FACTS & STATS: Site: Wallace Wade Stadium (33,941) -- Durham, North Carolina. Television: Raycom. Home Record: Wake Forest 4-3, Duke 2-3. Away Record: Wake Forest 0-4, Duke 3-3. Neutral Record: Wake Forest 0-0, Duke 0-0. Conference Record: Wake Forest 2-5, Duke 3-4. Series Record: Duke leads, 53-34-2.

GAME NOTES: The Duke Blue Devils need a win in this weekend's regular-season finale to become bowl eligible, and ACC foe Wake Forest will be the opponent.

Wake Forest opened this season with wins in four of its first six games and figured to contend for the ACC title as usual. Since that point, however, things have gone down hill in a hurry, as the Demon Deacons have suffered five consecutive defeats. Last weekend's 41-28 loss to Florida State in front of a deflated home crowd assured Wake Forest that this weekend's game against Duke would be the last this season.

Speaking of the Blue Devils, they have a chance to extend their campaign, as a win over Wake would make them eligible for a bowl. Unfortunately, the team has suffered three straight defeats, all by double figures, so confidence may be low for the Blue Devils. Last weekend, they fell to Miami on the road by a 34-16 final, as a lack of offensive production was again the main reason for the setback.

Duke owns a 53-34-2 advantage in the all-time series with Wake Forest, but the Demon Deacons have won the last nine meetings.

Riley Skinner has had a terrific career as the quarterback of Wake Forest, and his numbers this season are solid as usual. Sure, he would like to have fewer than 12 interceptions, and those mistakes have contributed to the seven losses. Still, it is hard to complain with 65.2 percent completions for 2,788 yards and 21 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. Devon Brown leads Wake with 53 catches, while Marshall Williams is tops with 52 catches for 748 yards and five touchdowns. As for Josh Adams, he paces Wake Forest with 499 rushing yards and four touchdowns. The Demon Deacons are averaging 24.6 ppg and 394.7 total ypg, solid numbers that won't scare the Blue Devils. It is ironic and impressive that Wake Forest finished with the exact same number of rushing and receiving yards against Florida State last time out (227). But despite the 454 total yards, the Demon Deacons couldn't keep pace with the Seminoles. Skinner threw for a touchdown, and Adams ran for two scores, but two interceptions hurt the cause.

Opponents have been able to score 25.5 ppg while gaining 376.5 total ypg against the Demon Deacons, who have allowed 34 touchdowns to opposing offenses. They have struggled against both the run and the pass, permitting 4.6 yards per rushing attempt and 12.4 yards per pass completion. Foes have been able to make good on 42 percent of their third down conversion attempts against Wake, and that stat could certainly stand to be better. Dominique Midgett leads the Deacs with 73 total tackles, 16 more than his closest teammate. Wake surrendered 437 total yards to Florida State, including 217 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. The Deacons had just one sack and one takeaway in the affair.

Duke is scoring 24.4 ppg this season to go along with 360.6 total ypg, modest numbers for a mediocre football team. The Blue Devils have been completely unsuccessful in their attempts to run the ball this season, ranking near the bottom of the national charts with 63.1 ypg and 2.2 yards per attempt. As a result, a great deal of pressure has fallen on the arm of quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. Through 11 games, Lewis has completed 61.3 percent of his passes for 2,943 yards and 17 touchdowns with seven interceptions, impressive considering the complete lack of ground support. Donovan Varner has been productive on the outside, as he has made 54 catches for 873 yards and six scores. Lewis became Duke's all-time leading passer against Miami last week, but the offense didn't play particularly well in that clash. Varner and Lewis did hook up for one score, but a total of 16 points won't win many ACC games.

There is definitely some room for improvement on the defensive side of the ball for Duke, which is permitting 26.8 ppg and 356.7 total ypg. Opposing offenses have scored 31 touchdowns against the Blue Devils, 18 of which have come on the ground. Vincent Rey leads Duke with 87 total tackles, including 6.5 TFLs. Leon Wright checks in with five interceptions, and Ayanga Okpokowuruk has five sacks to his credit. Miami racked up 496 total yards and 25 first downs against Duke, as the Blue Devils struggled mightily, especially against the pass. The Hurricanes were able to post 348 passing yards on 25 completions, and two of those connections went for scores.

With the help of the home crowd, Duke will knock off Wake Forest this weekend. The Blue Devils are getting better, as they are no longer the ACC's doormat.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Duke 24, Wake Forest 20

Game Date and Time

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