Week 12: N.C. State at Wake Forest

Back-to-back losses in conference play have cost Wake Forest a chance to repeat as ACC champion. But the Demon Deacons still have an opportunity to repeat one of their other feats from 2006.

With a win Saturday, Wake Forest will have swept Tobacco Road rivals Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State for the second year in a row.

That won’t be easy to accomplish — not against a Wolfpack team that has won four consecutive games since a 1-5 start. N.C. State’s players turned around their season during their open date, adjusting to Tom O’Brien’s system and putting their full belief in the vision of their new head coach.

“They’ve done it in a very short amount of time,” said Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe, whose team swept the three Triangle-area ACC schools last year for the first time since 1987. “Usually it takes longer than that. Unfortunately for the Deacs, they’re playing really well right now.

“It looks like somewhat of a seamless transition, although earlier in the year they struggled. But now they look like they know what they’re doing, and they’re doing it full speed.”

The Wolfpack, which has lost in four of its last five trips to Groves Stadium, is seeking its fourth consecutive conference win for the first time since 1992. The Demon Deacons, meanwhile, have come full circle in the last two weeks. They began the season with two straight losses, then ripped off a six-game winning streak before losing two in a row again.

Wake Forest’s latest setback was a 44-10 defeat at Clemson last week in a game that the Tigers led from start to finish. N.C. State appeared to be on its way to a similarly easy victory over archrival North Carolina, but the Tar Heels rallied to take the lead before the Wolfpack prevailed 31-27.

N.C. State, which led 17-0 in the second quarter, allowed UNC back into the game with some costly turnovers. Quarterback Daniel Evans, whose improved play has sparked the Wolfpack during its winning streak, threw a pair of interceptions that were returned for touchdowns. The Demon Deacons no doubt salivated this week as they watched the game film, eager to add to their NCAA-leading total of seven defensive touchdowns.

But Wake Forest will have to do more than pick off passes to stop the Wolfpack. N.C. State has found a running game thanks to sophomore tailback Jamelle Eugene, who rushed for 159 yards and three touchdowns on 32 carries against the Tar Heels. Eugene has totaled 423 rushing yards in the last four games, while the rest of his teammates have combined for minus-13 yards on the ground during that span.

“He’s a guy who goes every play like it’s the last play he’s ever going to play,” O’Brien said of Eugene, who became N.C. State’s starting tailback after Toney Baker and Andre Brown suffered injuries. “He has trained himself to be able to do that, and he has prepared himself to be able to do it.”

The Demon Deacons struggled last week against Clemson, but they have some weapons of their own. Tailback Josh Adams (76.9 yards per game) has rushed for more yardage than any redshirt freshman in Wake Forest history, and senior wide receiver Kenny Moore (7.0 catches per game) enters this game needing just three receptions to break Desmond Clark’s school record of 72 catches in a season.

Quarterback Riley Skinner (72.8 percent completions) remains on pace to break former N.C. State star Philip Rivers’ ACC record for completion percentage (72.0), and the Wolfpack would love to put him behind schedule by getting some pressure on him.

The Demon Deacons must find a way to block sophomore defensive end Willie Young, who has been a terror in recent weeks. Young has nine tackles for loss, six sacks and 19 pressures in the last four games after totaling four tackles for loss, no sacks and four pressures in N.C. State’s first six games.

Young’s emergence is symbolic of the progress N.C. State has made as a team, and the Demon Deacons have taken notice of what their neighbor to the east has accomplished during the past month.

“I think a lot of it is confidence,” Wake Forest sophomore defensive tackle John Russell said. “I think it only takes one or two wins against some quality opponents to realize that you have it in you to be great.

“Looking at the players they have there and the level of talent, they definitely have great potential. They’re just starting to show it, which is just going to make it even tougher on Saturday.”

That said, Wake Forest will be ready for the Wolfpack. The Demon Deacons want to send out their 17 seniors with a victory in their final home game, and they have demonstrated all season an ability to capitalize on errors by the opposition. As good as N.C. State has been recently, the team still is making enough mistakes to fuel Wake Forest’s opportunistic fire.

Wake Forest by 3