WINSTON-SALEM – The No. 10 Clemson Tigers travel to Wake Forest this weekend looking to remain undefeated in ACC play.

It’s a series that Clemson (4-1, 3-0) has dominated over the years, and even more so since Dabo Swinney took over. The head coach has never lost to the Demon Deacons as Swinney is looking for his 16th straight win in the series.

Wake (2-3, 1-1) is fresh off a win over NC State and has a pretty efficient offense. The Deacs score more than 30 points per game and average more than 430 yards of total offense per game.

It’s a unique scheme they use, with the slowly developing mesh game to try and keep the opposition defense off balance. Most years the Tigers have been pretty good against this offense, but the last time these two teams met in Winston-Salem, Wes Goodwin’s unit struggled.

After stints at Boise State and Louisiana Tech, transfer quarterback Hank Bachmeier now leads Wake Forest’s offense. While his quick numbers won’t blow anyone away, he is a threat running the ball and needs to be held accountable. Running back Demond Claiborne is having a good season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry and nearly 100 yards per game. Goodwin’s unit needs to be disciplined and not get caught being overly aggressive.

Bachmeier has made a name for himself primarily with his arm. The redshirt senior is completing 63% of his throws and rushing for 263 yards per game. So far he has only thrown two picks. This could be a bigger test than the Tigers received from Florida State’s passing game last weekend.

The Tigers really have the advantage on the other side of the ball. Wake’s defense was absolutely terrible in places, especially the pass defense. This unit has allowed 400 yards of offense in four straight games. The only team not to reach that mark was NC A&T in the season opener.

Since then, Virginia has thrown for 357 yards against the Deacs, Ole Miss 357, Louisiana-Lafayette 257 and NC State 314. Nationally, Wake Forest ranks 129th nationally in opponent completion percentage and 101st in third-down defense . This is an area that Cade Klubnik and his pass catchers need to exploit.

The Demon Deacons’ defense wasn’t very good against the run either, allowing 169 yards per game and 4.9 yards per carry. This means Phil Mafah could feature in another big game.

Clemson comes into the game having to solve some problems of its own. The Tigers had a lot of trouble in the red zone against the Seminoles, failing to score a single touchdown inside the 20-yard line in six plays. Was this an anomaly or a sign of things to come?

Nolan Hauser also had two of his field goals blocked last week due to defensive breakdowns on the left side. You can bet that was a focus in practice this week.

At the end of the day, football games usually come down to players making plays, and Clemson simply has more talent. The Tigers should win the battle at the line of scrimmage and on both sides of the ball. While Wake will likely have some success moving the ball, the Tigers should have more, and this week that success comes in touchdowns rather than a series of field goal attempts.

Clemson 41 Wake Forest 17

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