When Bounces Don't Go His Way, Skinner Finds Ways to Rebound

Riley Skinner's high school coach, college offensive coordinator and mother share a viewpoint with Wake Forest's starting quarterback when it comes to dealing with poor showings: internalize excuses, learn from mistakes and move forward.

Given a bye week to evaluate the most disappointing outing of his collegiate career, Skinner responded Oct. 9 against Clemson with a performance that was part vintage, part innovative.

After his reclamation was complete and Wake Forest had reestablished itself as an ACC favorite with a 12-7 victory over the Tigers, Skinner was ready to move on from that night just as swiftly as he had overcome the turnover-prone game that preceded it. Redemption? Whatever.

"It's still pretty frustrating when you come away with 12 points when you're in the red zone so much," said Skinner, a junior who will lead Wake Forest into College Park to face Maryland on Saturday. "It's pretty frustrating as a quarterback, and it's something that we'll take a look at this week and see what we're doing wrong and see what we've got to do to get more points on the board."

The Demon Deacons' offense is far from dynamic. The attack is built more on subtle jabs that set up occasional surprises than on blunt displays of aerial force. Skinner, a meticulous passer who operates most comfortably out of the shotgun, leads by means of observation and adjustment, by way of a demeanor formed through few trials but much tribulation.

Corky Rodgers watched Skinner, then a ninth-grader, step onto the football field at the Bolles School in Jacksonville, Fla., and noticed a poise he rarely had seen in someone so young. A high school coach for more than 30 years -- and one not known for his sunny disposition -- Rodgers set out to test the kid's mettle. Seven years later, he remains unsuccessful.

"I work with the quarterbacks quite a bit, and I'm pretty hard on those guys," Rodgers said. "But I never seemed to be able to rattle him very much, and I'm pretty good at that."

Every day for as long as Rodgers can remember, he's eaten lunch with A.C. Skinner Jr., Riley's grandfather. The pair have a specific locale that they frequent on each day of the week. About a month ago, on a Monday afternoon at Sonny's Real Pit Bar-B-Q, a man walked by their table wearing a T-shirt branded with a tree service logo. A.C., an 86-year-old retired engineer, stopped the man and asked what size of chain saw the man's company used these days.

"He always has a question," Rodgers said. "He has this thirst for knowledge that just amazes me."

Rodgers believes Riley Skinner's detail-oriented nature derives from his grandfather. And that conscientiousness, Rodgers continued, has helped Skinner move on from games such as the one he had against Navy on Sept. 27. Although Skinner threw for 270 yards and completed 65 percent of his passes, he also tossed a career-high four interceptions. Entering that game, he had not thrown an interception in 131 pass attempts. Wake Forest lost, 24-17.

"Everybody wants to point at Riley for the Navy game, but it was kind of a perfect storm of circumstances," Wake Forest offensive coordinator Steed Lobotzke said. Navy's rushing attack ate up game clock, which put pressure on Skinner to score on every possession. The Demon Deacons also lost their two starting tackles in that game, one to injury and the other to ejection.

"Riley did do some dumb things; on some of his throws, he made god-awful decisions," Lobotzke said. "But he was looking over his shoulder the whole night. It just snowballed."

Rodgers noted that Skinner has been playing with "a bum shoulder" and that the quarterback has been receiving occasional cortisone injections throughout the season to numb the pain. Lobotzke said he could not remember exactly when the injury occurred and did not know the injury's extent.

After the Navy game, Skinner retreated to his campus apartment with his family for some pizza and a little awkward silence. Skinner's mother, Jennifer, said excuses were brought up only once, and not in their typical context.

"The thing we ended up talking about was excuses only delay learning and moving on," she said. "He was just ready to move on. We didn't sit around and talk about it. For once, I kept quiet."

Seated in the stands at BB&T Field prior to the game against Clemson, Jennifer Skinner cautioned not to make her son "look bigger than he is." She told stories from Riley's childhood that fit the cliches of never giving up and always trying hard, but immediately recognized how cheesy she sounded. She was adamant she not be made to look "like a sap."

Riley Skinner spun his own tale a short while later. He returned to form against Clemson, completing 65 percent of his passes, throwing for 186 yards and never coming close to tossing an interception. He also picked up 73 yards on 11 carries, displaying an evasiveness previously unseen.

Skinner "was just really sharp tonight," Wake Forest Coach Jim Grobe said afterward. "I thought he was really in control of the game plan. He didn't panic. You know, we got our Riley Skinner back tonight."