A Tradition of Black and Gold
Athletics are integral to the college experience – and at Wake Forest, there are plenty of occasions to wave the Old Gold and Black.
Competing in the NCAA Division I Atlantic Coast Conference, Wake Forest teams are consistently among national leaders both athletically and academically. Wake Forest student-athletes graduate at a 96% rate according to the most recent NCAA-measured data, released in December 2023.
Get the latest information and follow the Demon Deacons on their official website, GoDeacs.com.
Prospective Student-Athletes
Interested in becoming a Demon Deacon varsity athlete? With a 96% graduation rate, 18 sports, 59 ACC team championships and 10 NCAA team titles, our student-athletes play their hardest inside and outside the classroom.
Intramurals
Intramural sports are a popular outlet for about half of Wake Forest students and are a great way to stay healthy and active.
Club Sports
The Office of Campus Recreation coordinates a Club Sports Program that competes with other colleges and universities.
State-of-the-Art Athletics Facilities
The Sutton Sports Performance Center houses strength and conditioning facilities for our athletes. The 24,000-square-foot Shah Basketball Complex includes regulation courts for men’s and women’s basketball.
Tickets
Show your support for the Demon Deacons by purchasing tickets to Wake Forest sporting events.
The Deacon Club
Learn how you can support our student athletes and help them succeed in and outside of the classroom.
The Demon Deacon
Probably no aspect of Wake Forest athletics holds more fascination or lore than the nickname of the school’s teams: the Demon Deacons.
In 1922, as the Deacons started recording wins on a regular basis, the existing nicknames of “Baptists” and “Old Gold and Black” did not seem to capture the spirit of Wake Forest athletics. When the Deacons pulled a particularly satisfying win off over rival Duke, sports editor Mayon Parker of Ahoskie searched for a new phrase to describe the “devilish” spirit that marked the athletic teams. He found that description in “Demon Deacon.”
Wake Forest news director Henry Belk picked up Parker’s new name for the Deacons and began using it in the school’s news releases. Soon the name Demon Deacon had become a familiar term with all sports fans.
Still, until Jack Baldwin took up a fraternity brother’s challenge in 1941, Wake Forest had a nickname but no figure to personify the spirit of the Demon Deacon. Baldwin led the Deacons on the field against North Carolina, dressed in top hat, tails and umbrella, riding the Carolina ram. While his fraternity brothers roared with laughter at the sight of him, no one realized that the Deacons would never play again without their Demon Deacon. The joke became an institution.
Rolling the Quad
Enthusiasm for athletic victories at Wake Forest University can be measured by the toilet paper in the trees. Wake Forest students, alumni and other fans celebrate game wins by “rolling the quad,” covering the center of campus with streamers of white tissue.
The tradition, while popular with Wake Forest fans of all ages, began mostly because of the university’s 1956 move from the town of Wake Forest, N.C., to Winston-Salem.
More information about rolling the quad can be found on our Traditions website.