Two problems have remained consistent for Wake Forest since the start of ACC play last month: The Demon Deacons have mostly been awful on the road. And they’ve rarely defended well anywhere, either home or away.

Both remained true here on Tuesday night, where North Carolina dominated in all aspects in an 87-62 victory. The Tar Heels (16-6, 6-3) didn’t exactly play well themselves during long stretches. They were sloppy and turnover prone at times.

But it hardly mattered against Wake (10-12, 3-7), which looked lost offensively and like it couldn’t be bothered with playing defense. The result was in doubt only for a little while, before UNC closed the first half on a 15-1 run that turned a relatively competitive game into a blowout.

Generating pressure on a the quarterback was a challenge for UNC on Saturday at Wake Forest. PHOTO: Robert Willett

WINSTON-SALEM — And welcome to the day after. North Carolina suffered a 28-27 defeat on Saturday at Wake Forest – the first loss of Larry Fedora’s coaching tenure at UNC.

UNC running back Gio Bernard amassed 203 all-purpose yards last week, but will he be good to go against Wake Forest? PHOTO: Robert Willett

WINSTON-SALEM — And welcome to BB&T Field, which will always be Groves Stadium to me. We’re a little less than two hours from North Carolina’s game here today against Wake Forest. And of course, it is the ACC opener for both teams.

As I look out over my laptop and out of the press box, I see puffy gray clouds and a pale blue sky. Rain and thunderstorms could be a possibility today, folks. Brace yourself for the possibility of the two most dreaded words for any college football beat hack: lightning delay.

Let’s hope not.

In the meantime, a couple pregame thoughts here from Winston-Salem: