The Wake Forest Demon Deacons (4-4) battle the Wisconsin Badgers (3-3) Wednesday at noon ET in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. Below, we analyze the Wake Forest-Wisconsin college football betting odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Wake Forest vs. Wisconsin: Betting odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 12:22 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Wake Forest +240 (bet $100 to win $240) | Wisconsin -300 (bet $300 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Wake Forest +7.5 (-110) | Wisconsin -7.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 51.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Wake Forest vs. Wisconsin: Three things to know
- The Demon Deacons haven’t won a game since Oct. 31. Since then, Wake Forest has played a stutter-start-and-stop, COVID-impacted slate of just two games, a 59-53 loss at North Carolina Nov. 14 and a 45-21 loss at Louisville Dec. 12. Those defensive efforts marked a big change from what Deacons fans had witnessed in four straight wins during the month of October. In those four games, Wake Forest yielded just 67 points combined.
- Due to the Big Ten’s late start and multiple cancelations due to COVID-19 protocols, the Badgers got in just one game before Nov. 14. Despite scoring 94 points over its first two games, Wisconsin heads into this bowl game ranked 105th in FBS in scoring offense (22.3 points per game). However, the Badgers defense ranks sixth in the nation in scoring defense (15.7 PPG).
- Both teams tilt toward the running game (runs account for 54% of the Wake Forest offense and 57% of the Wisconsin offense). The Badger defense handles the ground game quite well (3.4 yards per carry allowed), but look for Deacon defenders (4.8) to be stressed.
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Wake Forest vs. Wisconsin: Odds, betting lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Wisconsin 31, Wake Forest 21
Money line (ML)
PASS. The Badgers (-300) are the lean, but a steep ML price and a solid cover number make the against-the-spread play the value pick.
Against the spread (ATS)
Wisconsin has a question mark at quarterback (QB Graham Mertz is questionable after taking a hard hit in the last game). But UW has a much deeper talent base, and a mix of the Badger defense and a healthy dose of unfinished business has the lean here being in the neighborhood of a 14-point game in fourth-quarter game-control time.
Back the BADGERS -7.5 (-110).
Over/Under (O/U)
PASS on the well-made total of 51.5.
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