Miami Hurricanes Rooting Guide: Week 4

The Week 4 ACC schedule features a total of three conference games and a two high-profile ranked opponents. With such, the rooting for Hurricanes’ fans gets a little difficult for a few games.

Notre Dame (3-0) at Wake Forest (2-1, 0-1), Saturday, 12 PM, ABC

Wake Forest has gotten early success from freshman quarterback Sam Hartman, who has thrown for 6 touchdowns on the early part of the season. Week 4 will be difficult for the freshman and the Demon Deacons as a whole as they will face-off against 8th-ranked Notre Dame, who is lead by their dominant rushing attack that features three players with over 100 yards.

Who to root for: While Miami will not play Wake Forest or Notre Dame this week, Notre Dame will play against Virginia Tech, Florida State and Pittsburgh, who the Hurricanes will meet later in the season. As a result, hope for a Notre Dame win so these games become more high-profiled for each of those opponents.

Boston College (3-0, 1-0) at Purdue (0-3), Saturday, 12 PM, ESPN2

Boston College is one of the surprising teams so far. Lead by a high-powered offense that has not scored lower than 40 points this season, the Eagles have climbed to 23 in the AP Top 25. This week, they play B10 opponent Purdue, who is winless to begin the season.

Who to root for: Boston College. Miami will play Boston College later in the season and a win against Purdue will help keep Boston College ranked going into week 5.

Pittsburgh (2-1, 1-0) at North Carolina (0-2, 0-0), Saturday, 12:20 PM, Regional

Pittsburgh is off to a good start to begin the 2018 season. Pittsburgh has wins against both Albany and division foe Georgia Tech last week. On the other side, North Carolina has struggled to begin the season. With losses to East Carolina and California, the Tar Heels are hoping to recover following an impromptu bye week because of Hurricane Florence.

Who to root for: While Miami plays both teams this season, Pittsburgh has the better chance to be a bowl eligible team and a positive win on the Hurricanes schedule. Root for Pittsburgh.

Louisville (2-1, 0-0) at Virginia (2-1, 0-0), Saturday, 12:30 PM, Regional

After losing to Alabama, Louisville is undefeated with wins against Indiana State and Western Kentucky. Their offense has struggled, though, and will need to pick up as conference play picks up. On the other side, Virginia is 2-1 and coming off a win against Ohio.

Who to root for: Miami will play Virginia in a few weeks and will not play Louisville. The recommendation is to root for Virginia to help the Hurricanes’ schedule strength.

Clemson (3-0, 0-0) at Georgia Tech (1-2, 0-1), Saturday, 3:30 PM, ABC

Clemson is a known commodity at this point. Boasting a top defense and a strong offense lead with a star freshman quarterback in Trevor Lawrence, it’s no surprise that Clemson has started undefeated. For Georgia Tech, the season has not gone as expected. The Yellow Jackets have losses to South Florida and Pittsburgh and features the 71st best defense by points scored.

Who to root for: Georgia Tech. Miami will play Georgia Tech this year and can only play Clemson is a conference championship, which isn’t guaranteed at this point in the season.

Virginia Tech (2-0, 1-0) at Old Dominion (0-3), Saturday, 3:30 PM, CBS Sports Network

Like North Carolina, Virginia Tech did not play in week 3 because of Hurricane Florence. However, the Hokies are off to a strong start to begin the season. The Hokies feature the 9th best defense by points scored and has had no trouble in either of their games.

Who to root for: Miami will travel to Lane Stadium in Blacksburg later in the season so a Virginia Tech win benefits Miami.

Florida International (2-1) at Miami (2-1, 0-0), Saturday, 3:30 PM, ESPN 2

Miami’s defense is picking up where they left off to finish the 2017 season. The ‘Canes defense has allowed just 136 yards passing and under 100 yards rushing. Their offense has also begun to pick up and now boast the 14th highest scoring offense, scoring 41 points per game.

Who to root for: This is the State of the U. If you don’t root for Miami, you aren’t doing it right.

North Carolina Central at Duke (3-0, 0-0), Saturday, 3:30 PM, Regional

The Duke Blue Devils are off to an undefeated start with wins against Baylor, Northwestern and Army. The Blue Devils don’t have the offense but their defense has allowed under 21 points in all but one game, where Duke allowed 27 points to Baylor.

Who to root for: Though the game likely won’t mean much later in the season, root for Duke.

Northern Illinois (1-2) at Florida State (1-2, 0-2), Saturday, 3:30 PM, ESPNU

Florida State is off to a shocker to begin the season. With two division losses, the Seminoles are desperate to turn it around in all aspects of the game. The Seminoles have ran for just 96 yards per game and have allowed 26 points a game, which ranks 80th in the country.

Who to root for: Root for Florida State to turn it around as the ‘Canes will host Florida State in a few weeks.

UConn (1-2) at Syracuse (3-0, 1-0), Saturday, 4 PM, ESPN News

Syracuse is one of the major beneficiaries for Florida State’s poor start to the season. In their meeting, the Orange were able to defeat the Seminoles despite playing with a backup quarterback in Tommy DeVito. The Orange will look to continue their high scoring offense (49 points per game) against a poor UConn team.

Who to root for: Miami plays neither UConn or Syracuse this season but a Syracuse win helps the conference out. Root for ‘Cuse.

North Carolina State (2-0, 0-0) at Marshall (2-0), Saturday, 7 PM, CBS Sports Network

Like a few ACC teams, North Carolina State had a game against West Virginia cancelled last week. However, the Wolfpack will still get a good matchup against Marshall on the road this week. Lead by Ryan Finley, the Wolfpack hold the 6th best passing offense and a strong defense through two games.

Who to root for: NC State. Like Syracuse, Miami will not play NC State this season but a win looks better for the ACC.