Vanderbilt will have its first litmus test of the season on Saturday in Winston Salem.

Here are five things to watch for in the Commodores' week two matchup.

Can Vanderbilt rise to the occasion?

This isn't a gimme anymore. This won't be easy. But it would become one of Clark Lea's biggest wins as Vanderbilt's head coach.

A performance similar to what Vanderbilt had in week zero and week one won't get it done on Saturday, but it is clearly capable of much more.

The bigger question is whether that will be clear on Saturday, will Vanderbilt step up to the plate and match the level of its opponent or will it leave something to be desired?

It's not all that uncommon for a team to looks significantly better or worse than expected in its first power-five test. That feels as if it could be applicable for both Vanderbilt and Wake Forest.

Whoever's play rises to the level of the stage will likely take this one.

Darren Agu's return

Vanderbilt's pass rush has been largely underwhelming through two games, but it has some help on the way. That help comes from perhaps its best pass rusher.

Sophomore defensive end Darren Agu has missed the first two weeks of action but went through warmups before Vanderbilt's matchup with Alabama A&M and was a full go in Tuesday's practice.

Barring something unexpected, it feels as if Agu will make his season debut on Saturday.

How many snaps the sophomore plays as well as the impact he has will be a factor in how Vanderbilt's defense fares on Saturday and it will also give a look into how effective its defensive line can be throughout the rest of 2023.

Can either team get the run game going?

The biggest question for both Wake Forest and Vanderbilt's offenses seem to be pretty similar; its running games.

Vanderbilt ran for a total of just 39 yards while averaging only 1.5 yards per carry in its opener against Hawaii, those struggles continued through the first half of its week one matchup with Alabama A&M.

Vanderbilt got things going a bit in the second half of that matchup behind 87 yards and two touchdowns from Sedrick Alexander as well as 50 yards from Patrick Smith. It still has plenty to prove on the ground, though.

Wake Forest hasn't quite gotten things going on the ground, either. In their opener against Elon, the Demon Deacons ran for just 98 yards with an average of 2.8 yards per attempt.

It feels as if both teams have largely effective passing games that they'll lean on but could be pigeonholed in to being one dimensional. If either team can avoid that, they'll have a significantly easier time in what looks to be high-scoring affair.

Can Vanderbilt limit explosive plays?

Vanderbilt's point of emphasis on defense is clear in head coach Clark Lea's eyes. Stopping the big plays.

"This is a team that thrives on the big play pass and we've struggled with that," Lea said. "Certainly we're looking for no explosive touchdowns."

"We're gonna have to keep them out of the end zone when it comes to explosive plays and force them to fight for every blade of grass on the field," the third-year coach added.

Wake Forest didn't exactly inspire Vanderbilt with what it did in regards to explosive pass plays in week one.

The Demon Deacons had seven "big" plays in their Thursday-night opener, four of those went for over 30 yards and another went for a touchdown.

In last year's matchup with Vanderbilt, Wake Forest threw for 300 yards including four touchdown passes, a 49-yard reception and a 67-yard completion that resulted in one of those touchdowns.

That can't happen again if Vanderbilt wants a different result this year. It will have to limit Wake Forest's explosive offense on Saturday and will have to clean up some errors on the backend that have plagued it throughout its first two games.

AJ Swann's decision making

The buzzwords regarding what Swann needs to do have been the same all year; consistency, good decision making and doing the little things at a high level.

Through two games, there's been flashes of that as well as immense arm talent. The results haven't as desirable as you'd hope, though.

Swann has generally been good enough, but will have to take a step forward for Vanderbilt to keep pace with an explosive Wake Forest offense.

That starts with his decision making.

After a freshman season in which Swann threw just two interceptions, it feels as if without some of the luck he's had on balls throws into tight coverage that number could've already been more than two.

On Saturday the margin for error is smaller, now every drive matters.

If Swann and Vanderbilt's offense can't hold on to the ball and make the most of its possessions it will have a hard time in this one.

On the flipside, if Vanderbilt's offense takes a step forward it has a real chance to defy the 10.5-point spread and move to 3-0.