Stanford rolls into Winston-Salem as the first ACC test of the Tavita Pritchard era, and Wake Forest is out to prove last year's 9-4 breakout wasn't a fluke.
Bush’s Picks
STANWAKE
STANWAKE
OverUnder
Best BetWake Forest
Wake Forest's the more established program right now — a defense that jumped nearly 100 spots nationally and a coach who's already proven he can win games he's not supposed to. Stanford is still in the early innings of a rebuild with a first-year head coach and a QB who hasn't started a game since 2024. Take the Deacons to win outright at home.
Stanford
+Defense returns 96% of snaps with deep LB continuity
+New QB Davis Warren has proven Power 4 starting experience
+Andrew Luck and Pritchard bring real program direction
−Coming off a 4-7 season under an interim coach
−First-year head coach still installing his system
−Warren missed all of 2025 with a knee injury
Wake Forest
+9-4 breakout season, program record for a first-year coach
+Defense leapt from 118th to 26th nationally in one year
+Home game during Family Weekend adds extra juice
−Picked 16th of 17 teams in the ACC preseason poll
−Lost top four offensive linemen and lead back Claiborne
−Gio Lopez still new to the offense in his first year running it
This one's built around two quarterbacks trying to prove something. Davis Warren, the ex-Michigan starter, is Stanford's big offseason swing after sitting out all of 2025 with a knee injury — new coach Tavita Pritchard, a former Cardinal QB himself and known developer of passers, is betting Warren can be the best arm on The Farm since Tanner McKee. Across the field, Gio Lopez is settling into his first year running Jake Dickert's offense after transferring in from UNC, and by all accounts he's ahead of schedule — Dickert has said Lopez is comfortable enough to already help teach the playbook rather than just learn it.
Wake Forest enters as the more proven team, at least on paper. Dickert turned in a 9-4 season in his first year in Winston-Salem, a program record for wins by a first-year head coach, and the Demon Deacons' defense made an absurd leap — from 118th in the country in total defense to 26th. Stanford, meanwhile, is coming off a 4-7 season under interim coach Frank Reich that still counted as progress after the Troy Taylor mess, and now GM Andrew Luck and Pritchard are trying to build something sustainable on top of it.
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STAN Stanford
WAKE Wake Forest
The roster turnover cuts both ways here. Wake Forest loses its top four offensive linemen and Second-Team All-ACC back Demond Claiborne, which puts real pressure on Lopez and a retooled backfield even at home. Stanford's defense, by contrast, is bringing almost everyone back, with strong continuity at linebacker — a rare bit of stability for a program still finding its footing.
Stanford Cardinal
Sep 26?vs Georgia Tech—
Sep 19?@ Duke—
Sep 4?vs Miami—
Aug 29?vs Hawai'i—
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Sep 25?@ Louisville—
Sep 18?vs Miami—
Sep 12?@ Purdue—
Sep 3?vs Akron—
Recent form.
Don't sleep on the stakes despite the modest external respect for Wake Forest — the ACC media poll picked the Deacons to finish 16th of 17 teams this preseason, which tells you how little buy-in there is nationally for last year's breakout repeating. Dickert's group will treat every early-season home game, especially one built around Family Weekend, as a chance to shove that prediction back in people's faces.
Stanford Cardinal
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
For Stanford, this is about establishing an identity in Year 1 under Pritchard — a proven QB developer trying to get quick returns from a transfer QB who hasn't played meaningful snaps in nearly two years. For Wake Forest, it's about validation: a defense that arrived a year early and an offense that has to replace its best players up front and in the backfield. Whoever answers those questions faster probably wins this one.
