Let's take a look at Wake Forest football.
Best / Worse Case Record for :
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Wake Forest
If you can’t appreciate the wonderful job Dave Clawson has done at Wake Forest, then you simply don’t follow college football to understand what he’s up against. If I told you Wake Forest’s 2017 schedule would have FSU, Texas A&M, Clemson, a Louisville team with the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, and a 9 win NC State team, how many wins do the Deacs have? I’m not sure many people would say Wake Forest would have had an 8 win season, but that’s what they did. Don’t ever use the schedule as crutch for not being able to get better. Wake Forest didn’t.
Will Go 9-3 (5-3) if:
Wake Forest can take advantage of their early schedule. The Deacs open at Tulane, then host Towson, Boston College, Notre Dame, and Rice. Wake Forest will be favored in 3 of those games. BC is pivotal toss-up game. If Wake Forest pulls an upset on Notre Dame, and beats BC – a 5-0 start is there for the taking. Even a 4-1 early record could lead to a really strong season.
True freshman Sam Hartman has some big shoes to fill in for the reliable John Wolford. If the offense can maintain the production of last year with even a slightly improved defense, Wake Forest could win a lot of games. WR Greg Dortch is one of most exciting players in the ACC.
Will Go 5-7 (3-5) if:
Freshman QB Sam Hartman struggles, with a suspect defense that ranked 113th in the nation last year. For all the good Wake Forest has done, there isn’t still overwhelming talent. The Deacs have a thin margin of error, and have to execute extremely well to get to 7+ wins. The schedule is tough with games against Boston College, Notre Dame, Clemson, at FSU, at NC State, and at Duke. Wake Forest could easily go 0-6 or 1-5 in those 6 games.
A slip in the offense combined with a defense that gives up similar numbers to last year could lead to a long season.
