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Week 7 of the 2026 college football season will pit #21 Wake Forest against California on Saturday, October 17, at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Ahead of Saturday’s ACC clash, the Demon Deacons are 9.5-point favorites on PrizePicks.
Wake Forest has strung together three straight victories, including a Week 4 win over a then-ranked Louisville program. Meanwhile, California is trying to maintain its momentum after snapping a two-game losing streak with a 25-20 triumph over Virginia Tech in Week 6.
Below, we'll break down our Wake Forest vs. California prediction and picks for Saturday’s college football game, including the winner, spread, and over/under on PrizePicks.
Make your Wake Forest vs. California picks for Saturday on PrizePicks now!
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#21 Wake Forest vs. California Prediction, Spread, Over/Under – Saturday, October 17
Wake Forest enters Saturday’s game as a 9.5-point road favorite against California, returning a 1.25x payout to win outright.
Here are the full payouts for the Wake Forest vs. California game on PrizePicks. PrizePicks data is live at the time of writing and is subject to change.
Make your Wake Forest vs. California prediction on the spread or over/under on PrizePicks.
Stats and data in this article are from PFF, Game on Paper, and The Two Deep unless stated otherwise.
The arrival of North Carolina transfer QB Gio Lopez has worked wonders for Wake Forest. Among 118 QBs with 125 or more dropbacks, Lopez is 18th in yards per attempt (9.1), 17th in passing TDs (13), 25th in adjusted completion percentage (78.0%), and 21st in turnover-worthy play rate (1.8%).
The lone blemish on Wake Forest’s 5-1 record is a Week 3 defeat to #3 Miami. The Demon Deacons were tied 7-7 after the first quarter in that contest, but being outscored 17-0 in the second frame proved to be detrimental against their ACC foes.
In Week 6 against NC State, Wake Forest rolled to a 38-14 win. Lopez had no issues keeping the offense on schedule, airing it out for 303 yards and 3 TDs while the team went 9-for-15 on late downs.
Things haven’t gone as smoothly for Cal, as the Golden Bears are hoping to get QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele back. JKS has been absent from since mid-game in Week 5 due to a head injury, though there is optimism he’ll be active on Saturday.
With Sagapolutele sidelined in Week 6, QB Jackson Brousseau led California to a 25-20 win against Virginia Tech with 321 passing yards and 1 passing TD. Above all, he had no turnovers across his 43 pass attempts.
Even if Sagapolutele returns, the Golden Bears may lean on their defense to try to keep this game competitive. California is 46th in defensive success rate (42.0%) but 125th in offensive success rate (38.4%) out of 138 teams.
Wake Forest vs. California Prediction on Spread – 10/17/26
Here are the key stats and trends behind our Wake Forest vs. California pick against the spread, which is set at 9.5 points for Saturday.
- While Cal’s defense is in the 93rd percentile in pass EPA/play (-0.19), it's in the fourth percentile in rush EPA/play (0.20).
- At the same time, Wake Forest’s offense is in the 98th percentile in pass EPA/play (0.42) and the 82nd percentile in rush EPA/play (0.15).
- Regardless of who's starting at QB for the Golden Bears, their offense is only in the 14th percentile in dropback EPA/play (-0.11) and the 16th percentile in rush EPA/play (-0.09).
- Besides being 4-2 against the spread (ATS), the Demon Deacons are a perfect 4-0 ATS against ACC opponents.
- Over the last five seasons, California has the fifth-worst ATS record (6-8) when facing ranked opponents.
- In addition to being 2-4 ATS overall, the Golden Bears are just 1-3 ATS at home. Wake Forest is 2-1 ATS as a visitor in 2026.
Lock in your Wake Forest vs. California prediction on PrizePicks before Saturday’s game.
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Make Wake Forest vs. California Picks on PrizePicks
Wake Forest needs to continue taking care of business to keep pace with the high-ranked programs in the ACC. While the Golden Bears could get Sagapolutele back in the lineup, the Demon Deacons have an advantage with Lopez and their offense playing mistake-free football.
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