How and what to watch for Wake Forest vs. Syracuse

This week the 3-2 Wake Forest Demon Deacons head up to the Carrier Dome on Saturday afternoon to take on the reeling 1-5 Syracuse Orange in this ACC matchup.

Syracuse is coming off an impressive showing last weekend against the Clemson Tigers. They ended up losing by 26, but the game was far closer than the score indicates. But offensively for the year the Orange have been dreadful, averaging less than 100 yards rushing and under 200 yards passing per game, and scoring below 20 points per contest. Defensively it’s not much better, conceding close to 500 yards per game. One good thing the team does is force turnovers, as their 17 takeaways on the season is the most in the country.

Wake Forest doesn’t turn the ball over however, with just one giveaway in 2020. The Demon Deacons have taken the ball away 12 times this season too, so it could be a long day for ‘Cuse. Wake’s offense is coming off three straight wins where it has outscored its opponents by a combined 72 points. Quarterback Sam Hartman has thrown just three touchdowns, but has over 1,000 yards through five games. The ground game is where the Deacs get most of its points, as Kenneth Walker III has eight scores on the ground. They should be able to feast on the defense that only stops people by turning the ball over.

Game Time/TV Channel/Streaming

You can watch Wake Forest vs. Syracuse on Saturday, October 31st at 12:00 p.m. ET on the ACC Network, or you can stream it via the ESPN app with a cable or streaming service login.

Point Spread, Totals, Odds, Trends

Point spread: Wake Forest (-14) vs Syracuse
Point Total: 60
Money line: Wake Forest (-625), Syracuse (+420)

• WF is 4-1 ATS in its last five
• Wake Forest is 13-7 in its last 20 games straight up
• The total has gone over in eight of Syracuse’s last 10
• The total has gone over in four of their last five at home.

The Best Bet

The Orange are simply atrocious this year. Wake doesn’t turn the ball over much at all, and that’s the only thing Syracuse does well. It should be a long day for the Orange, quarterback Tommy Devito, and beleaguered head coach Dino Babers.

Pick: Wake Forest (-14)

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