The Wake Forest Demon Deacons have had seven consecutive winning seasons. They enter the 2023 season with 19 wins since 2021. Wake Forest, however, lost their starting quarterback to the transfer portal. Plus their defense was not great in 2022 as well. Can coach Clawson and company make it eight straight winning seasons?
Offense
This Wake Forest offense heavily relies on their passing attack. With Sam Hartman playing at Notre Dame this year, Wake Forest needs someone to step up. Mitch Griffis is the guy for the Demon Deacons and will be the most important one for this offense. One thing I really like about this Wake Forest offense is their receiving core.
I think they might compete with the best that the ACC has to offer. They need to replace the level that A.T. Perry was a season ago. However, guys like Jahmal Banks and Donavon Greene are the two main guys in this year’s receiving core. They have a solid offensive line to go with it as well. If Wake Forest wants to be a threat, it will all fall on how well Griffis plays at quarterback.
Defense
The biggest worry about this Demon Deacons team defensively is that they struggled to create pressure last season. Their big name starter for this year is defensive end Jasheen Davis. As a part-time starter last season, he led the team in sacks. He is poised for a big senior season, but he needs help up front. The Demon Deacons also have a depth at the linebacker and safety position which helps them in the long run this season.
However, another struggle is in the secondary. Besides Caelen Carlson, they don’t have a corner on the roster who has started in more than one college game. They have to solve their dilemma at the cornerback position or opposing offenses are going to have their way with them.
Win Total Prediction
Wake’s win total is set at 6.5 on the FanDuel Sportsbook, with the over set at +124 odds and the under set at -154 odds. This team needs to be able to get the stops defensively to compete in the ACC. Also, they need to get Griffis some confidence early on in the year if they want to go toe to toe against some of the better defenses in the ACC. I don’t see the Demon Deacons getting over 7 wins, but the under odds are too high for me to make a play on. You should stay away from the Wake Forest win total bet in 2023.
Schedule Predictions
Win vs Elon (1-0)
Loss vs Vanderbilt (1-1)
Win at Old Dominion (2-1)
Win vs Georgia Tech (3-1)
Loss at Clemson (3-2)
Loss at Virginia Tech (3-3)
Win vs Pittsburgh (4-3)
Loss vs Florida State (4-4)
Close Loss at Duke (4-5)
Loss vs NC State (4-6)
Loss vs Notre Dame (4-7)
Win at Syracuse (5-7)