2026 Duke’s Mayo Bowl Preview

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Publish Date: December 24, 2025

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The 2026 Duke’s Mayo Bowl features the 8-4 Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the 5-7 Mississippi State Bulldogs. Here is the 2026 Duke’s Mayo Bowl Preview.

Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Wake Forest won eight games to make their first bowl game since 2022. They defeated four bowl-eligible teams this season: Kennesaw State, SMU, Virginia and Delaware. Their only loss to a team that didn’t make a bowl game was to Florida State.

The Demon Deacons score 26.8 points per game, ranking 72nd in the nation. They pass for 232.2 yards (ranked 60th) and rush for 156.8 yards (ranked 71st) per game.

Robby Ashford is a well-traveled quarterback who started this season for Wake Forest. He has passed for 2,169 yards, nine touchdowns and seven interceptions on 59.2 percent completion. Six receivers have at least 200 receiving yards on the season. Chris Barnes and Carlos Hernandez both have over 500 yards this season.

Three players have over 200 rushing yards on the season. Demond Claiborne leads the team in rushing, but he opted out. Ashford is now the team’s leading rusher from the quarterback position with 504 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Ty Clark is the lead back now, as he rushed for 232 yards and three touchdowns.

On defense, Wake Forest allows 21.5 points per game, ranking 39th in the nation. They concede 122.2 rushing yards (ranked 33rd) and 199.7 passing yards (ranked 41st) per game. Nick Anderson leads the team with 95 tackles. Langston Hardy paces the team with seven sacks. Davaugh Pattterson has made plays on the ball with nine passes defended.

Mississippi State Bulldogs