FiveDimes recently released over/under regular season win totals for college football teams.
Here is an early season look at the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in the ACC.
Over/under
FiveDimes has Wake Forest at 3.5 regular season wins. Last year, the Demon Deacons were 3-9 in the regular season. The line features a better return on the under at -115, while the over is at -125.
The upside
Defense will once again be the main crux for the Demon Deacons.
Last year, Wake Forest finished in the middle part of the ACC in total defense, which was much better than its offense (more on that later). The linebacking corps, featuring Brandon Chubb and Marquel Lee, who combined for more than 200 tackles last season, will be the stalwarts on defense.
The defensive line also should be one of the better units on the team.
Offensively, it can’t get much worse than last year. The overmatched offensive line is one year older and sophomore quarterback John Wolford will likely be a bit better than last year, when he almost spent more time on the ground from being sacked than he did upright.
If the Demon Deacons can get to four wins, it will have to do most of their work in the first part of the season. Wake Forest hosts Elon and Indiana, and travels to Syracuse and Army.
The downside
Where should we start?
Wake Forest averaged 3.38 yards per play last year. That was so bad, it not only ranked last in FBS, but no other team averaged less than four yards per play.
The team was incredibly young last year and that will be the same this season. Wake Forest returns 13 starters, but plenty of them got their starting experience as freshmen last season.
Wolford was the victim of 48 sacks last season, and there’s no guarantee that the offensive line will be better this season. It will likely take some time for the Demon Deacons to get back to a respectable level, and after the first four games, the schedule will get much tougher.
Wake Forest hosts Florida State, North Carolina State, Louisville and Duke, while traveling to Clemson, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Boston College. There is likely only one team in that list that Wake Forest may be underdogs within single digits, and that’s at Boston College.
The verdict
Wake Forest only has to get to four wins and the team should be better this year.
