Two dominant defenses will dictate this as the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (3-3) take on the North Carolina Tar Heels (4-1). The game kicks off Saturday, Oct 17 at 7:00 p.m. ET and will be shown on CHSS.
In its last game before the bye, North Carolina defeated Georgia Tech 38-31. Marquise Williams had a quality performance through the air in the victory, connecting on 13 of 24 pass attempts for 134 yards. He was also a threat running the ball, gaining 148 yards and two TDs on 15 carries. Wake Forest was victorious in last week’s performance as well, getting a close victory over Boston College 3-0. Cortez Lewis had a good performance for the Demon Deacons, grabbing five receptions for 65 yards.
The Demon Deacons are a 14-point underdog against the Tar Heels and the Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is currently not available.
Sitting at 4-1 Straight Up (SU) and 3-2 Against The Spread (ATS), the Tar Heels will look to improve heading into Week 7. A focal point of North Carolina’s offense is the running game, which ranks 22nd in the country with 219.8 rushing yards per game. Crossing over to the defensive side of the ball, the Tar Heels look to have a distinct advantage in certain spots. There aren’t many better in the country at defending the pass than the Tar Heels. North Carolina only allows a 47.5% completion percentage to its opponents. An important aspect of the game will be if the Tar Heels can capitalize on Wake Forest’s tendency to throw interceptions. The Demon Deacons currently rank 117th in the nation with 1.5 thrown per game.
Over on the other sideline, the Demon Deacons head into Week 7 with records of 3-3 for both ATS and SU. Wake Forest’s game plan centers around passing the football. The Demon Deacons pass 39 times per game. It’ll be hard to get the ball out of the hands of Wake Forest’s offense this week. The team’s average time of possession is 32:50, ranking them 23rd in the country.
Predictions: SU Winner – North Carolina, ATS Winner – North Carolina
Notes
North Carolina is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of North Carolina’s last 8 games.
North Carolina is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of North Carolina’s last 5 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of North Carolina’s last 6 games when playing Wake Forest.
Wake Forest is 1-1 SU when leading at the half this season. North Carolina is 3-1 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Since the start of last season, Wake Forest is only 2-9 SU against ACC opponents, while North Carolina is 5-4 SU against in-conference foes.
The North Carolina ground attack is ranked 22nd in the nation, compared to the 61st-ranked rush defense of Wake Forest.
