The No. 12 Wake Forest Demon Deacons (9-1, 6-1 in ACC) face off with the Clemson Tigers (7-3, 5-2) in an ACC Atlantic game at Memorial Stadium with the kickoff scheduled for noon E.T. Below, we look at the Wake Forest vs. Clemson odds and lines, and make our expert college football picks, predictions and bets.
Rankings courtesy of the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Wake Forest bounced back from its first loss of the season to beat the NC State Wolfpack 45-42 as 1-point road favorites in Week 11. The Demon Deacons are 5-5 ATS and 5-5 O/U with the 68th-toughest schedule, according to USA TODAY’s Jeff Sagarin.
Clemson won its third straight game by pummeling the UConn Huskies 44-7 but failed to cover as 41-point home favorites. This will be the first Clemson team to not make the College Football Playoff since 2014.
The Tigers are 2-8 ATS and 3-6-1 O/U with the 51st-ranked strength of schedule, according to Sagarin.
Clemson thrashed Wake Forest 37-13 as 34-point favorites last season but the Tigers obviously lost a lot of pieces including former QB Trevor Lawrence.
However, Demon Deacons QB Sam Hartman played in last year’s Clemson-Wake Forest game. Hartman completed 11-of-21 passes for 182 yards.
Wake Forest at Clemson odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 2 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Wake Forest +160 (bet $100 to win $160) | Clemson -200 (bet $200 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Wake Forest +4.5 (-112) | Clemson -4.5 (-108)
- Over/Under (O/U): 56.5 (O: -115 | U: -107)
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Wake Forest at Clemson odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Clemson 30, Wake Forest 23
Money line
PASS because I “lean” to Clemson laying the points but wouldn’t play the Tigers outright at that price. It is funny though that a disastrous season at Clemson could still end in a nine-win year.
The bottom line for me is that I have faith even Clemson’s terrible offense can have success against Wake Forest’s Swiss cheese defense. Whereas I don’t expect any offense to have success vs. Clemson’s defense.
Don’t get me wrong, there are a couple of offenses this season that have done alright against the Tigers. But, Clemson’s defense still ranks seventh in the nation in predicted points added (PPA) and eighth in success rate.
Against the spread
“LEAN” to CLEMSON -4.5 (-108) because this is just a game Wake Forest is supposed to lose. The Demon Deacons could finish with an 11-win season, which seems insane considering Wake Forest’s defense ranks 103rd in PPA and 111th in success rate.
Also, there’s been a “line freeze” in the betting market. Circa Sports in Las Vegas opened this game with Clemson laying 5 points.
According to Pregame.com, nearly 80% of the action is on Wake Forest but this line has only moved a half-point. A profitable spot when betting college sports is fading ranked teams on the road in conference play.
GIMME a CLEMSON -4.5 (-108) at home and looking to spoil an overrated conference foe’s season that the public is betting against.
Over/Under
“LEAN” to the UNDER 56.5 (-107) because I think Clemson’s defense is going to show up in its final home game of the season.
Also, the oddsmakers have adjusted their totals for how prolific Wake Forest’s offense has been this year. Again, Wake Forest is 5-5 O/U and the Demon Deacons have scored a combined 33 points in four seasons vs. Clemson.
Sure, this Wake Forest offense is better than the previous four, but a vast majority of the public is betting the Over in this one as well. Again, let’s fade the market and HIT the UNDER 56.5 (-107) for a light wager.
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