Tony Woods and Wake Forest say their goodbyes

Tony Woods was slated to start for the Demon Deacons at center, but after assaulting his girlfriend (who ended up with a fractured spine) and subsequently pleading guilty to one misdemeanor charge, Woods and Wake Forest have parted ways.

Woods requested and was granted his release from the Demon Deacon's program on Monday, which seems to be a polite way of saying that Wake Forest gave Woods the boot.

"We wish Tony the best of luck in all his future endeavors," head coach Jeff Bzdelik said in a statement. "Tony and I met a number of times and we felt this was the best course of action for him."

Tony Woods has played his last game at Wake Forest.
(photo credit: BIAH)

Wake Forest didn't really have a choice here. Woods pleaded guilty to assaulting his girlfriend to the point that she fractured her spine in front of their eight month old child and both of their mothers. The move is all the more commendable considering how valuable Woods would have been to Wake this season. Woods is a 6'11", 255 lb center and a former top 20 recruit that would have anchored the front line.

Bzdelik will have three heralded freshmen and two (unproven) juniors -- Ty Walker and Georgetown transfer Nikita Mescheriakov -- at his disposal, meaning there is still talent in his front court.

There are a few interesting plot lines to come out of this mess:

• UNLV's Tre'Von Willis was suspended, essentially, for one game for allegedly choking a female acquaintance. LaceDarius Dunn has been indefinitely suspended from Baylor -- including from classes -- and is still awaiting a punishment to be handed down. Will Baylor drop the hammer on Dunn, whose girlfriend is claiming his assault was accidental, or will they follow the lead of UNLV, who took Willis' statement at face value?


• What schools are going to pursue Woods for a transfer? Like I said, he is a 6'11" center that has two years of ACC experience and was a top 20 recruit coming out of high school. Those don't grow on trees.


• Wake Forest's vaunted class of 2008 turned out to be a disappointment. Obviously, Woods has left the school after two underwhelming seasons. Ty Walker, another top 20 recruit, has played in a grand total of 19 games in two seasons in Winston-Salem. As good as Al-Farouq Aminu was, the two teams he played on both collapsed down the stretch. He won one game in postseason play in those two years.