2017 Opponent Previews: The Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Team: Wake Forest Demon Deacons
SBNation Site: Blogger So Dear
Game Date, Location: September 9, Chestnut Hill
2016 Record: 7-6
2016 Overall Offense Ranking: 124th
2016 Overall Defense Ranking: 40th
Bill Connolly’s Projected S&P: 64th
Last 2 Matchups: Boston College 17 Wake Forest 14...the year before?

Key Players: The Quarterback situation could be the key to the offense, with John Wolford presumed to be the favorite to start for the Deacs. So far he hasn’t shown to be more than a game manager with a pedestrian nine touchdowns to ten interception ratio last season. If Wolford struggles look to Kendall Hinton to get the nod, he seems to be more dynamic, and was more successful in Dave Clawson’s offense last year. Wake has a solid, but not spectacular group of possession receivers, led by Tabari Hines (39 catches), and tight end Cam Serigne. On the defensive side of the ball, Wake will have to replace a lot of their production as many of their stars graduated last season, but a name to look out for will be safety Jessie Bates who had five interceptions last season.

Why Boston College Will Win This Game: I really don’t want to be accused of being a homer here, but I am still not sold on Wake Forest as a team. They suffer from many of the same problems Boston College has, which of course is the ineffective offense. This is BC’s home opener, and I think Wake’s weaknesses, match up well with BC’s strengths. Just like last two seasons, this should be a low scoring game, with both teams trading punts for large portions of the game. If BC can score a few touchdowns, let the offensive line dominate the line of scrimmage and control the game clock, it may be just enough to pull off that W.

Why Boston College Will Not Win This Game: Again a lot of these previews have a huge giant question mark next to BC’s offense. Unlike last week, Wake Forest should have a pretty legitimate defense. If BC can’t score points, and if Daz gets stuck in a predictable play calling pattern, Wake could sneak off a few scores because of field position. Also, if Wake does decide to start Kendall Hinton, I believe he gives the Deacons a much better chance of beating the Eagles. He seems like he’s a multi threat quarterback that would give BC fits.

AJ’s Odds BC Wins This Game: 51%. This is such a toss up game, just like seemingly every BC/Wake game has been under Daz and Clawson. It is so crucial that the Eagles win this one if they want to start the season and head in the right direction. Again, no disrespect to Wake Forest but I’m not buying that they are going to be markedly improved from last year.

Bill Connolly’s Odds BC Wins This Game: 44%