The Rutgers Scarlet Knights (5-7) meet the No. 19 Wake Forest Demon Deacons (10-3) Friday in the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. ET. Below, we look at the Rutgers vs. Wake Forest odds and lines, and make our expert college football picks, predictions and bets.
The Scarlet Knights stepped in to fill the void left by the Texas A&M Aggies, who were originally scheduled to face Wake Forest. COVID-19 issues caused the Aggies to pull out of the game.
Rutgers was 5-5 after a convincing 38-3 home win over Indiana Nov. 13, but the Knights whiffed in their final two games, getting outscored 68-16. They were blanked at Penn State 28-0, and lost 40-16 at home to Maryland in the season finale. So, the Scarlet Knights limp into this game with little momentum.
Wake Forest suffered a 45-21 setback against then-No. 15 Pittsburgh in the ACC Championship Game, falling to 2-3 straight up and 2-3 against the spread across its past five games after starting the season 8-0.
Rankings courtesy of the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Rutgers vs. Wake Forest odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 6:34 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Rutgers +500 (bet $100 to win $500) | Wake Forest -750 (bet $750 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Rutgers +16.5 (-107) | Wake Forest -16.5 (-115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 62.5 (O: -108 | U: -112)
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Rutgers vs. Wake Forest odds, lines, picks and predictions
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Prediction
Wake Forest 38, Rutgers 18
Money line
Wake Forest (-750) will cost you seven and a half times your potential return. That’s just way too much cost for such a small reward.
AVOID and focus on the spread.
Against the spread
While WAKE FOREST -16.5 (-115) will be without WR Jaquarii Roberson, as he elected to opt out before entering the 2022 NFL Draft, the Demon Deacons have plenty of offensive weapons to make life miserable for the Scarlet Knights.
Wake has covered in each of the past four games as a favorite, while going 8-3-1 ATS in the past 12 games against teams with a losing record. Rutgers has a 7-1-1 ATS mark in the past nine bowl games, but it’s not happening here.
Over/Under
The UNDER 62.5 (-112) is the play as it has been the dominant trend for Rutgers. The Under is 8-0 in the past eight games for Rutgers against ACC foes, but more important, the Under is 7-2 in its past nine as an underdog.
The Under is also 4-0 in the past four bowl games for the Scarlet Knights.
For Wake, the Under has cashed in each of the past two outings, and the Under is 4-1 in the past five against teams with a losing overall record.
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