee 1 – 2 – 2     1 – 6 – 2
North Carolina 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 7 – 0
Maryland 1 – 2 – 0     3 – 5 – 1
Davidson 1 – 5 – 2     1 – 6 – 3
The Citadel 0 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 1
George Washington 0 – 4 – 1     1 – 7 – 1
Richmond 0 – 6 – 0     2 – 7 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/20/1941 at Camp Davis Holly Ridge, NC W 66-0
09/27/1941* at Duke Durham, NC L 14-43
10/04/1941* at Furman Greenville, SC W 52-13
10/11/1941* at South Carolina Columbia, SC T 6-6
10/18/1941* at NC State Raleigh, NC W 7-0
10/25/1941* UNC Wake Forest, NC W 13-0
11/01/1941 at Marshall Huntington, WV L 6-16
11/08/1941 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA L 6-26
11/15/1941* at Clemson Clemson, SC L 0-29
11/20/1941* at George Washington Washington DC W 42-0
11/29/1941 Texas Tech Charlotte, NC L 6-25
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1942

1942 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1942 record 6-2-1 (6-1-1 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1941 1943 »
1942 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
William & Mary † 4 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 1
Virginia Tech 5 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 1
Wake Forest 6 – 1 – 1     6 – 2 – 1
North Carolina 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 2 – 2
Duke 3 – 1 – 1     5 – 4 – 1
NC State 3 – 1 – 2     4 – 4 – 2
Furman 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
The Citadel 2 – 2 – 0     5 – 2 – 0
Clemson 2 – 3 – 1     3 – 6 – 1
Davidson 2 – 4 – 1     2 – 6 – 1
VMI 2 – 4 – 1     3 – 5 – 1
George Washington 2 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
Maryland 1 – 2 – 0     7 – 2 – 0
South Carolina 1 – 4 – 0     1 – 7 – 1
Richmond 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 1
Washington & Lee 0 – 4 – 0     1 – 8 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/26/1942* at UNC Chapel Hill, NC L 0-6
10/03/1942* Duke Wake Forest, NC W 20-7
10/10/1942* at Furman Greenville, SC W 14-6
10/17/1942* at NC State Raleigh, NC T 0-0
10/25/1942 at #10 Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA L 0-27
10/31/1942* Clemson Wake Forest, NC W 19-6
11/07/1942* VMI Winston-Salem, NC W 28-0
11/13/1942* at George Washington Washington DC W 20-0
12/05/1942* South Carolina Charlotte, NC W 33-14
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1943

1943 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1943 record 4-5-0 (3-2-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1942 1944 »
1943 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Duke † 4 – 0 – 0     8 – 1 – 0
Maryland 2 – 0 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
South Carolina 2 – 1 – 0     5 – 2 – 0
Wake Forest 3 – 2 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
North Carolina 2 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0
Richmond 1 – 1 – 0     6 – 1 – 0
Clemson 2 – 3 – 1     3 – 6 – 1
VMI 2 – 3 – 0     2 – 6 – 0
NC State 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
Davidson 0 – 3 – 0     0 – 5 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/25/1943 at Camp Davis Holly Ridge, NC L 20-24
10/02/1943* at Maryland College Park, MD L 7-13
10/08/1943 at Georgia Athens, GA L 0-7
10/16/1943* at NC State Raleigh, NC W 54-6
10/23/1943* VMI Lynchburg, VA W 21-0
10/30/1943* at Clemson Clemson, SC W 41-12
11/06/1943 NC Pre-Flight Wake Forest, NC W 20-12
11/13/1943 at Greensboro AAB Greensboro, NC L 0-14
11/25/1943* South Carolina Charlotte, NC L 2-13
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1944

1944 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1944 record 8-1-0 (6-1-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1943 1945 »
1944 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Duke † 4 – 0 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
Wake Forest 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0
Clemson 3 – 1 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
NC State 3 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0
William & Mary 2 – 1 – 1     5 – 2 – 1
Maryland 1 – 1 – 0     1 – 7 – 1
South Carolina 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 4 – 2
VMI 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 8 – 0
North Carolina 0 – 3 – 1     1 – 7 – 1
Richmond 0 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/25/1944* at UNC Chapel Hill, NC W 7-0
10/02/1944 at Georgia Athens, GA W 14-7
10/08/1944* Maryland Wake Forest, NC W 39-0
10/16/1944* VMI Greensboro, NC W 38-7
10/23/1944* at NC State Raleigh, NC W 21-7
10/30/1944 at Miami (FL) Coral Gables, FL W 27-0
11/06/1944* Clemson Wake Forest, NC W 13-7
11/13/1944* at #20 Duke Durham, NC L 0-34
11/25/1944* South Carolina Charlotte, NC W 19-13
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1945

