Hartman leads Wake Forest in Gator Bowl romp
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Sam Hartman tossed three touchdown passes, two of them to tight end Brandon Chapman, and No. 20 Wake Forest beat Rutgers 38-10 in the Gator Bowl on Friday to reach 11 wins for the second time in program history.
Hartman completed 23 of 39 passes for 304 yards. He added 21 more yards rushing and pushed his touchdown total to 50 this season — 39 passing and 11 rushing.
The Demon Deacons (11-3) controlled the game from the start, scoring on their first three drives and opening a double-digit lead just before halftime. It played out about as expected given Rutgers (5-8) was a late replacement for 23rdranked Texas A&M.
The Aggies pulled out because of a lack of available players due to injuries, opt-outs, transfers and COVID-19 issues. The NCAA gave Rutgers the first shot at filling the void because it had the highest Academic Progress Rate score of all the eligible 5-7 teams.
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano hastily gathered his players from Christmas break and held two practices in a heated bubble before heading south. They got in two more in nearby Ponte Vedra Beach this week before taking the field.
Nonetheless, they looked far from ready to face one of the nation’s best offenses.
Wake Forest averaged a program-best 41.9 points coming into the game, which ranked second in the Atlantic Coast Conference and fifth in the nation.
The Demon Deacons finished with 450 yards. They converted 8 of 15 third downs and their lone fourth-down try.
The turning point came in the second quarter, when cornerback Gavin Holmes stepped in front of Noah Vedral’s pass to Joshua Youngblood at the goal line and intercepted it. Wake led 17-10 at the time and ended up driving for a field goal and a 10-point lead at the break.
Vedral was one of five players who threw passes for Rutgers. He completed 8 of 13 passes for 87 yards and the interception.
A.T. Perry caught 10 passes for 127 yards and a score for Wake Forest.