Preview and Pick for Hokies at Demon Deacons

In the ACC, it is very much a matter of Clemson, then everybody else. And we say that with all due respect to Notre Dame, North Carolina and some others who aspire to greatness. On Saturday afternoon the Virginia Tech Hokies, who are ranked #19 in the nation despite being one of the teams affected by COVID-19 tests, pay a visit to Winston-Salem and the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest.

VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES at WAKE FOREST DEMON DEACONS, 3;30 PM ET

BetAnySports Line: Virginia Tech -9.5, Total: 68

Wake Forest has its offense humming a little, having scored 40 points or more in three consecutive games. It's a shame their meeting with Notre Dame had to be postponed, because we'd have liked to have gotten a better barometer on them. That would have probably changed this number, one way or the other.

The season opener against Clemson, where they lost 37-13 but covered, is something that can almost be looked upon as a positive, considering some of the beatings the Tigers have handed out.

They're finding balance in the offense. And there may be enough there to exploit the holes that exist on this Virginia Tech defensive line in the post-Bud Foster era. But Wake's bigger concern may be its own defensive front, which brought back almost everybody from last year. But you can't allow 5.1 yards per carry and successfully keep people from moving the chains.

And this Virginia Tech ground game can get going like a locomotive. Lots of praise for the offensive line, which is tops in the nation in Adjusted Line Yards (Air Force is higher, but they've played one game) and ranks fifth in the nation in yardage per game.

The Hokies plowed through Boston College last week (350 yards) and frankly, we underestimated what they could do.

We'll try not to do that again. V-Tech has been the center of coronavirus outbreaks, has missed large numbers of players from time to time, but has managed to win and put up big numbers on offense. The only loss was to North Carolina, which itself can be an offensive juggernaut.

So far it has been an average of 41.5 points a game for Justin Fuente's team. And so we ask whether Wake and quarterback Sam Hartman have the capability of trading here.

Hartman has gone through the schedule so far without throwing an interception. That had been his challenge - to take care of the ball. Two seasons ago he was among the ACC leaders in total offense as a freshman before breaking his leg and losing the season. And last year Jamie Newman was behind center before transferring to Georgia.

Hartman and Wake caught a bad break when Sage Surrat, who had more than 1000 receiving yards last season, opted out in favor of prepping for the NFL Draft. As we mentioned earlier, balance is a key. And that will allow them to compete.

What we're looking for is a couple of offenses that operate at a pretty high level of efficiency. We are hesitant about a recommendation on the dog because V-Tech averages almost two more yards PER PLAY than Wake. But we would expect to see some fireworks nonetheless. So we'll take a chance going OVER this total.

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