Wake Forest High football stays perfect with 28-7 win over Millbrook

Millbrook worked its way to a manageable halftime score against the top-ranked Wake Forest on Monday night.

The Wildcats even scored in the first quarter of the Cap-8 Conference meeting, something no other team had done this year against the Cougars.

But Wake Forest adjusted in its 28-7 victory, scoring once in each quarter on a soggy field.

“We looked at how they scored,” Wake Forest coach Reggie Lucas said of the Wildcats. “I think we had two missed tackles. I think if we make the open-field tackle and we regroup, they may not score, they kick a field goal. After that play, we told the defense to wrap up and make the tackle.”

Millbrook (4-2, 1-1 Cap-8 4A) got on the board with a 44-yard touchdown pass from senior Reid Herring to Garrett Patnesky with 34.6 ticks left in the first quarter. Wake Forest had outscored its last five opponents 95-0 in that period.

The Cougars (6-0, 2-0) made up for it by holding the visitors off for the remainder of the contest. Millbrook converted one of six fourth downs.

“We didn’t want to get out of our game plan, which is so easy to do against Wake Forest because they run the ball so well and take a lot of time off the clock,” Millbrook coach Clarence Inscore said. “We wanted to stay with running the ball and throwing to keep them off balance and not knowing what we were going to do.”

Outside of the first quarter, when the Cougars fumbled at the 2-yard line, Wake Forest scored the first time it got the ball in every frame.

Its rushing attack pounded out 351 yards, led by sophomore running back Devon Lawrence with 132. He was followed by senior Tyrique Beard with 128.

“That’s the benefit of the Wing-T if it’s working,” Lucas said. “We’re going to control the clock.”

Turning point

Wake Forest responding to the Millbrook touchdown. Beard and Lawrence exploded for runs of 19 and 10 yards, respectively, to open the second quarter as part of Wake Forest’s 59-yard drive. It was capped off by a 29-yard score from Chris James to Jeff Leary.

Three who mattered

Devon Lawrence, Wake Forest: The sophomore running back was only one part of a dominant rushing attack from the Cougars. Along with leading the game in rushing yards, he punched in two touchdowns.

Dexter Lawrence, Wake Forest: One of the top football recruits of 2016 made Millbrook quarterback Reid Herring aware of his presence. After the Wildcats picked up four first downs on their final possession, Lawrence broke into the backfield and chased the ECU-bound Herring before his release. The play led to a second-and-10 before a second incomplete pass turned it over on downs.

Reid Herring, Millbrook: The Wildcats three-year starter rushed the ball for 51 yards. He finished with eight-of-22 for 91 yards through the air.

By the numbers:

351: Wake Forest rushing yards, split between four backs

1: Completed Wake Forest pass, which went for a 29-yard touchdown

1: Quarterback sack, which came from Cougars junior linebacker Mason Gilbert

6: Wake Forest winning streak

18: Wake Forest first downs

5: Turnovers combined from both teams. Millbrook lost a fumble on its first possession from scrimmage, while Wake Forest turned around and fumbled on its opening possession.

This story was originally published October 5, 2015 at 11:00 PM with the headline "Wake Forest High football stays perfect with 28-7 win over Millbrook."