No. 14 Wake Forest stretches its winning streak to five games with a 51-7 rout of Virginia

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — In the middle of last week, Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert wasn’t too thrilled with how his football team was preparing for Virginia.

By the end of Saturday, the Cavaliers were painfully aware of the attitude adjustment the 14th-ranked Demon Deacons had undergone. Ty Clark III scored on three short runs, Gio Lopez threw a touchdown pass and Connor Calvert kicked three field goals Saturday as Wake Forest posted a 51-7 runaway win over Virginia to stretch its winning streak to five.

“I thought Thursday was great. There were some things to clean up. That’s when we install some of our red zone stuff,” Dickert said. “Friday had some of the most energy that I’ve ever seen in a Friday walk-through.”

The results were startling.

Wake Forest (7-1, 4-1 ACC) posted the second biggest margin of victory over the Cavaliers (4-5, 2-4 ACC) in the 54-game history of the series. In their last four games, the Demon Deacons have surrendered four touchdowns while scoring 187 points.

The Cavaliers have lost their last three. They faced the prospect of their first shutout since Virginia Tech took a 10-0 victory in 2017 before quarterback Beau Pribula connected with De’Shawn Martin on a 47-yard scoring play with 50 seconds left in the third quarter.

Lopez, who was 13 of 21 for 229 yards, suffered an apparent leg injury late in the third quarter, but was able to limp off the field. Steele Pizzella replaced Lopez and finished a scoring drive with Jamar Searcy’s 7-yard scoring run.

Dickert didn’t immediately know Lopez’s condition, but said the initial reports were good.

Kyndall McCaleb chipped in a 27-yard touchdown run for Wake Forest in the fourth quarter.

Virginia entered Wake Forest territory twice in the first half, and each time, the Cavaliers met with disaster. Pribula threw a third-down interception from the Wake Forest 47, which the Demon Deacons converted into a 45-yard field goal from Calvert with 2:30 left in the first quarter.

The second trip may have been the most painful. The Cavaliers drove from their own 19 to the Wake Forest 6, but on a fourth-and-1, Zay Davis took the direct snap for no gain. The Demon Deacons cashed in that stand and got a 25-yard field goal from Calvert with 10 seconds left before the break.

Virginia was repelled again on a fourth-and-goal at the Wake Forest 5 in the fourth quarter.

“I think it’s a good football team that (has) been playing with a ton of energy,” Virginia coach Tony Elliott said. “And then, when we had our opportunities, we didn’t make as many of the competitive plays as we needed to to really impact the momentum."

Virginia: The Cavaliers managed only 16 yards rushing on 19 attempts, leaving the offense having to throw its way back into the game. They entered the Wake Forest game averaging 161 yards rushing per game. Virginia will have next weekend off, allowing extra time to fix what ails the ground game.

Wake Forest: Wide receiver Carlos Hernandez continued his stellar season for the Demon Deacons. He had eight catches out of nine targets for 136 yards and a touchdown.

Virginia: Hosts California on Nov. 14.

Wake Forest: Hosts Merrimack next Saturday.

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