ACC FOOTBALL COMPANION GUIDE • ALPHABETICAL 17 OF 17
2026 Season Snapshot • Winston-Salem, North Carolina
9–4
ACC
Live schedule, lines and results for Wake Forest.
Loading schedule…
HEAD COACH
Jake Dickert — 2nd season at Wake Forest
LIFETIME COACHING RECORD
21–19 (college, 2 programs); 9-4 at Wake Forest
Took over Washington State amid conference realignment chaos and kept the program competitive before Wake Forest hired him in Dec. 2024 to replace the retiring Dave Clawson. Delivered the single greatest debut season by a head coach in Wake Forest history in 2025 (9-4, Duke's Mayo Bowl champion) after being picked 16th of 17 teams in the preseason ACC media poll — one of the biggest expectations-beating seasons in the conference.
WAKE FOREST ATS RECORD
No single published career ATS figure
2025 finished 9-4, the fourth nine-win season in school history, capped by a 43-29 Duke's Mayo Bowl win over Mississippi State. Wake Forest beat then- No. 12 Virginia (the Cavaliers' only home loss of the year) and SMU — both CFP Top-25 wins — despite entering the season picked to finish 16th of 17 in the ACC.
HEAD COACH SALARY (2026)
$4.8M
TEAM NIL VALUATION (EST.)
Not disclosed
PRIMARY NIL COLLECTIVE
Roll The Quad
Coach salary per beat reporting (Wake Forest is private and doesn't disclose exact figures; estimated at $4.8M, making Dickert one of the most cost-efficient coaches in the sport at roughly $543K per win in 2025). Roll The Quad, a SANIL-powered collective launched Nov. 2022, is the program's primary NIL vehicle; industry analysis pegs its 2027 recruiting targets at $700K-$900K for a starting-caliber portal quarterback.
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Rob Ezell • 2nd season • Multiple
Enters year two with real momentum after helping engineer the 2025 turnaround. The offense returns talent at receiver but must replace experience at quarterback and on the offensive line — the program's clearest 2026 question marks per outside roster analysis.
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Scottie Hazelton • 2nd season • 4-2-5
Enters year two of installing Dickert's defensive principles; outside analysts specifically flag the need for another wave of edge speed to take the unit from good to elite heading into 2026.
2025 RECORD
9–4
Duke's Mayo Bowl: W 43-29 vs. Mississippi State. The winningest regular season by a first-year Wake Forest coach ever, highlighted by CFP Top-25 wins over Virginia and SMU and a rivalry win over North Carolina in a sold- out Allegacy Stadium.
HOME FIELD
Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium
Artificial turf (FieldTurf), Winston-Salem. Home to the winningest program in North Carolina this century per athletic department messaging — real, historic momentum after Dickert's stunning debut season heading into a pivotal second year.
| SLOT | PLAYER | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB1 | Room in transition | — | ★★★★★ | Wake Forest loses experience at the position after 2025; outside roster analysis specifically flags the QB spot as the program's single highest- leverage need for the coming cycles, with Roll The Quad targeting a $700- 900K portal arm. |
Wake Forest loses experience at the position after 2025; outside roster analysis specifically flags the QB spot as the program's single highest- leverage need for the coming cycles, with Roll The Quad targeting a $700- 900K portal arm.
| PLAYER | POS | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jared Kaster (position group) | OL | — | ★★★★★ | Publicly preparing the offensive line for 2026 per program messaging; the unit must replace real experience lost from the 2025 bowl-winning team. |
Publicly preparing the offensive line for 2026 per program messaging; the unit must replace real experience lost from the 2025 bowl-winning team.
| PLAYER | POS | NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Front seven needing more edge speed | DL | Outside evaluators specifically call for "another wave of edge speed" to elevate a defense already rebuilt around Dickert's 4-2-5 principles in year one. |
Outside evaluators specifically call for "another wave of edge speed" to elevate a defense already rebuilt around Dickert's 4-2-5 principles in year one.
| PLAYER | POS | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary under Hazelton | DB | ★★★★★ | Benefits from second-year system continuity; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed as fall camp progresses. |
Benefits from second-year system continuity; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed as fall camp progresses.
2025 ATS
9-4
69.2% cover rate — 9th of 82
2025 Straight up
9-4
Point differential +78
Scoring environment
50.2
Combined points per game — 55th highest of 82
Home / road ATS
5-2 · 3-2
Totals 8-5 O/U (4-3 home, 3-2 road)
Points scored / allowed
28.1 per game scored (44th) · 22.1 allowed (35th)
Margin & schedule
Margin of victory +6 (35th) · Strength of schedule -3.5
SRS power rating
+1.7
43rd of 82 — projected points vs. a league-average team on a neutral field
Offensive SRS
-0.2
47th of 82
Defensive SRS
+2.4
42nd of 82
Points (margin of victory)
+6 · 35th of 82
Against the spread
9-4 (69.2%) · 9th of 82
Totals (combined PPG)
50.2 · 55th of 82
Computed from CollegeFootballData 2025 results and closing consensus lines.
Saved Just J research for Wake Forest.
Picked 16th of 17 teams preseason, Wake Forest finished 9-4 with wins over then-No. 12 Virginia and SMU — a real, historic outperformance that immediately justified a long-term extension.
At roughly $543K per win in 2025, Dickert's Wake Forest was more cost-efficient than all but a couple of programs nationally — a real, quantifiable argument for the program's approach even without blue-blood-level spending.
Wake Forest is moving from Dave Clawson's slow-build recruiting model toward a more aggressive Roll The Quad-funded portal approach, specifically targeting a $700-900K starting-caliber transfer QB for future cycles.
Notes are maintained in the Admin area — no code changes required.
