UNC Football vs. Wake Forest: Preview, game info and more

The UNC Football team returns to action for a Friday night showdown with Wake Forest on the road as they hope to move to 3-0

The North Carolina Tar Heels are 2-0 on the young college football season with upset wins over both South Carolina and Miami to open the new year.

Now they head on the road for their first true road game of the season, facing an old rival in Wake Forest. But this time, it won’t be an Atlantic Coast Conference game.

Instead the two teams will meet in a rare non-conference game on Friday night in Winston-Salem with the winner moving to 3-0 and the loser suffering their first defeat of the year. This will be the first time in series history that both teams will meet unbeaten in the series history as they face off for the 107th time per R.L. Bynum.

While it will be a different setting for the Tar Heels, playing on the road on a Friday night and vs. a conference opponent that doesn’t count as a conference game, they will have the chance to move to 3-0 and itch closer to being ranked in the Top 25. So far in the second stint under Mack Brown, it appears as if UNC is on the right track to turning things around and making a bowl game.

But to do so, UNC has to take care of some business before their schedule gets a little tougher in a few weeks. This game vs. Wake Forest and next weeks’ vs. Appalachian State are two winnable games that would help UNC take that next step into getting a bowl and more importantly, are chances to earn some wins before hosting No. 1 Clemson.

It won’t be easy though as Wake Forest has played well in their first two games of the year, beating Utah State and Rice.

Let’s get into our game preview for Friday’s showdown:

Key to the Game for UNC

Play a full four quarter game. The Tar Heels jumped out to a 17-3 lead last week at home vs. Miami but struggled in the second half. Sure, they were able to come back and win the game thanks to a heroic game-winning drive led by Sam Howell, but that game should have been over.

After UNC jumped out to that lead, they let the Hurricanes get back into thanks to three scoring drives from Miami. This week, playing on the road UNC will need to get out to a lead and play a complete game to be successful.

That’s offense, defense and special teams. Grab the lead and keep your foot on the gas, not allowing the Demon Deacons to get back into it.

While the two wins have been nice, both have been in come back fashion. Fans want to see this team grab a game from the start and hold on throughout. That would be an even bigger confidence booster for this team.

Something to watch

The secondary. UNC is thin in the secondary as it is but now with the loss of Patrice Rene, things get interesting for the Tar Heels.

This week they are going up against a Wake passing offense led by quarterback Jamie Newman who is averaging 356.5 passing yards per game, 11th-best in college football. More importantly, Newman has been efficient and accurate as he’s completed 77.8 percent of his attempts so far this season.

He’s a player that you can’t let get into a rhythm because if he does, he can beat you with his arm as well as his feet. This will be a challenge for UNC’s banged up secondary but if they play well then they should come out on top.

I’ll be curious to see if UNC also tries to bring pressure and force Newman into difficult throws to get his timing off. That’s something we could see early on.

What you need to know

WHAT?  North Carolina Tar Heels 2-0 (1-0 ACC) vs. Wake Forest Demon Deacons 2-0 (0-0)
WHEN?  Friday, September 13, 6 p.m. EST
WHERE?  BB&T Field in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
TV? ESPN
RADIO? Tar Heels Sports Network
WEATHER? High of 67 degrees, 40% chance of rain. Cloudy
LINE? Wake Forest -3
ALL-TIME SERIES? UNC leads 69-35-2
PREDICTION? UNC 27, Wake Forest 23