The No. 8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-8.5) and Wake Forest Demon Deacons will go at it on the turf at BB&T Field. Kickoff for this game is pegged for 12:00 p.m. ET and ABC is in line to have the TV rights. When these two squads faced each other last year, Notre Dame emerged victorious by a final score of 48-37.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons Betting Preview
Wake Forest enters this matchup as a significant underdog and is currently getting 8.5 points. The Fighting Irish are also receiving -350 moneyline odds while the Demon Deacons are +270. If one program can get out in front early it’ll produce a solid in-game betting opportunity. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 55.5 points.
Square bettors are hammering the Fighting Irish, as the opening line was 7. The total has not moved after being set initially at 55.5.
The Fighting Irish are 1-2 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 2.4 units so far in 2018. They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an O/U record of 0-3. The Demon Deacons have gained 0.0 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 0-3 ATS and own an O/U record of 2-1.
The Fighting Irish have gone 3-0 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Demon Deacons are 2-1 SU.
The Irish are hoping to stay undefeated after a 22-17 victory over Vanderbilt last week. Brandon Wimbush completed only 13 passes on 23 attempts for 122 yards. Wimbush (84 rushing yards on 19 attempts, one TD) also led the running attack and was complemented by Tony Jones Jr. (118 yards on 17 carries). Chris Finke (five receptions, six yards) and Alize Mack (three catches, 25 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
A week ago, Boston College took care of this Wake Forest team by a score of 41-34. The Deacs defense allowed the Eagles to pass for 304 yards and five touchdowns while rushing for 220 yards. Jeff Smith was on a different level for Boston College, recording 42 rushing yards on three attempts, along with 145 yards and two touchdowns on six catches. For Wake Forest, Sam Hartman completed 20-of-45 passes for 214 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Matt Colburn II (117 rushing yards on 23 attempts, one TD) and the signal-caller Hartman (65 yards on 19 carries) led the running game as Greg Dortch (nine receptions, 93 yards) and Sage Surratt (three catches, 50 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
Notre Dame has run the ball on 63.3 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Wake Forest has a rush percentage of 56.1 percent. The Fighting Irish have produced 165 rush yards per game and have six touchdowns on the ground this year. The Deacs are logging 264 rush yards per game and have four total rushing TDs.
It appears that the Deacs ought to hold an edge in the trenches. Their offensive line has yielded only five sacks while the D-line has logged nine sacks. The Fighting Irish offensive line has given up six sacks and their defense has sacked opposing QBs just five times.
The Irish offensive scheme has tallied 201 yards/game through the air overall and has two passing TDs so far. The Deacs have recorded 278 pass yards per game and have six total pass scores.
Notre Dame should hold the upper hand in both areas of the defense. The team’s let opponents run for an average of 107 yards and pass for 252 yards per game. The Wake Forest D has allowed 310.0 yards per game to opposing passers and 146.7 yards per game to opposing runners. The Irish are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 4.24 to opponents, while the Deacs have allowed an 8.45 ANY/A.
Offensively, Wimbush has put up 292 passing yards this year, and has connected on 56 percent of his 45 attempts with one passing scores and one interception. Wimbush has a 5.30 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 4.47 over the last two outings.
For the home team, Sam Hartman has completed 51-of-96 passes for 592 yards, four TDs and four INTs. Hartman’s ANY/A sits at 4.60 for the season and 4.95 across his past two games.
Free Pick: Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
SU Winner – Notre Dame, ATS Winner – Notre Dame, O/U – Under
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Notes
Betting Notes
The Wake Forest D has notched nine sacks on the year while Notre Dame has five.
Wake Forest has lost two fumbles in 2018 while the Notre Dame offense has not lost any.
The Demon Deacons have made four pass plays of 30+ yards while the Fighting Irish have produced two such plays.
The Notre Dame defense has allowed one pass play of 40+ yards, while Wake Forest has given up four such plays.
The Notre Dame offense has created four rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while Wake Forest has created six such runs.
The Fighting Irish defense has allowed zero rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Demon Deacons have given up five such runs.
Wake Forest was the underdog by 6 points in its previous game and the Over/Under was 59. The over cashed and Wake Forest failed to cover in the team’s 41-34 loss to Boston College.
In its last three matches, Wake Forest is 0-3 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
Over its last three matches, Notre Dame is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
Notre Dame was favored by 14 points in its last game and the O/U going into it was 53. The under cashed and Notre Dame failed to cover in the 22-17 triumph over Vanderbilt.
As a team, Notre Dame has averaged 4.1 yards per carry over its last two contests.
Wake Forest has averaged 5.6 yards per carry over its last two.
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