ACC in Review Week 4

With NC State up in Huntington I was able to watch a lot of other teams on Saturday. It was the ideal Saturday of sitting on the couch for 12 hours watching college football on three different TVs, and only getting up to get a snack, use the bathroom, or grab another beer. If you’re smart, you try and knock out all 3 on one trip. Thankfully the day was capped off by a solid win from the Pack. As for the rest of the ACC? It was far from smooth sailing for some.

#23 Boston College 13, Purdue 30

The BC hype train derailed just as it was starting to pick up steam. The Eagles celebrated being ranked for the first time since 2008 by getting clobbered by a winless Purdue. AJ Dillon rushed for under 60 yards and Anthony Brown threw for under 100 with 4 picks. That ain’t gonna get it done.

Pittsburgh 35, North Carolina 38

The Heels took advantage of what feels like only a handful of legit win opportunities on their schedule. An offense that only gained one first down in the first half of the Cal game looked very good thanks to a big day from RB Antonio Williams and one of Nathan Elliot’s best games at quarterback. Meanwhile, Pitt FINALLY scored their first 2nd half touchdown of the season. Correct me if I’m wrong but that isn’t good.

Louisville 3, Virginia 27

Well, it looks like FSU has passed on the “biggest dumpster fire in the ACC” baton to Louisville. This game was tough on the eyeballs. One week after squeaking out a win against winless Western Kentucky, the Cards laid an absolute egg. It was so bad that Jawon Pass, heir apparent to Lamar Jackson, actually got un-benched from last week. Remember when Petrino said they might be better without Lamar? Yeah that’s laughable. On the flipside, Virginia wasn’t exactly out of this world as it was still just 13-3 going in to the 4^th quarter. But a win is a win and Bryce Perkins has looked dynamic so far at quarterback. They’ve set up a rather intriguing home opener for NC State.

#8 Notre Dame 56, Wake Forest 27

It’s never a good thing when you fire your defensive coordinator 4 games in to the season. Just to put into perspective how bad Wake’s defense really was, Notre Dame came in averaging just 21 ppg. After taking a 3-0 lead midway through the first, the Deacs proceeded to allow 4 straight touchdown drives. Then Notre Dame strung together an identical streak to start the 2^nd half. And it’s not like the Irish were just gifted with good field position; 6 of the 8 drives were over 70 yards. On the offensive side of the ball, Sam Hartman finally looked like a true freshman.

#3 Clemson 49, Georgia Tech 21

Clemson continued chugging along as this one was never in doubt. That NFL-caliber defensive line feasted on the triple option, holding the Jackets to a measly 2.6 ypc on 56 attempts. Meanwhile, Travis Etienne and Tavien Feaster were explosive in the Clemson backfield combining for 197 yards on only 19 carries. Once again Trevor Lawrence was the better of the two quarterbacks and has officially been named the starter for next week’s matchup with Syracuse.

FIU 17, #21 Miami 31

Miami was in control from the beginning building a 31-0 lead after 3 quarters. The defense was nasty for most of the day, allowing only 187 yards and 7 first downs. Mark Richt pulled the plug on Rosier after 3 possessions in favor of talented freshman N’Kosi Perry and he didn’t disappoint, going 17-25 with 224 yards and 3 TDs as well as 32 yards on the ground. Miami is still probably the Atlantic’s best hope of knocking off Clemson. That doesn’t mean it’ll happen.

#13 Virginia Tech 35, Old Dominion 49

This was the knockout punch to a conference that already got a couple black eyes earlier in the day with the embarrassing BC, Wake Forest, and Louisville losses. I mean come on, seriously? The more you look in to it the more of a head scratcher it becomes. ODU was 0-3 including horrible losses to Charlotte and Liberty (52-10). As 29-point favorites it was the biggest upset so far this year and largest of an ACC team in the past 40 seasons. It was also Old Dominion’s first ever win against a power 5 team. And they were playing their backup quarterback! He only ended up throwing for 495 yards and 4 touchdowns. On top of all that, Josh Jackson fractured his tibia and is out indefinitely. What seemed like a promising season isn’t looking so hot now.

Other Games

Duke 55, NCCU 13

Florida State 37, NIU 19

Syracuse 51, UCONN 21