The Gator Bowl appeared in peril when Wake Forest was left without an opponent following Texas A&M’s forced withdrawal of the contest.
In steps Rutgers, the only team with a losing record to be competing in bowl season. The Scarlet Knights were chosen to participate allegedly due to their Academic Progress Rate, in which they were the highest-ranked school among teams with fewer than six wins.
Will Wake Forest prove to be of a higher caliber, or will Rutgers play spoiler as the stand-in opponent?
Check out our picks and predictions for the first matchup on the New Year's Eve college football bowl game schedule, the 2021 Gator Bowl between the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, to find out.
Wake Forest vs Rutgers odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
Wake Forest opened -13.5 but has been bet up to -14.5 as of the time of this writing. The total opened at 61.5 and currently sits at 62.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until kickoff and be sure to check out the full college football odds before placing your bets.
Wake Forest vs Rutgers predictions
Predictions made on 12/29/2021 at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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Wake Forest vs Rutgers game info
• Location: TIAA Bank Stadium, Jacksonville, FL
• Date: Friday, December 31, 2021
• Time: 11:00 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN
Wake Forest vs Rutgers betting preview
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our NCAA football weather info.
Key injuries
Wake Forest: Jaquarii Roberson WR (Out), Donavan Greene WR (Out).
Rutgers: Bo Melton WR (Questionable), Isaiah Pacheco RB (Questionable), Olakunle Fatukasi (Questionable).
Find our latest NCAA football injury reports.
Betting trend to know
Wake Forest is 4-0 ATS in its last 4 games as the favorite. Find more NCAA betting trends for Wake Forest vs. Rutgers.
Wake Forest vs Rutgers picks and predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Spread analysis
The first factor that has us looking at the Wake side of things is preparation. The Scarlet Knights did not know they were playing in a bowl game until about a week ago. Although Greg Schiano and the coaching staff are saying all the right things, it’s difficult to expect them to be fully up to speed when playing a Wake Forest team that has been preparing to face an SEC team for the last month.
It’s also still to be determined whether Rutgers will be playing at full strength. Schiano has been purposefully evasive in interviews about who exactly will be on the field for Rutgers. What we do know is that receiver Bo Melton, running back Isaiah Pacheco, and linebacker Olakunle Fatukasi (arguably the Knights’ top three players) declared for the 2022 NFL Draft earlier this month. We do not know if they’ll be playing in this contest, but it could be considered highly doubtful that all three play.
Wake Forest will be without star receiver Jaquarii Roberson, who announced his decision to prepare for the NFL draft after Texas A&M dropped out of the bowl. Barring any late announcements, the offense is expected to be at full strength outside of Roberson. Wake has a Top-5 scoring offense in the country, at 41.2 points per game, and should put up plenty of points on the scoreboard per usual. Quarterback Sam Hartman will likely eclipse 4,000 passing yards on the season and has a chance at reaching 40 touchdowns.
Rutgers will have difficulty matching Wake’s offensive output considering the Scarlet Knights rank just 113th in the country with 20.2 points per contest. They’ve eclipsed 160 passing yards just once in the last six games and will be severely up against it if forced to play from behind.
Prediction: Wake Forest -14.5 (-110)
Over/Under analysis
It takes two teams to go over the total, and we’ll only have one legitimate offense in the Gator Bowl. While Wake could come close to this point total on its own, it’s fair to question the motivation to keep piling on points once it inevitably builds a significant lead.
The Rutgers offense has been about as putrid as it gets, ranking 118th in the country with only 313.5 total yards per game. It’s unknown if Melton and Pacheco (the two most productive skill players on the roster) will play, and Schiano has yet to announce a starting quarterback. Rutgers will look to slow the game down to a crawl to limit possessions and increase the chance of an upset. While we’re dubious this game plan will work in its entirety, it’s yet another reason to consider the Under.
Prediction: Under 62 (-110)
Best bet
Wake Forest is the much better team in this contest. The Deamon Deacons finished with double the number of wins as the Scarlet Knights.
A case can also be made that they are the better-prepared team for this contest and that they’ll be operating at closer to 100% than their opponent. Wake Forest will score plenty of points, and Rutgers’ miserable offense won’t be able to keep up.
Pick: Wake Forest -14.5 (-110)
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