WINSTON-SALEM – In his four years as a safety at Wake Forest, Nasir Greer wanted to make sure every other safety was as up to speed as he was.

“The way I tried to be as a player, I tried to make sure if I was learning something, my ceiling was their floor,” Greer told Deacons Illustrated on Saturday morning. “What I know, I wanted to make sure they know as well, and that they could learn on that.”

Such is how the embers of a coaching career can begin; Greer is one of several former players who populate Wake’s staff.

Just about every position group at Wake Forest as a former player helping in some capacity, with varying titles. The graduate assistants are Will Smart (defensive line), Jake Benzinger (offensive line) and Chuck Wade Jr. (receivers). Three players who were on last year’s roster are student assistants — Chase Jones (linebackers), Gavin Ellis (tight ends) and Will Towns (running backs) — and then Greer (safeties) is in a defensive quality control role.

Climbing the coaching ladder is a long and arduous process, filled with long hours, little pay and a passion for football. The easiest starting point winds up being as quickly as a playing career ends.

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end — courtesy of “Closing Time” by Semisonic.

“It’s definitely tough, early on, because when you really love football and football is everything you grew up knowing, and then it’s taken from you,” Smart said, “it’s tough to go from, ‘I’m one of the guys in the locker room,’ to now, ‘It’s my goal to get these guys better.’”

But with time, the mindset shifts.

“You realize how much you love that locker room and rather than being part of that, you’re part of that but it’s from a different perspective,” Smart said. “So, that love is still there, that passion is still there. You understand how hard it is as a player to be an everyday college athlete, and that’s what wakes you up in the morning.

“End of the day, you’ve been in their shoes and it’s just straight love for all of those guys.”

One factor that fosters this growth is the stability of the coaching staff. Not only is Dave Clawson entering his 11th season at Wake Forest; one coordinator (Warren Ruggiero) and three position coaches (Dave Cohen, Nick Tabacca and John Hunter) are also entering their 11th seasons.

At five positions, the former player is helping a position coach he played for — Smart for Cohen, Benzinger for Tabacca, Jones for Glenn Spencer, Ellis for Wayne Lineburg and Towns for Hunter.

Wade joined the program in spring of 2022 when his former receivers coach, Kevin Higgins, was still in that role; now Ari Confesor is entering his second season as Wake’s receivers coach.

The unique position is safety, where Greer is coaching under a former Deacon — James Adams played at Wake Forest and graduated in 2006. His coaching career started as a graduate assistant at Wake Forest in 2009.

According to center Luke Petitbon, “there’s something special about a guy who’s played at the same school as you,” and is now your coach.

“So I think when (Benzinger) talks, everyone listens,” Petitbon continued. “Not that we didn’t before, but it’s different coming from a guy who was here doing the exact same camp you are, played on the same teams and was coached by the same coaches.

“I think it’s awesome, it’s special, for sure.”

Not always, but often, a former player who’s on staff is one whose playing days have been cut short by injury. Jones is the most obvious and recent example; he was a two-year captain entering last season and went through all of fall camp before suffering what turned out to be a season-ending injury.

Instead of pursuing a medical redshirt or a pro career, Jones joined the coaching staff.

“I’ve loved having him as a coach because I can go to him and he knows exactly what we’re going through,” linebacker Dylan Hazen said. “He knows the defense because he was literally playing the defense last year.

“He was basically my mentor and now having him as a coach … sometimes that player-coach relationship, there’s a boundary there. It didn’t feel like that to me. I see him as my teammate but I respect him as a coach.”

Towns is another who was on Wake’s roster last year and can now be found working alongside Hunter, coaching the same guys who were his teammates a year ago.

“He’s handled it really, really well. He’s just always so happy, you can’t not be around him. We love Will, he’s awesome,” running back Tate Carney said of Towns. “He’s really stepped into his new role. … We love Will, he’s the man.”

Smart played sparingly in 2020 and ’21, but a wrist injury derailed his playing career.

It wasn’t until that point that he considered coaching.

“When you’re in it, Coach Clawson and I have talked about it a little bit, but it’s like everything you’re doing is football, football, football. And sometimes you take it for granted,” Smart said. “I think one of the hardest things I’ve ever gone through but also one of the biggest blessings is having football taken.

“Because it was so hard early on, but it also makes you appreciate the guys in the locker room.”

Here were my observations during Wake Forest’s 16th practice of fall camp:

Equipment: Helmets, shoulder pads, shorts.

Weather: Hazy, low-70s.

Was today won by the offense, defense or neither: Neither.

This was what Clawson typically wants, a competitive practice in which each big play by one side of the ball is followed by a big play from the opposite side.

