ACC Weekly Recap

We are now through Week 6 of the college football season. The Atlantic Coast Conference had a very exciting weekend of football. Lets recap how teams in the ACC performed and see who earned my player of the week honors.

Duke (5-1) 44-3 Army (1-5): The Blue Devils offense woke up on Saturday and put up points easily against Army. It was 24-0 at halftime. Their offense finished the game with 458 total yards and zero turnovers. The Duke defense had another strong showing as well. They held Army to just 168 total yards of offense. Army also fumbled the ball seven times. This was the last cupcake on Duke's schedule, as they get ready to finish the season with conference play.

Virginia (1-4) 19-26 Pittsburgh (4-1): Mike London and his team fought hard against Pittsburgh, but came up just short. They were down 17-3 after the first quarter, and came back to cut the lead to seven with just over five minutes left in regulation. The Cavaliers had over 300 yards of total offense and turned the ball over just once. The defense also forced two Pitt fumbles.  Pittsburgh cannot turn the ball over like that if they want to continue winning. The Panthers offense started out hot, but only scored once after putting up 17 points in the first. The defense is quickly becoming the staple of this team. Virginia had a chance to tie the game in the fourth, but the defense forced four straight incompletions. Pittsburgh has an interest matchup next weekend when they travel to Georgia Tech.

Wake Forest (3-3) 3-0 Boston College (3-3): If you had to watch this game I am sorry. This was reminiscent of the 2014 game between Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. There are no offensive numbers worth reporting. These two teams combined for a total of 18 punts and six turnovers. The game did get exciting towards the end when Boston College recovered a John Wolford fumble with 56 seconds left to play. The Golden Eagles had first-and-goal at the 1 with just 18 seconds on the clock and Steve Addazio called a running play. He had zero timeouts and he decided to run it up the middle. Boston College was stuffed and that ended the game. They have a great defense and that might get them to six wins, but it will be very difficult with this offense. The Demon Deacons and Boston College will be lucky to win another game on their schedule if they play like this again.

Georgia Tech (2-4) 24-43 No.6 Clemson (5-0): The Clemson Tigers are looking more and more like the best team in the ACC. They handled Georgia Tech with ease and were up 19-3 after the first quarter. Deshaun Watson had 265 passing yards and two touchdowns. Wayne Gallman had over 100 yards on the ground and two scores. Clemson has been the most consistent team so far this season. Georgia Tech has now lost four games in a row and they are playing horrible. Paul Johnson's team started out as pre-season favorites in the coastal division and now sit at last place in the standings. Clemson held Georgia Tech to less only 71 rushing yards. The Tigers defense played amazing. 

Syracuse (3-2) 24-45 South Florida (2-3): Syracuse was actually favorited to win the game and they got blown out. After a scoreless first, the game got out of hand quickly. Syracuse gave up over 500 yards of total offense. After opening the year 3-0, they have now lost two straight. The Orangemen got freshman quarterback Eric Dungey back, but it wasn't enough. He looked very rusty in the first half. Next week's matchup at Virginia will be another tough test for Syracuse and their young quarterback.

Miami (3-2) 24-29 No.12 FSU (5-0): This was no doubt the most exciting game of the week in the ACC. Miami found themselves down most of the game, but took a one point lead early in the fourth. The Hurricanes had a chance to win the game, but failed on downs. Miami's defense had no answer for FSU running back Dalvin Cook. The sophomore stud finished with 222 rushing yards and would have had much more if not for a hamstring issue. Cook also had three touchdowns on the day and single handily helped the Seminoles earn the victory. The Miami offense could not muster anything on the ground. The Hurricanes rushed for only 20 yards on 19 carries. If it wasn't for Brad Kaaya this game wouldn't have been close. Kaaya passed for 405 yards and three touchdowns. He looked very impressive, but once again Miami lost another tough matchup. Al Golden does not look like he is going to survive this season.

N.C. State (4-2) 13-28 Virginia Tech (3-3): If you turned off the T.V. after the first 17 minutes of play, then you might be surprised at the final box-score. North Carolina State jumped out to a 10-0 lead, but didn't do much after that. Virginia Tech finally woke up on both sides of the ball and outscored the Wolfpack 28-3 the rest of the way. N.C. State quarterback Jacoby Brissett did not play well and passed for just 113 total yards. The Wolfpack came into the year with such high hopes and they are not living up to the hype. Dave Doeren seat is getting warmer and warmer. Frank Beamer's squad finally played like they should have all year. Virginia Tech's defense gave up two early scores, but shutdown N.C. State after that. Quarterback Brenden Motley looked shaky in the beginning, but came back and threw three touchdown passes. Motley is second in the ACC with touchdown passes (10) just behind Clemson's Deshaun Watson (11). Scot Loeffler needs to build his confidence early by calling a few quarterback draws and quick throws. The Hokies will have revenge on their minds next week as they travel to Miami.

Most Impressive ACC Win: Virginia Tech over North Carolina State. The Hokies lost two straight and were not playing well. Hokie nation was starting to question Frank Beamer and the direction of this program. Lets see if Virginia Tech can build off this win, as they will face a tough challenge this week at Miami.

Least Impressive ACC Team: Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are one of the most disappointing teams in the country. You have to wonder if things get worse, is Paul Johnson going to be out of a job. His triple option offense putt up less than 100 yards on the ground. Georgia Tech is in a whole lot of trouble.

MY ACC Player of the Week: Dalvin Cook. The sophomore running back had close to 300 yards of total offense. He would of had more if not having to pull up short on another long distant run. Cook had a hamstring issue he was fighting and still put up those amazing numbers. FSU would have lost that game if not for Cook. The media only talks about Leonard Fournette, but they need make a trip to Tallahassee to see for themselves just how fast Dalvin Cook really is.