Wake Forest vs. Florida State Complete Game Preview

Florida State should finally enjoy a more comfortable victory on Saturday.

After three close calls against Oklahoma State, Clemson and North Carolina State, the Seminoles (4-0) now play host to one of the Atlantic Coast Conference's worst teams, Wake Forest (2-3). 

FSU likely won't need overtime, as it did to slip past Clemson. Or a late touchdown, as it did to hold off Oklahoma State. Or a second-half rally, as it did at NC State.

The Seminoles have shown their fight, but they've also shown their weaknesses. When FSU takes the field against the Demon Deacons, the Seminoles need to show that they have improved their tackling and run blocking. And they need to cut down on the turnovers after giving up two interceptions and a fumble against the Wolfpack.

All of the questions have caused poll voters to question FSU. The Seminoles retained the No. 1 spot in the AP poll, but they dropped to No. 2 behind Alabama in the USA Today football coaches poll.

Here's a look at the FSU-Wake Forest game, which begins at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be televised regionally by ABC (and on ESPN3.com outside of the region).

FSU Keys to Victory

Gerry Broome/Associated Press/Associated Press

Karlos Williams had three touchdowns in the second half vs. NC State.

Run Well from Start to Finish

FSU has yet to put together a strong rushing game from the start. The offense lacked balance against Oklahoma State, had negative rushing yards until overtime against Clemson and was shaky in the first half against NC State. 

While FSU finished with 166 rushing yards against the Wolfpack, and Karlos Williams had three touchdowns after halftime, the Seminoles need to be more aggressive up front and not just establish the run but give the offense balance.

Tackle, Tackle, Tackle

FSU missed tackle after tackle against NC State, a dumbfounding problem for one of the nation's top defenses. The issue can be partially attributed to the team playing without defensive end Mario Edwards Jr., who missed the game with a concussion, and defensive tackle Nile Lawrence-Stample, who is out for the season with a torn pectoral muscle.

If Edwards is able to return, and coach Jimbo Fisher said he would return to practice Monday, he will help solidify the rushing defense while also pressuring the quarterback. But FSU needs better tackling up front and in the secondary.

Wake Forest Keys to Victory

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Orville Reynolds leads Wake with 140 rushing yards, but the Demon Deacons are the worst rushing team in the FBS.

Try to Run, Display Offensive Balance

Wake Forest simply can't run the ball. The Demon Deacons are averaging 25 yards per game on the ground, the worst per-game performance in the Football Bowl Subdivision. That's a recipe for disaster when coupled with the fact that Wake starts a true freshman at quarterback.

The Demon Deacons had minus-22 rushing yards in a loss Saturday at Louisville (Wake's only touchdown was a returned fumble recovery).

Senior Orville Reynolds (140 rushing yards) is averaging just 2.7 yards per carry, and 225-pound freshman Isaiah Robinson (107 rushing yards) hasn't been able to get much going behind an inexperienced offensive line. Robinson has Wake's only rushing touchdown in five games.

The game will get out of hand in a hurry if Wake can't take the pressure off quarterback John Wolford.

Be Aggressive on Defense

Despite the offensive deficiencies, Wake has the nation's No. 33 scoring defense (allowing just 20.2 points per game). The Demon Deacons are coming off a game in which they led at Louisville in the fourth quarter before the Cardinals won 20-10.

Wake has been opportunistic, as defensive lineman Tylor Harris had three fumble recoveries against Louisville to keep the game close. The Demon Deacons have allowed just 159 passing yards per game but will be tested by quarterback Jameis Winston and an FSU offense that is averaging 38.2 points per game.

FSU Players to Watch

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Rashad Greene is closing in on FSU's career receptions record.

RB Karlos Williams

Williams had his best game of the year on Saturday, rushing for 126 yards in the win at NC State. While FSU has struggled to run the ball against Oklahoma State, Clemson and the Wolfpack, Williams was strong in the second halves of those games with three touchdowns.

