2008 Wake Forest Demon Deacons College Football Predictions Courtesy of Alex Smart, An Expert College Football Handicapper featured on Touthouse.com. If you are betting football games this season, Buy Alex’s College Football Picks.

Wake Forest Demon Deacons (9-4, 5-3 in 2007, 3rd place in ACC Atlantic)
It turns out the Demon Deacons weren’t the one year wonders many thought they were when they won the ACC in back 2006. The team should be strong again in 2008, and could compete for a return trip to the ACC Championship game this winter.

2007 Highlight: After shutting out the Seminoles in Doak Campbell Stadium in 2006, most thought that Florida State would be out looking for blood in their nationally televised game in Winston-Salem in ’07. Though the FSU effort was far more inspired than it was the year before, the Deacs pounded the Seminoles defense over and over on the ground, toting the ball 48 times for 180 yards. It wasn’t the prettiest game in the world, but Wake did survive a late FSU comeback to knock off the Noles 24-21.

2007 Lowlight: Wake Forest wasn’t the first team to go into Memorial Stadium in Clemson and get their doors blown off, nor will they be the last. The 44-10 blowout was the worst loss by the Deacs all season. QB Cullen Harper torched the Wake Forest ‘D’ for 266 yards and three scores, while QB Riley Skinner had one of the worst games of his career, only throwing for 170 yards without a touchdown.

Offensive Outlook: Only five starters return from last year’s team. Both Skinner and returning running back Josh Adams must step their games up for the offense to be a success in 2008. The biggest problem is going to be the offensive line. The entire left side needs to be replaced, and could be the Achilles heel for Wake’s offense all season long. If Skinner can get his accuracy numbers up, the unit should be able to spend plenty of time on the field and give the defense lots of rest. If not, Wake Forest is going to take a major step backwards.

Defensive Outlook: Nine starters return from a defense that surrendered 22.3 PPG a year ago; the group will clearly be the strength of the team in ’08. The biggest question mark will be the defensive line that has to replace a pair of starters. All of the defensive backs and linebackers return, most notably LBs Aaron Curry and Alphonso Smith, both of whom could end up on the All-ACC team at the end of the year.

2008 Outlook: A trip into Florida State appears much easier than usual this year, as the Noles will be without several players who were suspended in their academic scandal a year ago. There really is no reason for the Deacs to not be 4-0 going into their clash with Clemson on October 9th. If they can pull off the upset of the Tigers and avenge last year’s thrashing, Wake Forest could be a team to contend with once again in ‘08, as the rest of the schedule pans out quite nicely. Road trips to Maryland and Miami could be hairy, but the team doesn’t leave the state of North Carolina once the calendar turns to November.

2008 will be a success if… Skinner and the offense put some points on the board. It sounds elementary, but that’s what the Demon Deacons will be judged upon in 2008. Any game in which this team scores 30 points should be an automatic victory as long as their defense stays healthy.

For the third straight year, Wake Forest could be one of those teams that you won’t hear much about, but when you look up, suddenly have a nine or ten win season under its belt.

Prediction: 9-3, 2nd place in ACC Atlantic