ACC Game Picks: Cal's Visit to Wake Forest a Key to Bowl Hopes

At 4-4, the Bears must win at least twice in their final four games to reach the postseason

Cade Uluave (0) is expected back Friday night for Cal. / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Favored on the road for the first time since last year’s Big Game, Cal faces another big game on Friday at Wake Forest.

The Bears snapped their four-game losing streak with a 44-7 rout of Oregon State two weeks ago before a bye to prepare for the Demon Deacons.

They still are seeking their first victory in the Atlantic Coast Conference after four defeats by a combined total of nine points. The folks in Las Vegas expect that to change, listing the Bears as a 7.5-point favorite at Winston-Salem, N.C.

At 4-4 overall, Cal needs two more wins to become bowl eligible. Getting one of them this week paves the easiest path to that goal.

The Bears return home a week from Saturday to face a Syracuse team that can be hard to figure. The Orange is 6-2 with wins in four of its past five games, but lost 41-13 to Pitt two weeks ago.

The Bears’ schedule ends with Stanford visiting Berkeley on Nov. 23 and Cal traveling to 13th-ranked and once-beaten SMU on Nov. 30. 

Here are this week’s games: 

Last week: Jake 3-3, Jeff 3-3

Season: Jeff 58-44, Jake 58-44

All picks against the spread 

Betting line from Vegas Insider

Rankings shown are the current College Football Playoff rankings

Friday

— Cal (minus-7.5) at Wake Forest, 5 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: Wake Forest’s two ACC wins combined have been by six points, and the Demon Deacons are 1-4 at home. Cal’s offense was much better in its most recent game against Oregon State. Pick: Cal

Jeff: The difference between these two teams is on the defensive side, where Cal is surrendering just 17.3 points per game compared to 31.0 allowed by the Deacons’ defense. To secure their first ACC victory, the Bears need to exploit that advantage. Pick: Cal

Saturday

— No. 4 Miami (minus-11.5) at Georgia Tech, 9 a.m., ESPN

Jake: This hinges on whether Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King plays. He has missed the past two games and is questionable this week.  We know Miami QB Cam Ward will play. Pick: Miami

Jeff: The Hurricanes have shown us — again last week vs. Duke — they can score pretty much as many points as they need. Perhaps the only team in ACC where the point spread doesn’t concern me. Pick: Miami

— Syracuse (plus-2) at Boston College, 9 a.m., CW Network

Jake: Syracuse had to go to overtime to beat Virginia Tech, which was without its starting quarterback. Despite riding a three-game losing streak, Boston College is coming off a bye and played well in its loss two weeks ago to Louisville in the Eagles’ only home loss. Pick: Boston College.

Jeff: The season began nicely for BC, winner of three of its first four games. But the Eagles have lost three in a row and Syracuse has won four of five. Pick: Syracuse

— No. 23 Clemson (minus-6.5) at Virginia Tech, 12:30 p.m., ESPN

Jake: Virginia Tech lost to Syracuse last week without starting QB Kyron Drones, and he is questionable this week. Another case of guessing whether a key player will play. This is just Clemson’s third road game. Pick: Virginia Tech.

Jeff: Virginia Tech, with five wins, is playing for bowl eligibility. The question is whether Clemson, after losing to Louisville to drop out of contention for a spot in the 12-team playoffs, has anything to play for. Pick: Virginia Tech

— Duke (plus-3) at North Carolina State, 12:30 p.m., ACC Network 

Jake: NC State won by 31 points last week, but that was against Stanford. Duke lost by 22 points last week, but that was against Miami, and Duke led that game by 11 points in the third quarter. Pick: Duke

Jeff: The Blue Devils have stumbled since starting 5-0. But NC State freshman quarterback CJ Bailey has swept the Bay Area schools and is gaining confidence and momentum. Pick: North Carolina State

— Florida State (plus-26) at No. 10 Notre Dame, 4:30 p.m., NBC

Jake: Hard to believe the preseason pick to win the ACC title is this big an underdog, but it’s deserved. Notre Dame is coming off a bye and needs to be impressive in its bid to be in the College Football Playoff. Pick: Notre Dame

Jeff: When was the last time the Seminoles were a 26-point underdog? Agree with Jake that the Fighting Irish will want to win decisively to bolster their spot at No. 10 in the CFP standings. Don’t like the spread, but . . . Pick: Notre Dame

— Virginia (plus-7) at No. 18 Pittsburgh, 5  p.m., ACC Network

Jake: Pitt looked very ordinary in last week’s loss to SMU, but Virginia was even worse in its loss two weeks go to North Carolina, which was the Cavaliers’ third straight defeat. Virginia is coming off a bye, but it may not help. Pick: Pittsburgh

Jeff: Pitt’s unbeaten season crumbled against SMU but Virginia has lost three in a row and the past two were not close. Pick: Pittsburgh