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Rex Brown

Clemson’s Aaron Kelly, top, caught 10 passes for 93 yards and two touchdowns during the Tigers’ 44-10 romp over Wake Forest last season at Memorial Stadium in Clemson. This season, Clemson will face the Deacons on Oct. 9 at Groves Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C.

CLEMSON — If someone would have come up to you say five years ago when the ACC first started talks about expansion and said that one day the Clemson at Wake Forest game on Oct. 9 could decide the Atlantic Division’s representative in the ACC Championship Game, you would have told him he was crazy.

But that appears to be the case this season. The Tigers, the media’s favorite to win the ACC this year, should come into this game 5-0, while the Demon Deacons have an opportunity to be either 5-0 or 4-1. If Wake Forest beats Florida State in Tallahassee on Sept. 20, then the Demon Deacons will have an opportunity to gain control of the ACC’s Atlantic with a win over Clemson.

If they should lose to the Seminoles, then the Clemson game will be Wake’s last opportunity to stay in the ACC race. Either way, it stacks up to be a huge game for both teams.

Clemson’s offense vs. Wake’s defense

Wake Forest’s defense is known for taking advantage of their opponent’s mistakes, but against Clemson last season, the Demon Deacons caught the Tigers on a day when the offense played nearly flawless. Clemson quarterback Cullen Harper completed 27-of-35 passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns in Clemson’s 44-10 victory. The Tigers ended the game with no turnovers, which left cornerback Alphonso Smith and company frustrated.

The expectation for Wake Forest this season is to again be a big-play unit. Besides Smith, linebacker Aaron Curry is also back. Curry ran back three interceptions last season from 57, 77 and 84 yards. Last year, Harper picked apart the Wake Forest secondary which returns intact from last season. With a lack of a pass rush, Harper easily found guys like Aaron Kelly (10-93, 2 TDs) and Tyler Grisham (9-100, TD) open.

Clemson’s defense vs. Wake’s offense

Despite missing two games last season with a separated shoulder, Wake quarterback Riley Skinner still threw for 2,204 yards and 12 touchdowns while leading the nation with a 72.4 percent completion percentage. However, he did throw 13 interceptions last season, including one against the Tigers. The ACC’s Rookie of The Year last season, Josh Adams, will join Skinner in the backfield. The sophomore rushed for 953 yards and 11 scores in 2007.

Though they lost wideout Kenneth Moore, the ACC’s leading receiver, to graduation, the Deacons still have big-play type guys in Marshall Williams and Jordan Williams. Chip Brinkman is their best possession receiver. Wake’s weakness on offense appears to be up front which is where they struggled against Clemson last season as the Tigers sacked Skinner six times and harassed him all afternoon. The Deacons return just two starters on the offensive line. Wake’s running game was also ineffective against Clemson’s front, rushing for just 82 yards on 37 carries.

Special Teams

Clemson’s C.J. Spiller returned a kick for a touchdown last season against Wake, and also had a long punt return to set up another score. Wake generally outplays Clemson in this area and multi-purpose kicker Sam Swank gives them a chance to do that this year. Swank enters his senior-season with a career mark of 9-for-12 in field goals from 50 yards or more.

The Overview

Clemson dominated Wake Forest last year and since defensive coordinator Vic Koenning came on board in 2005, Wake Forest has had very little success rushing the football against Clemson. Expect more of the same this year. Koenning and his defense can live with it if Skinner beats them, but not Adams and the ground game. Both teams basically have the same teams back from last year and both teams have questions on the offensive line. With that said, though, the Tigers will not blow Wake out like they did last year, but they will leave Winston-Salem with a huge victory in their quest for an ACC Championship.

Prediction

Clemson 27, Wake Forest 20

Saturday: A breakdown of the Oct. 18 game against Georgia Tech.