Demon Deacons showcase hip-hop dance skills during final exam

So, there I was, minding my own business, when the following showed up on my Twitter timeline on Thursday:

Dance Final today! Deacs coming strong. #GoDeacs pic.twitter.com/DtSmsCKQUo

— Jonathan Himebauch (@COACH_HIMEY) August 8, 2013

Now, the fact that a sizable group of Demon Deacon athletes were taking a dance class wasn't exactly news. As a matter of fact, flanker extraordinaire Michael Campanaro spoke proudly of the class and his own skills on the floor during the ACC Kickoff in Greensboro. What was newsworthy to me was the fact that the final exam for said class was, well, a dance.

And what a dance it is. Judge for yourself:

Video obtained from YouTube courtesy of Wake Forest University Football Office

I have to say, I'm very impressed. I spent 15 years dancing for a studio in Clemmons back when dinosaurs ruled the earth, and I know "trick dancing" when I see it. I'd give all who participated an 'A' simply based on how long the doggone routine is. That's solid work for a few weeks.

"We've been practicing our dance all summer," Campanaro said. "It's a tough class. You can't miss a class or else you get behind on all the steps and stuff. It was fun."

The routine in the video, taught by Professor Inez  Yarborough Liggins, was actually two combined classes for today's exhibition. Along with the football players, the class had athletes from Wake Forest's field hockey team and men's and women's basketball programs. Various teammates and members of the coaching staff attended the performance.

The only unsettling part of Thursday's dance extravaganza was this picture, uploaded to Instagram and Tweeted out by Campanaro. It's not NSFW, but it almost should be:

"We get graded on our attire- it's in the syllabus," Campanaro. "So, the more spirit you have for dance class, the more points you get.It was fun, we had a blast. I'd probably say that A.J. (Marshall) and Bud (Noel) were probably the best in the class."

I caught up with A.J. Marshall as he walked to the practice field, and he agreed that the class was a lot of work and a lot of fun. So I asked him how his other team was doing thus far into Fall camp.

"Practice is going well, a lot of guys getting after it. Coach is telling us to slow down, actually. There's so much we've got going on- it's exciting."

Much more from A.J. to come later, as I had a chance to chat with him about the new season during Wake Forest's media event.