here is part of a write up from the sports network which I feel is SPOT on.


he Commodores spoiled a seven-point, fourth-quarter lead against Tennessee last weekend and lost in overtime when Jordan Rodgers' pass was intercepted and returned 90 yards the other way for the deciding touchdown. Officials first ruled the Tennessee defender's knee was down but eventually overturned their call upon review to end the game. It was yet another meltdown on the road for the Commodores, who are winless in four tries away from home on the year.

As for the Demon Deacons, they were able to snap a three-game slide with a 31-10 win over Maryland last weekend. With the victory, they became bowl eligible for the first time since 2008. Wake Forest wrapped up ACC play with a 5-3 league mark, one game behind Atlantic Division leader Clemson.

Vanderbilt owns a 7-6 edge in the all-time series with Wake Forest.

The Commodores have struggled to move the ball on offense throughout the season, particularly through the air. They enter this tilt ranked 100th in the nation in passing offense (174.4 ypg) and 102nd in total offense (330.2 ypg). Rodgers turned in another sub par performance against the Vols, as he threw for just 193 yards and was intercepted three times, including the one in overtime that sealed the outcome. On the season, he ranks eighth in the SEC in passing efficiency and has thrown more interceptions (nine) than touchdowns (eight). Rodgers is averaging just 123.5 passing yards per tilt while completing only 51.9 percent of his passes. Wideout Chris Boyd has emerged as a playmaking threat with seven touchdowns, although he has caught only 26 passes on the year. Running back Zac Stacy has been the focal point of the offense, averaging 86.5 rushing yards per tilt and an impressive 6.1 yards per carry to go along with 10 touchdowns. If the Commodores are to qualify for postseason play by notching their first road victory, they will likely pin their hopes on Stacy and the ground game.

Defensively, Vanderbilt ranks 20th nationally in total defense (324.2 ypg) and is allowing just 22.1 ppg. Last week, the defense turned in a solid effort on the road, holding Tennessee to 290 total yards while keeping the Vols to one touchdown after halftime. Archibald Barnes had a superb effort with two interceptions, the first of which he returned 28 yards to the Vols 6 to set up Stacy's six-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter. Barnes returned his second pick 100 yards for a key third-quarter touchdown, the longest interception return against Tennessee since 1962. However, the Commodores allowed Tennessee's offense to tie the game and force overtime with a 13-play, 80-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter. Chris Marve finished with a team-high eight tackles for Vandy, while Casey Hayward and Sean Richardson each collected six. Marve paces the squad with 79 tackles on the season, including six for loss. Hayward has a team-high five interceptions and 14 passes defended.

Wake Forest enters this game feeling pretty confident on offense after putting up 31 points against Maryland. It marked the Demon Deacons' most points in a game since a 35-30 win over Florida State improved their record to 4-1 on Oct. 8. Tanner Price had a breakout game with a season-high 320 passing yards and three touchdowns. The 320 yards were six shy of his career-high mark. One of those scoring strikes went to Chris Givens, who finished with a career-best 191 receiving yards on eight catches. After going into the half tied 7-7, the Demon Deacons erupted for 24 second-half points to take control. With Price softening the defense through the air, Brandon Pendergrass carried 26 times for 125 yards and a score, while Orville Reynolds added 63 yards on 11 carries. All told, Wake Forest put up 514 yards of total offense, its most in a game since putting up 500 yards in a win over Duke last year. On the season, Price has completed 62.3 percent of his passes and is averaging 240.5 passing yards per tilt. He has tossed 19 touchdowns and only six interceptions. His favorite target is Givens, who ranks second in the ACC with 70 catches and first in receiving yards per game (109.8) to go along with nine TDs. His 1,207 receiving yards are a single-season high at Wake Forest.

Other than allowing a passing touchdown just before halftime, the Wake Forest defense put the clamps down on the Terrapins. The Demon Deacons held Maryland to 4-of-16 on third downs and 1-of-3 on fourth down. The Terps made four trips into the red zone and, surprisingly, did not come away with a single point. Cyhl Quarles led the defense with eight tackles, and Mike Olson was close behind with seven. Redshirt freshman Merrill Noel recorded two pass breakups, giving him 18 on the season. That ties him with A.J. Greene for the most pass breakups in a single-season in school history. He came into the game as the nation's leader with 16 pass breakups. He has teamed with free safety Josh Bush, who is among the nation's leaders with six interceptions, to form a lethal secondary. In addition to those two, the Demon Deacons have gotten big contributions from Quarles, who leads the team with 87 tackles and a pair of fumble recoveries. Nose guard Nikita Whitlock has been a disruptive force up front with a team-best 12.5 tackles for loss.

The Commodores need this win badly, but they have had problems playing on the road all year long. Part of the problem has been an abundance of turnovers, which again plagued the team last week. Unless they can clean that up here, their season will end this weekend.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Wake Forest 27, Vanderbilt 17