Ranking Best ACC Football Matchups of Week 7
A week after a blocked extra point gave Florida State a dramatic win over Miami, Virginia Tech announced it is a legitimate contender with a convincing win over North Carolina and NC State upset Notre Dame in the driving rain, the ACC is back at it with an intriguing slate of games.
None of them are marquee matchups like last weekend, but that doesn't mean they're without intrigue.
While the Hurricanes and Tar Heels try to keep their seasons from spiraling, the Seminoles want to start surging. Louisville's bye week following a disappointing loss to Clemson has given way to another important game.
And Clemson will continue its run as the conference's beast as the Tigers try to keep their record unblemished as they take on head coach Dave Doeren's Wolfpack. If the Pack can pull off this upset, they'll not only become a threat in the division but draw the national attention the program needs.
There are a lot of storylines to watch. So, let's take a look at this weekend's best games the ACC has to offer.
5. Wake Forest at Florida State
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When DeMarcus Walker blocked Miami's extra point last weekend to preserve a 20-19 win, he also temporarily blocked the criticism head coach Jimbo Fisher's program had been facing.
Embattled defensive coordinator Charles Kelly dialed up a winning formula against Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya and the Canes.
Meanwhile, redshirt freshman quarterback Deondre Francois tossed a couple of touchdowns, and Dalvin Cook continued to cement his status as one of the best running backs in the nation.
Now, the Noles will attempt to keep the momentum going as they host a Wake Forest program that, surprisingly, has a better record than FSU. That hasn't stopped the 5-1 Demon Deacons from facing three-touchdown odds, according to Odds Shark.
They're averaging 29 points per game and have turned things around following consecutive 3-9 seasons. They've also played FSU well recently, losing just 24-16 last year. That's why Fisher isn't overlooking them.
"Offensively, they’re moving," Fisher said, according to Tim Linafelt of Seminoles.com. "The quarterback is doing a good job. They're throwing it around the receivers, they're running the ball up front. Special teams are really sound. They're a really good football team. They're 5-1 for a reason."
A big reason is dual-threat signal-caller John Wolford, who has 1,102 total yards and eight touchdowns this year.
If they're 6-1 after this weekend, everybody will begin taking the Deacons seriously despite a lopsided loss to NC State. This is an opportunity for head coach Dave Clawson's program to make a big push forward.
4. Duke at Louisville
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It was just two weeks ago that Louisville was the hot new name on the horizon—college football's fresh-faced team led by a phoenix of a football coach as Bobby Petrino re-emerged on the national scene and quarterback Lamar Jackson surged to the top of the Heisman Trophy race.
Then, the Cardinals dropped a 42-36 classic against Clemson in front of a prime-time national audience.
Maybe they aren't looked at as being the best team in the league since then, but that doesn't mean they're any less dangerous. Jackson is still having a better season than anybody else in the nation, and the College Football Playoff is still within reach.
The return to prominence begins this weekend as the Cardinals host Duke on Friday night.
They've experienced an up-and-down season thus far, but a 13-6 win over Army last weekend in a driving rain has head coach David Cutcliffe's team back to .500 following a shocking two-touchdown loss to a bad Virginia team.
Duke linebacker Joe Giles-Harris told the News & Observer's Elliott Warnock that this weekend's game against Louisville is "an opportunity. … You don't get a chance to play against a team like Louisville or a player like Lamar Jackson every day."
"It's a challenge," defensive end Dominic McDonald added.
It's one that few give the Devils a chance of winning. If they can come up with a monumental upset, it'll shock everybody and likely end Jackson's hardware hopes.
3. Virginia Tech at Syracuse
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After a lopsided loss to Tennessee in the Battle at Bristol following an early two-touchdown lead, few thought much of Virginia Tech's first season under head coach Justin Fuente.
Things have changed.
The Volunteers have showed the world that storming back from early deficits is what they do with virtually everyone. The Hokies, on the other hand, have continued to show they're a solid football team, and Fuente knows what he's doing.
Last weekend, they made a major statement with a 34-3 domination of North Carolina.
JUCO transfer quarterback Jerod Evans has proved he's a star. The 6'3", 238-pound dual-threat signal-caller from Texas is one of the nation's top newcomers, and he's a dark-horse candidate for the Heisman Trophy.
Thus far, he's thrown for 1,045 yards, 15 touchdowns and just one interception. He's added 258 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns.
After the win over the Heels, Evans was vocal about his team's status, according to the Roanoke Times' Andy Bitter.
"We're tired of hearing about everybody else," he said. "We're tired of hearing about UNC, Miami, Clemson, Louisville. Those are great teams. Don't get me wrong. Those are extremely great teams. But at the same time, we feel like we should be mentioned in those categories with those guys."
Without question, they should. Now, they'll try to score more points than an upstart Syracuse team that posts touchdowns in bunches for first-year head coach Dino Babers. Unfortunately for the Orange, they don't play much defense.
If they start this week, it could be a close game. If not, expect VT to keep up the surprising season.
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2. North Carolina at Miami
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Last week, North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky was everybody's hot new name for college postseason awards.
Then, Trubisky finished 13-of-33 passing for 58 yards and a pair of interceptions as UNC was trounced by the Hokies. To his credit, he didn't use any weather as an excuse.
"We got to supply the energy ourselves," Trubisky told 247Sports' Ross Martin. "There is no excuse. This was a big Coastal game for us. We can't look into the stands and try to find energy. It's got to come from the locker room. It's got to come from me. It's got to come from the leaders. It's got to come from our leaders. We need to do a better job of that."
It starts this week as the Tar Heels take on another team recovering from a different kind of heartbreak. Rather than getting blown away, the Hurricanes lost on a blocked extra point to hated rival Florida State.
Now, they've got to pick up the pieces and realize they're still 4-1.
"It's going to be a big one for both teams," head coach Mark Richt said, according to statements released by UM. "I'm looking forward to our fanbase being as jacked up as they were last week, because they really did a super job, we really appreciate them."
This is a vital week for both programs as bowl positioning is important and as they still are alive in their divisions. The winner has a golden opportunity still ahead.
1. North Carolina State at Clemson
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If not for a stunning 33-30 loss to East Carolina, the Wolfpack would be in the nation's Top 25 right now, but instead, they're on the fringe, looking for an important win to push them into the fray.
This weekend would do the trick.
After wins over an undefeated Wake Forest team and a national-stage win over Notre Dame in Hurricane Matthew's nasty fallout conditions last weekend, NC State is playing some good football. But beating No. 3-ranked Clemson at Memorial Stadium would qualify as a signature victory.
To do that, they'll have to slow down Tigers signal-caller Deshaun Watson, running back Wayne Gallman, receiver Mike Williams and so many more stars who are tearing up opponents with gash yardage on huge plays.
They had six scoring plays of more than 20 yards last year against the Wolfpack, and they want to continue that trend they began last week in this year's game against NCSU, according to Clemson co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott, who told Stats LLC (via FoxSports.com):
"Explosive plays—that's what we want to do. You don't want to always have to drive 85 yards in 10 plays to score. It's hurting our plays per game, but we'll take the one-play scores. It's nice to get those. There's no doubt it was an element we wanted to improve on. We have all the pieces. We just didn't connect in the first five games. Friday night (against Boston College) we did connect.
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The Wolfpack know they've got a tall task on their hands, but they aren't intimidated by Clemson, according to the News & Observer's Joe Giglio.
"I know our guys believe that we can compete, play in and play out, with anybody," Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren said. "It's a matter of being consistent enough, throughout the course of the game, and not having a letdown."
If they can do that, they'll have an opportunity to shock the ACC.
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