🏈 Sports Report: Football player Michael Jurgens’ journey on and off the field at Wake Forest University

Ever overslept on the day of a big meeting? We’ve all been there. Fortunately for offensive lineman Michael Jurgens, when he forgot to set his alarm for a recruiting visit to Wake Forest University, it didn’t end too badly.

Jurgens, a Maryland native and one of the top nationally-ranked recruits in the 2018 class, had more than two dozen offers on the table when he made a pledge to Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson that he’d be a Demon Deacon.

“Luckily, I wasn’t trying to sell myself to Wake Forest, but they were trying to sell Wake Forest to me,” Jurgens says. “Looking back, I didn’t realize what a big decision it would be about where I would be spending my next six years. It really couldn’t have gone better. I definitely made a great choice.”

Fast forward to the 2023 season, and Jurgens has become a staple for the Demon Deacons’ offense, playing in 49 games in his career, starting 34 of them, and earning All-ACC honors. All of those previous starts came at center, but Jurgens moved to guard for the Deacons this season.

Football also provided Jurgens with academic structure. “It’s less free time, but playing football, especially in Coach Clawson’s program, retrains your mind and reprograms you to do things the right way, and stay on target,” he says. “If you’re a high performer, you want to stay busy. I’d rather do that than sit around and do nothing.”

Keep reading to learn more about Jurgens’ transition from Center to Left Guard and his hopes to make it to the pros.

What to expect from Jurgens this season