1945 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Gator Bowl, Win over South Carolina
Conference Southern Conference
Ranking
AP #19
1945 record 5-3-1 (3-1-1 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1944 1946 »
1944 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Duke † 4 – 0 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
Wake Forest 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 1 – 0
Clemson 3 – 1 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
NC State 3 – 1 – 0     7 – 2 – 0
William & Mary 2 – 1 – 1     5 – 2 – 1
Maryland 1 – 1 – 0     1 – 7 – 1
South Carolina 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 4 – 2
VMI 1 – 5 – 0     1 – 8 – 0
North Carolina 0 – 3 – 1     1 – 7 – 1
Richmond 0 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/29/1945 at Tennessee Knoxville, TN L 6-7
10/06/1945 at Army West Point, NY L 0-54
10/13/1945* #13 Duke Wake Forest, NC L 19-26
10/20/1945* at NC State Raleigh, NC W 19-18
11/03/1945 Presbyterian Wake Forest, NC W 53-9
11/17/1945* at UNC Chapel Hill, NC W 14-13
11/22/1945* South Carolina Charlotte, NC T 13-13
12/01/1945* at #16 Clemson Clemson, SC W 13-6
01/01/1946 South Carolina Jacksonville, FL (Gator Bowl) W 28-14
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1946

1946 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1946 record 6-3-0 (2-3-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1945 1947 »
1946 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
North Carolina † 4 – 0 – 1     8 – 2 – 1
William & Mary 7 – 1 – 0     8 – 2 – 0
NC State 6 – 1 – 0     8 – 3 – 0
South Carolina 4 – 2 – 0     5 – 3 – 0
Duke 3 – 2 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
Richmond 3 – 2 – 2     6 – 2 – 2
Virginia Tech 3 – 3 – 3     3 – 4 – 3
VMI 2 – 3 – 1     4 – 5 – 1
George Washington 1 – 1 – 0     4 – 3 – 0
Clemson 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
Wake Forest 2 – 3 – 0     6 – 3 – 0
Maryland 2 – 5 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
Furman 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 8 – 0
Washington & Lee 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 0
The Citadel 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 5 – 0
Davidson 1 – 5 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/27/1946 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA W 12-6
10/04/1946 at Georgetown Washington DC W 19-6
10/12/1946* Clemson Wake Forest, NC W 19-7
10/19/1946* NC State Wake Forest, NC L 6-14
10/26/1946 at #4 Tennessee Knoxville, TN W 19-6
11/01/1946 at UT Chattanooga Chattanooga, TN W 32-14
11/09/1946* at Duke Durham, NC L 0-13
11/16/1946* at #15 UNC Chapel Hill, NC L 14-28
11/28/1946* South Carolina Charlotte, NC W 35-0
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1947

1947 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1947 record 6-4-0 (3-4-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1946 1948 »
1947 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
William & Mary 7 – 1 – 0     9 – 2 – 0
North Carolina 4 – 1 – 0     8 – 2 – 0
South Carolina 4 – 1 – 1     6 – 2 – 1
Duke 3 – 1 – 1     4 – 3 – 2
Washington & Lee 3 – 2 – 0     5 – 5 – 0
Maryland 3 – 2 – 1     7 – 2 – 2
NC State 3 – 2 – 1     5 – 3 – 1
Virginia Tech 4 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
Davidson 3 – 3 – 1     6 – 3 – 1
Wake Forest 3 – 4 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
VMI 2 – 3 – 1     3 – 5 – 1
Clemson 1 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
The Citadel 1 – 4 – 0     3 – 5 – 0
Furman 1 – 4 – 0     2 – 7 – 0
Richmond 1 – 5 – 0     3 – 7 – 0
George Washington 0 – 4 – 9     1 – 7 – 1
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/27/1947 Georgetown Wake Forest, NC W 6-0
10/04/1947* at Clemson Clemson, SC W 16-14
10/11/1947* at #19 UNC Chapel Hill, NC W 19-7
10/18/1947* at George Washington Washington DC W 39-0
10/25/1947* #15 Duke Wake Forest, NC L 6-13
11/01/1947* at William & Mary Williamsburg, VA L 0-21
11/08/1947 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA W 14-13
11/15/1947* at NC State Raleigh, NC L 0-20
11/21/1947 Duquesne Winston-Salem, NC W 33-0
11/27/1947* South Carolina Charlotte, NC L 0-6
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1948

