WINSTON-SALEM – The process of hiring Wake Forest’s next football coach is further along than people realize, the new special advisor to the athletics director told a couple of hundred people on Tuesday.

“First of all, I’m going to have to work with the new special assistant on message discipline about coaching searches,” athletics director John Currie said of former football coach Dave Clawson. “We won’t talk about coaching searches until they’re concluded.”

Wake’s search is just underway, following Clawson’s resignation on Monday.

To say that legwork has been put in and this was at least on the radar of Currie for more than a week, though?

The Deacon is out of the top hat on that one.

“I’m going to support the next head coach, whoever he is,” Clawson said amid an emotional farewell press conference. “One of the things John said a week ago, ‘Do you mind if I start vetting and talking to candidates now? We want you to be our head coach, but if you decide not to do this …’ I said, ‘John, by all means. Your job is to get the next, best leader for Wake Forest football.’

“People are going to say, ‘Boy, you guys are far behind.’ John and his administration have been reaching out to candidates for over 10 days.’”

Wake Forest is the only current power conference opening. There are logistics and phrasing to get around what was known, when it was known, and just how far along Wake’s search stands as of noon Tuesday.

“We did not have a coaching search until about 2:30 yesterday afternoon,” Currie said on Tuesday, “when Coach Clawson came to this office and I made my last, final pitch.”

Clawson sounded resolute on the point that he won’t play a determining role in who Wake’s next coach will be. The Deacons have had two coaches — Jim Grobe and Clawson — for the past 24 seasons.

He’ll assist in the process, though, able to add some unique input that wouldn’t be possible in most power-conference programs in need of a new coach.

“I don’t think the former head coach should pick his successor,” Clawson said. “I don’t think that’s healthy. He’s already had me engage with some of the candidates and I’ve told all of the candidates the same thing: I’m leaving this place on good terms, I’m not bitter … I want to see Wake Forest football be successful.”

He’s also leaving a position that’s more appealing than it was 11 years ago when he took the job.

Currie confirmed with, “Yes, absolutely,” later to a question of whether Wake Forest is committed to spending the full allotment of revenue sharing money, which is up to $20.5 million pending a House settlement that would go into affect July 1, 2025.

“You now need money. You can’t do this without money,” Clawson said. “The last two years, we’ve had very, very little money. Because of revenue sharing and because of the commitment that (president) Susan (R. Wente) and John and the board are making to football, the next head coach is going to have enough money and resources to help support all of those other great things about Wake Forest.”

You can find a column on Deacons Illustrated about five prospective candidates here.