Blind taste test to find the most flavorful hard cider Page 16
Letter to the Editor: Lack of seating for Maya Angelou Page 8
Invasive species on campus Page 5
Deacs remain optimistic about final two games Page 11
OLD GOLD&BLACK WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY
VOL. 97, NO. 12
T H U R S DAY, N OV E M B E R 14 , 2 01 3
oldgoldandblack.com
The glory that used to be Wake Forest Athletics The sudden and harsh decline into athletic obscurity is generating anger among students and alumni alike BY MOLLY DUTMERS & NICK WELDON Online Managing Editor & Sports Editor dutmmk11@wfu.edu & weldnr11@wfu.edu We used to be a basketball powerhouse. We used to gain NCAA tournament berths and rank among the top programs of the Atlantic Coast Conference. We have played in the Orange Bowl and we are the smallest school to ever appear in a Bowl Championship Series game. We once had a culture of excellence in our basketball program and a football program with a bright future. Now, we have fallen far behind the pack. As our conference grows stronger and expands with the additions of Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Louisville, we are struggling to keep up. In this past Saturday’s matchup against No. 2 Florida State, our team threw almost as many interceptions (six) as it did complete passes (seven). With the exception of David T. Foster III/Charlotte Observer/MCT the N.C. State game, the Deacon’s play the rest of the season has been fairly abysmal. We simply have not been up to the competition.
Many people in the Wake community blame our inability to compete on the high academic standards that we have for our athletes and the all-important culture of the university. The athletic department has made it clear that it is more important to recruit students who can graduate from Wake Forest and represent our motto of “Pro Humanitate” than it is to win games. In the wake of the suspension of numerous football players before last October’s game against Maryland, Ron Wellman and Jim Grobe co-authored an email to the Deacon Club. They stressed the point of having a strong culture and developing players who would succeed in their lives off the field as well as on the field. “Winning is VERY important but it will not be pursued at the expense of our integrity,” the pair wrote. “Our players need a re-
See Athletics, Page 13 Bob Andres/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/MCT
The Board of Trustees: the invisible policymakers Although largely unknown to students, the Board of Trustees, the chief governing body of the university, shapes daily life on campus BY AUSTIN COOK News Editor cookar12@wfu.edu Donald Flow is one of the most influential policymakers at Wake Forest. He was instrumental in the rollout of “Wake Will: The Campaign for Wake Forest,” and played a large role in the decision to raise tuition an additional 3.5 percent last year.
Flow has played some kind of role in many of the significant policies that have impacted students here over the last year. But despite the influence he wields, one would be hard-pressed to find a single student who knew who Flow is, much less the fact that he currently serves as chairman of the university’s Flow Board of Trustees. “I had no idea that he was the chair of the Board of Trustees,” sophomore Olivia Wolff said. However alien they may be to students, the reality is that
Flow and the rest of the Trustees are the primary governing body of the university. Together, this group of individuals makes the most significant and consequential judgments at Wake Forest. Decisions ranging from the selection of the president, shaping the annual operating budget and determining whether or not to raise annual tuition costs all fall under the scope of the alumni, parents and donors who currently sit on the board. “Think about long-term strategic plans, the allocation of capital, the strategic plans as they relate to the mission of
See Trustees, Page 4