Wake Forest locks up Jake Dickert with long-term extension

If you followed the Wake beat, you could see this coming. By Thursday morning, the Winston-Salem reporters were already saying the talks were old news.

Cam Lemons Debro

@CamLemons_

I am uh not sure it's news. It's been reported for over a week that Wake and Dickert have been in deep discussions around raising their NIL resources and keeping their coaching staff, especially offensive coordinator Rob Ezell

Ben Portnoy

@bportnoy15

Some news in our story on Wake Forest's rise under Jake Dickert today: Wake and Dickert are deep in talks around a major extension that will significantly bolster his NIL resources and staffing pool. Expect that to come into focus in the near future t.co/hceud9nT4p t.co/dcH1AUUL4S

That is the real story here. This was not a panic counteroffer after a big school called. Wake and Dickert had been working for a while on more NIL money and on keeping the staff together, offensive coordinator Rob Ezell included. That matters a lot, because Wake Forest is 9th in FBS in total offense at 487.7 yards a game. Coaches from places like Wake get poached all the time. The ones who stay are the ones whose schools spend before they're forced to.

Then, early Thursday afternoon, the deal was done. The national insiders all posted it within a couple of minutes of each other, and the key detail was not the years. It was the money going into the program around him.

Pete Thamel

@PeteThamel

Sources: Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert has agreed to a new contract, which includes an extension. It includes an uptick in resources and staff investment.

Wake made it official almost right away and called it "long-term." The school also said it wanted to shut down the outside speculation, which is a polite way of saying it saw the Florida State chatter too. Dickert had become one of the hottest names in this cycle. He was linked to the Florida State opening, among others, and his name came up in the Maryland search too, even if he was always a long shot to end up in College Park.

Chris Vannini

@ChrisVannini

@TheAthletic Wake Forest announces it's a "long-term" contract extension for Jake Dickert. One of the biggest candidates for the coaching carousel is staying put. "We are just getting started."

"We are just getting started" is a strong line from a guy whose team is 8-1, No. 13 in the CFP rankings and on a 6-game winning streak. His 9-4 debut last year was the best first season any head coach has had at Wake Forest. His 17 wins in 2 years are the third-most over a 2-year stretch in program history. And he did it at a school that, as plenty of people pointed out today, does not spend big.

Once the news settled, people noticed how fast all this has happened. Dickert was hired out of Washington State, got an extension after 1 season, and has now signed another one less than a year later. That is 3 contracts in 2 seasons.

Conor O'Neill

@ConorONeill_DI

Nuts to think about: Jake Dickert is a second-year coach who's signed three contracts with Wake Forest. Dec. 2024 - as head coach Dec. 2025 - extension Nov. 2026 - extension 2.0 Not saying it isn't deserved! He's 17-5 at WF. Just crazy to think about.

Is that crazy? Kind of. Is it the right call? Absolutely. A school like Wake can either lock up a coach like this in November or watch a blue blood do it in December. FSU fans who never wanted him can cross him off. Everyone else hiring this winter just lost one of the best young coaches available. Now the only thing left for Wake to sweat is football, starting with SMU on Saturday and a run at the ACC title from there.