EagleBank Bowl Odds – Navy vs. Wake Forest Football Picks & Predictions

Written by Steve Janus on December 18, 2008

eagle-bank-bowl-predictions-121808 This year’s college football bowl season kicks off with the EagleBank Bowl. The inaugural match up features the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the Navy Midshipmen. This is Wake’s third bowl appearance in a row, the most in school history. Last season they defeated the UConn Huskies in the Meineke Car Care Bowl 24-10. The EagleBank Bowl marks the 6th straight bowl trip for the Navy Midshipmen, which is also the most in their school’s history. Last year Navy played Utah in the Poinsettia Bowl and suffered a 35-32 defeat. These teams did meet in the regular season this year, with Navy claiming a 24-17 victory. That was almost 3 months ago and, having seen the Navy offense once already, the Deacons should be more prepared this time around. Wake Forest is favored by 3 points over Navy and the total is set for 43.5 points.

With Wake Forest’s production during the regular season, it’s fair to say that they are not very strong on the offensive side of the ball. They averaged just 20.3 points per game on 300.2 yards of total offense. Their running game was one of the worst in the nation, ranking 100th in rushing yards per game at 111.6. As a team, Wake averages just 2.9 yards per carry, also one of the worst marks in the country. The Deacons relied mainly on the arm of Riley Skinner, who completed 62.8 percent of his passes for 2,181 yards and 12 TDs, but suffered from 7 interceptions. For Wake’s style of play to be effective against Navy in the EagleBank Bowl they’ll need to run the ball more effectively and not turn the ball over.

While the offense has struggled this year, the defense for the Demon Deacons has been impressive. Wake held opposing teams to just 18.2 points per game and 298.3 points per game, numbers that were just good enough for the inconsistent offense to catch up to. They’ve been great against the run this year, allowing just over 110 yards per game on the ground, but they’ll need to improve against Navy, who fields the leading rushing offense in the nation, and who bowled over Wake in their first game by gaining 292 yards on the ground. Wake’s defensive improvements have made the Demon Deacons 3 point favorites in the EagleBank Bowl.

This Navy offense is one of the few in the nation that runs on almost every down of every possession. They run the option to perfection and have amassed more rushing yards than any other team in college football. Navy gains just under 300 rushing yards per game, an outstanding output that has earned the Midshipmen 27.8 points per game. Wake Forest will know Navy’s gameplan, just as every other team that has played them has, the question will be whether or not they can stop it. In their first meeting that answer was certainly no as the Midshipmen had their way with this usually-sturdy defensive front.

The Midshipmen could run into some problems on the defensive side of the ball against the Deacons. They’ve been pretty good against the run this year, allowing just 126.2 yards per game, but their pass defense has struggled. Most of the 341.8 yards they surrender per game come through the air, which has allowed opposing teams to score 21.7 points per game against them. Expect Wake to try to take advantage of a weak secondary, which is their best chance at beating Navy in the EageBank Bowl this Saturday. You can bet Navy +3 in the first-ever EagleBank bowl at Sportsbook.com!

Navy beat up on Wake Forest in their first meeting this year, running wild over the Deacon’s defense and earning a 24-10 victory. Wake has improved on defense, however, so don’t expect them to give up nearly 300 yards on the ground this time around. The key in this game will be Wake’s offensive attack. If they can move the ball through the air and make some uncharacteristic big plays, they have a chance at revenge from that early season defeat. If Wake fails in their aerial attack, however, Navy will do what they do best, run the ball, control the clock, and wait out another victory.

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