Virginia Cavaliers vs Wake Forest Demon Deacons Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 10/31/2026

Game Time: 3:45 pm ET, Saturday, October 31, 2026

Venue:  Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium, Winston-Salem, NC

Where to Watch:  ESPN2

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Virginia +12.5, Wake Forest -12.5; Over/Under:  49.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Virginia +12.5, Wake Forest -12.5; Over/Under:  49.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Virginia +12.5, Wake Forest -12.5; Over/Under:  49.5 points

Virginia Cavaliers:  4-4 (2-3) (12th place, ACC)

Wake Forest Demon Deacons:  6-1 (4-1) (3rd place, ACC)

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Virginia Cavaliers:  lost their last game at home against the Duke Blue Devils 19-16.

Wake Forest Demon Deacons:  won their last game on the road against the California Golden Bears 41-7.

Virginia is entering this game with a 4-4 record overall and they have a 2-3 record in their conference games too. They are 4-1 in their home games, 0-2 in their road games, and they are also 0-1 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They lost their last game against Duke 19-16. Beau Pribula was the starting QB and he completed 15/24 passes for 158 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Jekail Middlebrook led the team in rushing yards with 117 and 1 TD. John Rogers led the receivers with 65 receiving yards on 5 receptions. Christian Ellis led the defense in that game with 6 tackles while Kam Robinson led the defense in sacks with 1. Kam Robinson came away with the only interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

Wake Forest is entering this game with a 6-1 record overall and they have a 4-1 record in their conference games too. They are 2-1 in their home games, 4-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against California 41-7. Gio Lopez was the starting QB and he completed 16/23 passes for 267 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Jamar Searcy led the team in rushing yards with 61 and 1 TD. Dominick Barry led the receivers with 102 receiving yards on 4 receptions and 3 TDs. Myles Turpin led the defense in that game with 7 tackles while Langston Hardy led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

The current betting odds have Wake Forest listed as a 12.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Wake Forest has looked great in their games this season with their 6-1 record overall and their 4-1 conference record which has them right near the top of the ACC. They have looked good on their home field too with their 2-1 home record this season. Meanwhile, Virginia hasn't looked great in their games this season with their 4-4 record overall and their 2-3 conference record which has them in the bottom half of the ACC. They have been a terrible road team too with their 0-2 road record this year. Virginia had a nice start to the season and looked like they were going to be a threat this year, but lately the wheels have been coming off and it is clear that they have taken a big step back from last season. Lately their offense has been having a lot of trouble putting up points in their games and now they are coming off a 19-16 loss to Duke in their last one. They have also looked a lot worse in their 2 road games this year, struggling to even be competitive. Wake Forest is coming off a 41-7 road win over Cal in their last one and they have looked like a team that could end up in the ACC Championship. They have been blowing out their opponents lately and even their 1 loss this year was against Miami who is the 1st ranked team in the nation at the moment. They have quietly put together a great season and they are going to have a big advantage here since they are also coming out of their bye week. Look for Wake Forest to come out of their bye week strong and continue rolling against a Virginia team that hasn't been good. The best way to place a bet here is on Wake Forest to cover the spread in this game. 

Virginia Wake Forest Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, October 31, 2026 (3:45 pm ET start time) is Wake Forest 38 Virginia 17.

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Virginia Cavaliers: 7-3 ATS as an underdog. 11-4 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record. 9-3 ATS vs. good teams - outscoring opponents by 10+ PPG on the season. 21-9 UNDER against FBS division opponents. 

Wake Forest Demon Deacons: 2-5 ATS off a road blowout win by 28 points or more. 7-14 ATS at home when playing with 2 weeks or more of rest. 9-14 ATS at home as a favorite of 10.5 to 21 points. 9-5 UNDER as a home favorite of 7.5 to 14 points.

Virginia Cavaliers:  E. Minter (S) Out - Undisclosed. K. Courtney (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed. R. Flores Jr. (WR) Out - Knee. D. Newton-Short (WR) Out - Hamstring. T. Hamann (K) Out - Undisclosed. J. Stevens (RB) Out - Undisclosed. T. Ward (WR) Out - Undisclosed. P. Lewis (RB) Questionable - Undisclosed. J. Hammond (DL) Out - Undisclosed.

Wake Forest Demon Deacons:  E. Otieno (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed. N. Carr (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed.

“It was well designed because they got their best player with the ball in his hands. So, he’s going to draw a lot of attention. And then, it was a very similar concept to what happened the play before, with the swing pass with an escort blocker in front of him. And then guys just not doing their job in a critical moment.” - Tony Elliott after his team’s loss against Duke in their last game. 

“I'm really proud of our football team — really proud of our whole program — just the intensity with which we took the field and with which we prepared. I mean that. We felt like caged animals out here waiting for this football game. Our guys executed the plan offensively. Gio Lopez is an absolute stud and continues to play at a really big-time level, which has given us a chance in every single game. Defensively, I thought we kept them off balance. So a complete, obviously dominant win on the road — our fourth Power Four road win — which is a big deal for our team. Excited about the bye week and excited about what's next.” - Jake Dickert after his team’s win against Cal in their last game. 

WR Coleman, Ty'Lyric

WR Gibson, Jacquon

WR Courtney, Kameron

TE Twitty, Dakota

QB Pribula, Beau

RB Middlebrook, Jekail

WR Meeks, Antonio

WR Hernandez, Carlos

WR Shanks, Kam

TE Loerzel, Will

QB Lopez, Gio

RB Clark III, Ty

Passing: Beau Pribula (1,369)

Rushing: Jekail Middlebrook (513)

Receiving: Da'Shawn Martin (247)

Touchdowns: Da'Shawn Martin (5)

Passing: Gio Lopez (1,947)

Rushing: Ty Clark III (328)

Receiving: Carlos Hernandez (820)

Touchdowns: Gio Lopez (6)

Coaches:

Virginia Cavaliers: Tony Elliott (5th season)

Wake Forest Demon Deacons: Jake Dickert (2nd season)