North Carolina (1-0, 0-0 ACC) at Wake Forest (1-0, 0-0 ACC)
Kickoff: Saturday, 3:00 p.m. ET (RSN)
Spread: North Carolina by 8
Watchability: CBS Sports Network’s Randy Cross has Wake Forest as his upset of the week (see 2:35 of the video above). If he’s right, this could be the conference’s game of the day. If not, it could be over in an hour.
Shining stars: North Carolina: RB Giovani Bernard scored on a 59-yard run, 70-yard punt return, and 6-yard catch. He left the game before the half with a sore knee, but coach Larry Fedora isn’t about to give him a break. “Lighten his load? He carried the ball nine times,” Fedora said. “We’re not going to lighten it. We’re going to keep him going. I want him to touch the ball as much as possible, but be smart about it.” Wake Forest: WR Michael Campanaro had nine catches for 96 yards against Liberty. “If they get the ball close to him, he’s going to make the catch,” Fedora said. “It’s definitely a headache for you, defensively, knowing that when he’s got you out in open spaces, you have to make that tackle.”
Who could steal the show: North Carolina: DT Sylvester Williams had two sacks and tipped a pass that led to an interception. The former factory worker dropped 30 pounds during the offseason, and he’ll be looking to feast on Wake’s depleted offensive line. Wake Forest: Punter Alex Kinal could be the Demon Deacons’ secret weapon against North Carolina’s record-setting punt-return unit. The former Australian rules player had five punts inside Liberty’s 20-yard line, the first time a Wake punter has had as many in five years. Liberty also ended up with negative returns on two of Kinal’s punts.
You going? Ranking the road trip: Wake came within 4,000 fans of selling out its opener against Liberty. With in-state rival North Carolina coming to town for the first time since 2007, the stadium should be packed and rocking.
Magic number for North Carolina: 80. North Carolina wants to run at least 80 plays a game. They got 74 against Elon, but Fedora admitted he called off the dogs late in the third quarter.
Magic number for Wake Forest: 6. Wake has won their last six ACC openers, but none by more than seven points.
The game comes down to: Can Wake’s defense slow Carolina’s fast-break attack. Wake’s battered offensive line will make it tough for the Deacons to win a shootout with Carolina. Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe has been watching film of Fedora’s old Southern Mississippi teams and might know the offense better than the Tar Heel players, who are still adjusting to the new scheme.
Prediction: North Carolina 35, Wake Forest 14
For more up-to-the-minute news and analysis from ACC bloggers Shawn Krest and Sean Bielawski, follow @CBSSportsACC.