Wake Forest @ Indiana preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 26, 2015 ) Indiana 31, Wake Forest 24

Richard Lagow has been everything Indiana could have asked for at quarterback as it heads into its final non-conference game Saturday against visiting Wake Forest. The junior college transfer has played mistake-free football and has the Hoosiers poised to head into Big Ten play with a spotless record, a necessity if they hope to play in a bowl game for a second straight season.

"He's been really good out of the gate, so much better than he was in the spring," coach Kevin Wilson told the media. "He's made very few decisions that have been questioned." Indiana's first three opponents, which includes perennial ACC also-ran Wake Forest, are nothing compared to its next three - No. 8 Michigan State, No. 2 Ohio State and No. 20 Nebraska - so Lagow must keep improving. Thus far, he's completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 506 yards and four touchdowns and has had two weeks to prepare for the Demon Deacons, who are trying to open 4-0 for the first time since their Orange Bowl season of 2006. Wake Forest will look to establish the run early, something that could prove difficult against an Indiana defense ranked 23rd in the nation with 101.5 yards allowed per game. The Demon Deacons have scored eight touchdowns on the ground against one through the air.

TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten. LINE: Indiana -7.5

ABOUT WAKE FOREST (3-0): The Demon Deacons will be without the two offensive players most instrumental in helping them open with a pair of wins. Freshman running back Cade Carney missed last week's victory over Delaware after spraining his knee in practice and quarterback Kendall Hinton followed suit by injuring his knee in the first half of that game. Carney, who ran for 129 yards and three scores in the opening two games, has been replaced by Matt Colburn, while junior John Wolford (4,079 yards, 22 TDs, 26 interceptions in his career) gets the call under center for coach Dave Clawson.

ABOUT INDIANA (2-0): When the Hoosiers run the ball, it usually ends up in the hands of junior Devine Redding, who built off last year's 1,000-yard season by rushing for 245 yards in two games. Redding, who has run for 100 yards in five straight games to match the longest streak in the nation, operates behind an experienced offense line that includes All-American Dan Feeney. Lagow's favorite target has been sophomore Nick Westbrook, who accounted for 133 yards and two touchdowns on three catches in the Hoosier's most recent win against Ball State.

EXTRA POINTS

1. The Hoosiers have won eight straight non-conference games for the first time since 1992-95.

2. Colburn rushed for 195 yards while Wolford added 93 on the ground and passed for 251 yards and a touchdown this season for Wake Forest.

3. The teams met for the first time last season with Indiana winning 31-24 on the road.

PREDICTION: Indiana 27, Wake Forest 10