No. 14 Wake Forest is back from its bye with momentum and a numbers edge that is hard to ignore.
The Demon Deacons have won four straight and have turned their last three games into a runaway, outscoring opponents 136-24 in that stretch. They’ll try to keep that surge going Saturday afternoon in Winston-Salem, N.C., when Virginia comes in searching for answers of its own.
Wake Forest enters at 6-1 overall and 4-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia is 4-4 and 2-3 after another close loss last week, a 19-16 setback at home against Duke.
For Wake Forest, the concern isn’t whether the bye week helped. It’s whether it interrupted a groove.
"The bye week is great to get refreshed, but man, we were in a rhythm on offense, defense and special teams, playing at a really high level," Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert said Monday.
He also made clear that the Deacons can’t assume that rhythm will just come back on command.
"The practice field is where you regain that. I talked a lot about that this morning.
It's got to be high intensity. It's got to be physical.
You can't just show up after a two-week gap and expect game speed. You've got to practice that way, think that way, operate that way."
Wake Forest’s offense has been one of the ACC’s most productive units. The Deacons rank third in scoring at 37.4 points per game, fourth in passing at 290.3 yards per game and fifth in total offense at 445.9.
Quarterback Gio Lopez was sharp in the most recent outing, throwing for 267 yards and four touchdowns while adding 51 rushing yards in a 41-7 win at Cal on Oct. 17. He ranks third in the conference with 278.1 passing yards per game and has thrown just one interception in 207 pass attempts.
There’s also a chance Wake Forest gets a key target back. Carlos Hernandez missed the Cal game with an undisclosed injury, but he still sits third in the ACC with 720 receiving yards on 49 catches.
The Deacons also know what Virginia looked like a year ago. Wake Forest escaped with a 16-9 win over then-No. 14 Virginia in Charlottesville last season.
"I have a lot of respect for who we're playing, because the style is very different and they're more than happy to grind it out and kind of do it the old-fashioned way," Dickert said of the Cavaliers. "We have to be able to play our game on our terms."
Virginia, meanwhile, is trying to stop a slide that has put October on the wrong side of the ledger. The Cavaliers are 1-3 this month after opening September 3-1 and briefly breaking into the Top 25.
The last two weeks have at least shown some fight. Virginia lost by 10 at then-No. 24 SMU on Oct. 17, then pushed Duke for most of the night before surrendering the deciding drive late.
Will Bettridge’s 30-yard field goal gave Virginia a 16-13 lead with three minutes left, but Duke answered with a seven-play, 75-yard march for the winning touchdown.
The Cavaliers leaned on Jekail Middlebrook in that one. He ran for 117 yards and a touchdown and leads a deep backfield with 513 rushing yards on 105 carries and five total touchdowns. Beau Pribula, though, has been held without a touchdown pass in each of the last two games and has thrown only two during Virginia’s October skid.
Scoring has been a problem. Virginia has topped 16 points only once in its last four games. That stands in sharp contrast to two games earlier in the month, when the Cavaliers piled up 101 points combined against Norfolk State and Delaware.
"Guys have got to strain a little bit harder," Elliott said. "They're working hard, but when you're playing playoff-style football every single week and it's coming down to three to five plays, you never know which one of those plays is going to make the difference in the game."
In Other News...
Virginias Toughest Early Question Could Decide Close Games
Virginia opens with a slate that should tell us a lot about where this roster stands after losing several key pieces from last season. The Cavaliers still have enough continuity to avoid a total reset, with starters back alongside newcomers who are expected to matter right away, but the early schedule will force those pieces to come together quickly against ranked opponents.
The bigger question is what Virginia looks like when the game tightens and the offense has to produce under pressure. Thijs De Ridder and Chance Mallory are projected to drive much of the scoring load, and the way they handle those possessions could define a lot of close finishes. Around them, Sam Lewis, Jurian Dixon and Christian Harmon are also in the mix to handle important shots and decisions, which gives Tony Bennett options but also leaves the Cavs with a race to see who emerges when the margin gets thin. [Read more 🡒]
Tony Elliott Sends Clear Message As Virginia Offense Keeps Slipping
Virginias offense has hit a rough patch at just the wrong time, and Tony Elliott is making it clear he does not see a quick-fix reset coming. The Cavaliers have dropped three of their last four games, and the production has sagged enough to prompt questions about personnel and play-calling, especially with Beau Pribula under center and Des Kitchings handling the offense.
Elliott pushed back on the idea of shaking up the structure, instead pointing to the full picture around the quarterback rather than placing the burden on one player. He cited the kind of breakdowns that can turn a drive sideways, including drops, protection issues and execution lapses, as the reasons Virginia has had trouble sustaining momentum and finding the rhythm it needs. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Offense Nears A Tough Decision As Losses Keep Mounting
As Virginia keeps coming up short in tight games, Tony Elliott is weighing more than just the next lineup card. The Cavaliers head coach said the recent run of close losses has made it clear the offense needs better play across the board, along with cleaner coaching and execution, if the team is going to turn those finishes into wins.
One of the more intriguing pieces in that conversation is backup quarterback Eli Holstein, who has made a positive impression in practice and is viewed as ready if called on. Elliott made it clear Holstein could be part of the answer if the right moment presents itself, but the larger question for Virginia is whether adding another quarterback wrinkle would actually help steady an offense still searching for the right formula. [Read more 🡒]