1948 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Dixie Bowl, Loss to Baylor
Conference Southern Conference
Ranking
AP #20
1948 record 6-4-0 (5-2-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1947 1949 »
1948 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
Clemson † 5 – 0 – 0     11 – 0 – 0
North Carolina 4 – 0 – 1     9 – 1 – 1
VMI 5 – 1 – 0     6 – 3 – 0
William & Mary 5 – 1 – 1     7 – 2 – 2
Wake Forest 5 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
Maryland 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
Duke 3 – 2 – 1     4 – 3 – 2
Richmond 3 – 3 – 1     5 – 3 – 2
Washington & Lee 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 6 – 0
Furman 2 – 4 – 0     2 – 6 – 1
George Washington 2 – 4 – 0     4 – 6 – 0
Davidson 2 – 5 – 0     3 – 5 – 1
South Carolina 1 – 3 – 0     3 – 5 – 0
NC State 1 – 4 – 1     3 – 6 – 1
Virginia Tech 0 – 6 – 1     0 – 8 – 1
The Citadel 0 – 5 – 0     2 – 7 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/18/1948* at George Washington Washington DC W 27-13
09/24/1948 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA L 9-26
10/02/1948* at William & Mary Williamsburg, VA W 21-12
10/09/1948* #2 UNC Wake Forest, NC L 6-28
10/16/1948 at Duquesne Pittsburgh, PA W 41-15
10/30/1948* NC State Wake Forest, NC W 34-13
11/06/1948* at Duke Durham, NC W 27-7
11/13/1948* #10 Clemson Winston-Salem, NC L 14-21
11/25/1948* at South Carolina Columbia, SC W 38-0
01/01/1949 Baylor Birmingham, AL (Dixie Bowl) L 7-20

Team Leaders

Category Team Leader Att/Cth Yds
Passing Carroll Blackerby 38/78 598
Rushing Bill Gregus 122 628
Receiving Red O'Quinn 39 605
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1949

1949 Wake Forest Demon Deacons football
Conference Southern Conference
1949 record 4-6-0 (3-3-0 SoCon)
Head coach D.C. Walker
Seasons
« 1948 1950 »
1949 Southern Conference football standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
North Carolina † 5 – 0 – 0     7 – 4 – 0
Maryland 4 – 0 – 0     9 – 1 – 0
Washington & Lee 3 – 1 – 1     3 – 5 – 1
Duke 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 3 – 0
William & Mary 4 – 2 – 0     6 – 4 – 0
VMI 3 – 2 – 1     3 – 5 – 1
The Citadel 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
Clemson 2 – 2 – 0     4 – 4 – 2
Furman 3 – 3 – 0     3 – 6 – 0
South Carolina 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 6 – 0
Wake Forest 3 – 3 – 0     4 – 6 – 0
George Washington 2 – 3 – 0     4 – 5 – 0
NC State 3 – 6 – 0     3 – 7 – 0
Virginia Tech 1 – 5 – 2     1 – 7 – 2
Richmond 2 – 6 – 0     3 – 7 – 0
Davidson 1 – 5 – 0     2 – 8 – 0
† – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll


Schedule

Date Opponent Location Result
09/17/1949 Duquesne Wake Forest, NC W 22-7
09/24/1949 at SMU University Park, TX L 7-13
09/30/1949 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA L 7-13
10/08/1949 Georgetown Wake Forest, NC L 6-12
10/15/1949* at #6 UNC Chapel Hill, NC L 14-28
10/22/1949* William & Mary Wake Forest, NC W 55-28
10/29/1949* at Clemson Clemson, SC W 35-2
11/05/1949* at Duke Durham, NC W 27-7
11/12/1949* at NC State Raleigh, NC L 14-27
11/26/1949* at South Carolina Columbia, SC L 20-27

Team Leaders

Category Team Leader Att/Cth Yds
Passing Carroll Blackerby 65/131 837
Rushing Nub Smith 108 572
Receiving Red O'Quinn 34 490
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Notes

http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/wake/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/07-mg-sec13.pdf

ESPN College Football Encyclopedia pp. 975–977
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Last modified on 20 April 2013, at 19:46