Simulating end-of-game plays, three seconds left from the 12-yard line, the first-team offense scored only after Clawson called a pass interference against Jamare Glasker. On the untimed down, Michael Kern hit Taylor Morin for a touchdown.

On the next play with the second-teams, cornerback Travon West — who had a busy day, mostly in a good way — broke up a pass in the end zone.

After the touchdown on the catch of the day (more below), Tyler Walton had a nice sack of Hank Bachmeier.

QB report: This was a first-team day for Kern.

This is kind of status quo.

Kern and Bachmeier took every single throw until the last period of practice, which was third-teams only. It’s a down-to-the-wire competition that’s only going to have separation with an injury or when games begin.

(At least, that’s how I’d handicap it.)

Catch of the day: Wide receiver Horatio Fields.

There were a few candidates. Tight end Harry Lodge made a great adjustment on a rope of a throw by Kern; Morin's "game-winning" catch was a good one; Walker Merrill, finally healthy, made up for some lost time.

And then Fields went and Moss’d Glasker for a touchdown.

There didn’t seem to be as much of a jump to snare the ball from in front of Glasker. So, maybe not the quintessential Moss’ing. But Fields did win a physical battle for the ball, high-pointing it and showing some strong hands to hold on to it. Put it this way: It was one of the best contested catches I’ve seen in camp.

It set off the most fireworks of fall camp … and was still more of a baseball brawl (a lot of pushing and talking). As Carney said after Thursday’s scrimmage, they’re tired of hitting each other by this point of camp.

Quote of the day: “Well, we always talk about Coach Adams’ arms. I know he’s way out of it now, but that’s still a big guy. Adams, man, he’s still looking great. We run stadiums sometimes before practice and I ain’t been working out in a while. It kills me sometimes and I see Coach Adams up there killing it, I’m like, ‘Man, this guy is crazy.’ Coach Adams, he could’ve stopped a long time ago but he’s still built.” – Greer on safeties coach James Adams

The context: Greer was asked which coach looks to be closest to their playing days. Kind of thought he’d submit one of the ones who was, ya know, playing football in this decade … but that wasn’t specified.

And Adams does look like he could throw on pads and still fill a gap.

Freshman/newcomer of the day: Freshman receiver Ben Grice.

Grice moved up to the second-team, with Morin taking first-team reps in the slot. There’s a *first rule of fight club* part to this, but I doubt it’s long-term.

Grice took advantage of his opportunity. He’s young and it’s unlikely Wake Forest needs him this season, but you can see the talent is there.

The most interesting part of this is Grice taking snaps at the slot. He was a perimeter receiver for the first week, maybe longer, of fall camp — so, pencil him as the latest in a line of players who could play in the slot or outside in Wake’s offense (Morin is one, Alex Bachman was another).

Positional observations: Going to mix this up today and run through a few guys who I’d invest in their future stocks*.

- Tyler Walton. Wake Forest is going to have Jasheen Davis and Kendron Wayman play a lot of snaps this season, and BJ Williams has cross-trained to play both defensive positions. But Davis and Wayman are both seniors and Williams is entering his fourth season, and there’s a bit of a drop off to the next generation.

That’s where Walton comes in. He’s one of the better revelations of camp, someone who wasn’t exactly noticeable before who’s made a significant jump forward in development.

- Chris Marable Jr. Another second-year defensive lineman and in a similar position, with Wake’s defensive line boasting three older defensive tackles (Kevin Pointer, Bryce Ganious and Justin Cody).

Marable is coming, though. He had an active practice on Saturday, forcing a Bachmeier incompletion with a bull rush up the middle and getting a TFL.

- Jeremiah Melvin. You knew this was coming if you’ve been reading practice reports. Still a little bit of a project on the outside but the potential is tantalizing, making you think he could become an A.T. Perry type.

- Rushaun Tongue/Davaughn Patterson. I’m holding a lot of future stocks in the safety duo from last fall camp. But if there’s any left to snatch up, pull the trigger.

Tongue got first-team reps at safety on Saturday. Patterson, as we got a taste last season, is going to line up in several different places to use his size (6-1, 214) and athleticism (19 snaps on defensive line, 32 in the box and 14 at corner, per Pro Football Focus).

- Grice. For reasons mentioned above.

* Meaning you might not see much from them this season, but you’ll be late to the party if you don’t know their names a year from now.

News of the day: Running out of steam here …

It was Talking Heads day during Wake’s stretching period. That means it’s Clawson’s birthday … except, that day was actually Friday, when the Deacons didn’t have practice.

Compared to some of the musical choices for stretching earlier in the week — cough, Nickleback, cough — a little naïve melody was ear candy.