From Greg Dortch to Kendall Hinton to 2021 NFL draft prospect Sage Surratt, Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson has developed wideouts that have made some noise in the ACC.
Coming off of a breakout 2020 season, Jaquarii Roberson is poised to be the next Wake receiver to put the country on notice. The Demon Deacons had one of the most efficient passing offenses in the ACC last season and Roberson was the primary target.
He finished the season second only to Alabama Heisman winner Devonta Smith in Pro Football Focus grade among wide receivers. Averaging over 100 yards per game, Roberson utilized a complete skill set to make an impact.
A Precise Route Runner
Perhaps his best tool, Roberson has the ability to run a wide variety of route combinations very well. As shown above, he can make plays at all locations on the field.
Roberson is especially good at finding the soft spot in zone defenses in between the linebackers and defensive backs. However, he is a threat to streak open on downfield post routes which keeps defenses honest.
Roberson’s ability to make quick, sharp cuts makes him a match-up nightmare.
A YAC Machine
Even after catching making catches all over the field, Roberson is extremely difficult to bring down. In 2020, he averaged 6.7 yards after catch per reception. Roberson was also credited for 15 avoided tackles throughout the season. Both of those marks rank top ten in the FBS, which is even more impressive considering the volume of targets he receives.
An Efficient Pass Catcher
Roberson is as sure-handed as it gets. He hauled in 62 of 66 (93.9%) catchable passes and 10 of 16 deep passes thrown his way.
If we factored out every throw that was not to Roberson, Sam Hartman would have one of the best passer ratings in college football.
Top Passer Ratings Power Conference QBs 2020 (NFL Scale)
| Mac Jones | 141.6 |
| Kyle Trask | 125.2 |
| Hartman to Roberson | 122.1 |
| Sam Howell | 121.9 |
Production on the Big Stage
Roberson has a dynamic skillset but he is not just a stat compiler. Some of his best games have actually come against the top defensive backfields.
Against Clemson, Roberson open things up for an otherwise stagnant offensive attack. There were two separate instances in which he ran for 20+ yards after the catch in that game.
He also gave Wisconsin’s secondary nightmares and continued to get open even when his team started to falter. He finished that one with eight receptions, 131 yards, and three touchdowns.
JAQUARII ROBERSON X 2️⃣
— PFF Draft (@PFF_College) December 30, 2020
A Favorable Situation
As part of Wake’s offense, Roberson has all the tools to put up daunting numbers in 2021.
QB Sam Hartman will return under center for the Deacs. As long as he continues to develop the precision on his downfield pass, Roberson’s game will open up even more. Even without it though, Roberson is great at creating separation and has a large catch radius both skills that make Hartman’s life easy.
You also have to imagine that with the loss of touchdown machine Kenneth Walker, Wake will look to throw the ball slightly more in the red zone next season.
The receiving room is certainly deep. Donovon Greene, Taylor Morin, and A.T. Perry will get their fair share of targets. But they almost directly benefit Roberson’s production in that they serve as other threats to preoccupy defenses. Roberson will remain the main target in the offense.
Don’t be surprised to see Roberson’s name widely known throughout the country in 2021. Everything is pointing in the direction of an even bigger season for the Deacons wideout.
