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Another college football Saturday has arrived, and this is a special one. It's now week 4, which means conference play is really starting to ramp up. This slate features some heavyweight matchups, including a must-watch game in the ACC. All of this brings us to a Clemson football clash against Wake Forest.
To kick off an exciting day of football, No. 5 Clemson hits the road to take on No. 21 Wake Forest in a meeting between two ACC Atlantic contenders. There's no love lost between these two teams, who have been rivals since their first game in 1933. The Tigers have won the last 13 games in the series dating back to 2009, but the Demon Deacons will be eager to snap that skid in front of the home crowd.
Heading into this game, both teams are coming off rather shaky performances against Group of Five opponents. Clemson allowed Louisiana Tech to hang around for a while before pulling away in the second half for a 48-20 win. Meanwhile, Wake Forest nearly lost against Liberty, but a late stop on a 2-point conversion helped the Demon Deacons hold on for a 37-36 victory.
Both teams have undeniable talent, but still have plenty to prove. A big win on Saturday would go a long way toward deciding the division, and the ACC as a whole. With that in mind, let's make some bold Clemson football predictions in this showdown.
3. Cade Klubnik replaces DJ Uiagalelei at QB
The Tigers had a down season by their standards in 2021, and much of the blame went towards Uiagalelei. The California native's first full season as a starter was one to forget, and the Tigers offense sputtered for much of the season. Uiagalelei finished the season completing just 55.6% of his passes and threw 10 interceptions to just nine touchdowns.
Uiagalelei has certainly improved this season, as he has completed 64.8% of his passes for five touchdowns and only one pick. However, the question of whether he's good enough to win a national championship still remains. That question only grows stronger when the best QB in this year's recruiting class is breathing down his neck.
Klubnik, an Austin, Texas native, was the best quarterback in the 2022 class, according to 247Sports. Questions swirled all offseason about who would start, and continue to swirl even through the first few weeks.
It feels like a matter of time before Dabo Swinney hands the reins to the talented freshman. After all, the Tigers had another freshman step into the starter role a few years ago, and that freshman happened to be Trevor Lawrence. Uiagalelei's leash is short, and with this being Clemson's first real test of the season, don't be surprised to see Klubnik take over in this game.
2. Bryan Bresee has two sacks in emotional return
Bresee, Clemson's star defensive tackle, missed the Tigers' last game after his 15-year-old sister, Ella, tragically passed away after a battle with brain cancer. Following the tragic passing, Bresee received an outpouring of support from the entire college football world. Most notably, Louisiana Tech players all wrote Bresee letters by hand ahead of their matchup with Clemson.
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A picture is worth 1,000 words, even when there are no words.
These are the hand-written letters from every member of @LATechFB’s team to the Bresee family.
Football is family, and we’re grateful to our Bulldog brothers for this gesture. 🧡 pic.twitter.com/SafYoAPWMo
— Clemson Football (@ClemsonFB) September 18, 2022
Bresee will be back on the field this week, and he will want nothing more than to make his sister proud. At his best, Bresee is a true game-wrecker, and he has the motivation to be at his best today. Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman could be in for a long day with Bresee chasing him around.
Bresee had four sacks in his 2020 freshman season, but only two since then due to missing most of last season with an injury. This feels like a big game waiting to happen though, and he could have a multi-sack game on Saturday.
1. Clemson football wins by three scores
Clemson enters this game as a sizable favorite over Wake Forest. FanDuel Sportsbook has the Tigers as 7.5-point favorites, and ESPN's Football Power Index gives them a 78.9% chance to win.
The Tigers may have looked shaky in their last game against Louisiana Tech, but at least they pulled away eventually. On the other hand, the Demon Deacons never found that separation against Liberty. If they play like that against the Tigers, this game could get ugly fast.
Last season, Clemson beat Wake Forest 48-27 at home. That game featured a better Wake Forest team and a worse Clemson team than this year's matchup, and yet the Tigers still won by a landslide. In fact, the last time these two games played a one-score game was in 2011, when Clemson won 31-28.
If history continues, then the Tigers could turn this game into a blowout yet again. A three-score win will erase a lot of questions about Clemson, and Swinney's team will be ready.