Just a year into his conversion from safety, Williams remains a talented but raw tailback. The senior is at his best when breaking runs off tackle and needs to be more physical between the tackles.

WR Rashad Greene

Greene is closing in on the top spot on FSU's all-time receiving list. The senior has 35 catches this season, giving him 206 for his career and placing him one away from No. 2 Peter Warrick (207 catches) as well as within striking distance of Ron Sellers, who had 212 receptions. 

He is also just the third FSU player to surpass 3,000 career receiving yards. With 3,008 yards, Greene still has some work to do to catch Sellers (3,598) and Warrick (3,517). And Greene is also tied for fourth on FSU's all-time receiving touchdown list with 25.

Wake Forest Players to Watch

Garry Jones/Associated Press

True freshman John Wolford is completing 59 percent of his passes this season.

QB John Wolford

Wolford is a true freshman and will struggle. But it's hard to imagine a worse day than he had at Louisville on Saturday. Wolford threw for just 122 yards, an average of 3.6 yards per completion, and tossed three interceptions.

Under constant pressure, Wolford has been sacked 23 times in five games. He's been able to complete 59 percent of his passes, a respectable number for a young quarterback. But he's made far too many mistakes, tossing 10 interceptions in five games.

WR E.J. Scott

Scott had just three catches at Virginia last season before graduating and transferring to Wake. He has been a bright spot for the Deacons and is one of Wolford's top targets, grabbing 22 passes for 239 yards and a team-high four touchdowns.

LB Brandon Chubb

The linebacker leads Wake with 52 tackles and a sack. The junior had nine tackles in the loss to Louisville.

What They're Saying

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Jimbo Fisher was critical of NC State coach Dave Doeren's claims that the Seminoles faked injuries.

FSU coach Jimbo Fisher

On tailback Karlos Williams—"Karlos is getting better and better. 126 yards. He ran the clock out at the end. That was another thing we did on offense too, we took that last drive and never gave them the ball back. We took the game away. He had a couple big runs and had three touchdowns on the night. Karlos is pass blocking well, caught a couple passes out of the backfield."

On tackling vs. NC State—"I thought we tackled very poorly in the game. ... There's no excuse for that. We have to tackle better, and we will tackle better."

"Our defensive staff did a tremendous job of making adjustments in the second quarter and second half. The points that they were able to score were basically off turnovers."

"Wake has done an outstanding job on defense. Their whole secondary is back, two linebackers are back. They’re doing a great job schematically. Scoring on defense in almost every game."

Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson

On holding the lead against Louisville before losing—"Certainly our defense did a great job of keeping us in the game and even getting the one touchdown we had. Still disappointed that we had a chance to close that game out and didn't do it."

"Offensively, it's a struggle. Right now we are struggling to get any semblance of a running game going. We've become very one-dimensional. Because we're one-dimensional, people are really teeing off on us in terms of a pass rush, and it's making it more difficult to throw the football."

On FSU—"They could be a pro-style, they could be a spread, and they run elements of all those things. It's very well thought out and they have great personnel."

Prediction

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FSU has routed Wake Forest the last two times the teams have played.

Wake Forest has been a thorn in FSU's side in the past. The Demon Deacons stunned FSU 35-30 in 2011 and also defeated FSU in 2006, '07 and '08.

But the last two games have been blowouts. The Seminoles cruised to a 52-0 win in 2012 and a 59-3 victory last season.

This Wake Forest team is far too young in its first year with coach Dave Clawson to challenge FSU. The Demon Deacons have very little depth—74 of 105 players on the roster are freshmen or sophomores, according to 247Sports' Chris Nee. FSU's defense will give up some points, but the Seminoles should roll. Expect to see backup Sean Maguire leading the offense in the fourth quarter as the second- and third-teamers finish off FSU's 21st straight win.

Florida State 52, Wake Forest 10

Bob Ferrante is the Florida State Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow Bob on Twitter. Stats courtesy of seminoles.com and wakeforestsports.com. All recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports.