Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest Odds and Spread Picks (9/26/20)

• Notre Dame will visit Wake Forest this Saturday, September 26th as massive 16.5 point road favorites
• The Fighting Irish are looking to start the season 3-0, while Wake Forest looks to avoid an 0-3 start
• The over-under betting total for this ACC matchup is 59 points

IGNORE IT ALL, GAME IS CANCELLED……RESCHEDULED FOR DEC. 12

Notre Dame is looking to move to 2-0 in conference play its first season in the ACC. They don’t plan on becoming a full-time member of the conference, but with the Pac-12 shutting down entirely and other conferences moving away from non-conference games this year, the Fighting Irish needed a conference of their own. The 2020 college football season is full of surprises.

Longtime ACC member Wake Forest is looking to pull off the upset. The Demon Deacons are 0-2 after losses to Clemson and North Carolina State, but they looked much better against the Wolf Pack last weekend. They finally started to move the ball and running back Kenneth Walker III was a big reason why.

Notre Dame – Wake Forest Week 4 Betting Odds

Notre Dame is no stranger to being heavy favorites in the 2020 season. They have opened up as double-digit favorites in both of their games so far this year and this week will be no different. Against Wake Forest, they’re laying 16 points and are currently -667 on the moneyline.

You can get the total points from anywhere between 58 to 59 depending on the sportsbook. Last week, the Fighting Irish put up 52 points on South Florida and Wake Forest scored 42 in a shootout with North Carolina State.

Game Preview & Betting Angles

Notre Dame is off and running in 2020. In their first game, they cruised to a 14-point victory over Duke but failed to cover the big spread. The next game, their only non-conference matchup of the season, they destroyed South Florida 52-0.

Next up on the docket for the Fighting Irish are the Demon Deacons. Wake Forest was blown out by Clemson in their first game, which shouldn’t really come as a surprise. Clemson is the current favorite to win the National Championship. The Demon Deacons lost their second game of the season in a nail-biter to North Carolina State.

Notre Dame is led by their staunch defense. In two games so far, albeit against inferior opponents, they’ve only given up 13 total points. Wake Forest can put points up on the board, but it’s going to be much tougher to do so against the Fighting Irish. Kenneth Walker III is Wake Forest’s go-to guy on offense. He ran for 131 yards and three touchdowns against NC State last week after being held to just 19 yards on 6 carries against Clemson.

Offensively, Notre Dame is led by their quarterback Ian Book. Although he has yet to find his rhythm through the air, he is a dual-threat quarterback who can do some damage with his legs. He ran for three scores against South Florida so it’s clear that when he brings his team close to the end zone, opposing teams have to account for his arm and his legs.

Notre Dame – Wake Forest Historical Matchup

There isn’t a ton of history between Notre Dame and Wake Forest. These two schools have only met on the gridiron five times with Notre Dame going undefeated. However, all five wins have come during the Brian Kelly era in South Bend.

The most recent game between Notre Dame and Wake Forest came in 2018. It was a home game for the Demon Deacons, but they couldn’t hold off Kelly’s squad. Notre Dame destroyed Wake Forest 56-27.

How to Watch Notre Dame – Wake Forest

This weekend represents a rare week where Notre Dame isn’t playing on NBC. This game can be found on ABC at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday. ABC has yet to announce the official schedule for announcers this weekend, but Mark Jones, Dusty Dvoracek, and Quint Kessenich are usually the noon ABC game.

Betting Picks & Score Prediction

I’m hesitant to go with Notre Dame after they burned me against Duke a couple of weeks ago, but it’s hard to look at this matchup and go any other direction. Notre Dame’s defense is strong enough to withstand the rushing attack of Wake Forest and the offense is good enough to build an early lead. That will play right into their hands.

Take Notre Dame laying the points against Wake Forest this week.

Final score prediction: Notre Dame wins 41-14

Small’s 2020 CFB Record: 0-2