The Good
Pandemonium in Durham!
Duke is bowl eligible is after a 30-26 last second TD win over arch rival North Carolina. If you are a Duke fan it doesn’t get any better than that. David Cutcliffe is the clear front runner for ACC COY, for getting Duke eligible for the first time since 1994. Great win for the long suffering fan base. Easily one of the best stories in the ACC this year. I told you keep an eye on the 20th as the day this could happen didn’t I?
Down to the Wire….
NC State escaped with a 20-18 at Maryland. The Wolfpack got a lost minute drive to beat FSU, and they got another one to beat the Terps. Though the Terps had to miss late FG to ensure the victory. This win won’t get the credit it deserves, but it should. Maryland has a very good defense and they were at home. The Wolfpack are closing in on getting back into the top 25, and they still can win the ACC Atlantic.
Don’t need your best.
A sign that you are becoming a really good team is you beat credible opponents without your best game. That’s what happened in Clemson’s 3 TD victory over Virginia Tech. That was not the Tigers firing on all cylinders especially offensively, but the defense played one of its better games. For Virginia Tech as I write later on this post, this is a disturbing sign for them.
Florida State also didn’t have their best game in a 33-20 win over Miami. The Noles opened sloppy as Miami built and early 10-0 lead. FSU gradually recovered and eventually took the game 0ver though it wasn’t a thing of beauty. The one negative was that Chris Thompson looks like he suffered a leg injury. Tough break for a player that fought back from a broken back suffered last season.
You have to start somewhere
It’s hard to gauge how much improvement Georgia Tech actually showed in a 37-17 win over BC. The Eagles are pretty bad, but a win is a win and the Jackets needed one badly. The defense actually had some nice moments, and Vad Lee displayed some of his elite talent at QB. I wouldn’t get to excited about the Jackets yet, but if the beat a good BYU team next week then they may be on to something.
I’m still here
Sometimes you can forget about Wake Forest, but you better not. Today they won 16-10 over Virginia to move to 4-3 (2-3). That leaves Wake Forest only 2 games from being bowl eligible. They welcome Clemson to Winston Salem on Thursday night looking for the upset. The Deac defense only gave up 48 yards on the ground to Virginia.
The Bad
End of an Era?
Something ocurred to me while watching Clemson’s 38-17 win over Virginia Tech. The Tigers weren’t playing that well. Tajh Boyd look skittish and their offense was out of sync. Virginia Tech was all over the place defensively and doing as good a job as team had against the Tiger’s offense this year. The Hokies lost by 3 touchdowns. It was never more apparent than today, the Hokies are falling behind the Clemson’s and FSU’s of the ACC. Virginia Tech has fallen to 0-3 against Clemson the last 2 games and none of the games have been by less than 20 points. I’m not sure what Frank Beamer can do, but I’d start with overhauling the offense. The play-calling again today was atrocious. The Hokies have no identity on offense, and it’s showing week and after week.
Lost season
Remember when Mike London was the hottest coach in the ACC? It’s nearly the end of October and Virginia hasn’t won an ACC game. They lost Saturday 16-10 to Wake Forest. This season is quickly going down the drain at Virginia. Phillip Sims is a talent at QB, but he’s raw and there just isn’t much play making ability on either side of the ball.
That hurts.
Brad Craddock was fixing to become the toast of Maryland. A short FG and Maryland beats NC State and he’s the hero, but that didn’t happen. Craddrock hit the upright in an excruciating loss for the Terrapins.
The Ugly
Spaziani Watch
A 20 point loss at 2-4 Georgia Tech is not exactly what coach Frank Spaziani needed. That was after BC “rallied” from down 28-3 at the half. Boston College is 1-6 and in complete free fall.
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