NC State is a slight favorite when it hosts Wake Forest Saturday for an 8 p.m. kickoff at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh.

Wolfpack fans may scoff at the notion of NC State ever being favored over its arch nemesis in seemingly every sport during the 21st century. The Demon Deacons have won three in a row on the gridiron against the Pack, with a couple of heartbreakers sprinkled in those.

Can NC State end that streak? The Wolfpacker staff makes their guesses.

Should NC State fans actually be excited about playing Wake Forest? Yes, because getting to the field on Saturday is, in the year 2020 with all that has happened, in itself a significant accomplishment.

So be happy to see that black and gold on the field to start the game.

Will they be equally satisfied about playing the Demon Deacons after 60 minutes of football? That's an entirely separate question.

For whatever reason — and there are many theories why — WFU just seems to be that proverbial thorn in the Pack's side. Maybe the Deacs take the games more seriously, or perhaps we overestimate the flukiness of it and simply don't give Wake Forest enough credit.

From listening to NC State players this week, I don't think there is going to be a question of effort this Saturday. The Wolfpack has been itching to get back on the field, and they seem determined to prove 2019 was an aberration.

Conversely, this Wake Forest team is not the same as its 2019 version. A year ago when the two teams met, it came after NC State was routed at Boston College, and I wrote in my official game prediction for WFU that, "watching that [Boston College] game unfold left me with a feeling that, simply put, this might not be NC State's year."

I noted then that the only way I could see a Wolfpack win was NC State pulling "a Wake Forest" on a ranked, very good Wake Forest team, but I didn't suspect that would happen. It didn't, because that version of the Demon Deacons was simply much better than the Wolfpack. The final result was reflective of the realties on the field, a 44-10 WFU spanking.

The realities though are different in 2020, and without knowing the health status of either team I think there is reason to believe these two are on much more level playing fields in 2020.

My prediction: a fired-up Wolfpack team starts strong and then holds on through some anxious moments. I have NC State winning, 27-17.

While these two teams are evenly matched on paper, Wolfpack fans know all too well the dangers of underestimating in-state opponent Wake Forest.

The Demon Deacons have proven to be the Pack’s kryptonite in recent years after dropping the last three in the series, and it’s not hard to understand why. NC State consistently features the same, if not better, talent compared to its ACC rival from Winston-Salem, but the Deacs simply play clean football under head coach Dave Clawson.

They don’t turn the ball over, they don’t commit many senseless penalties, they convert on third-downs and they run a challenging up-tempo offense to defend with a well-conditioned roster.

This game will not be anything like last year’s lopsided 44-10 Wake Forest win. In fact, I see NC State landing the first couple of punches Saturday night in what will be an eerily empty Carter-Finley Stadium. The Deacs will be thrown off early from Wolfpack offensive coordinator Tim Beck’s new offensive system, which is expected to play to the personnel strengths of the Pack’s playmakers.

NC State will come out in the first half energized and plenty motivated, which should convert to a Wolfpack lead at halftime. But well-coached Wake Forest will make the right adjustments at halftime and take advantage of a young Pack roster that will be understandably tired after seeing its first live action of the fall following a stop-and-start fall camp.

The Deacons execute a late fourth-quarter drive to force overtime, in which it scores a touchdown after the Pack had settled for a field goal. Although it would be disappointing to start the year with a loss to an in-state rival, this game will prove that this is not the same 4-8 NC State team from one year ago. Wake Forest wins, 29-26.

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