ACC Rooting Guide: Week 11

The Miami Hurricanes are traveling to Tallahassee to take on the Florida State Seminoles this weekend. Canes fans are hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. Elsewhere, the rest of the ACC is playing each other as well. There are some important games as teams are jockeying for position behind the Seminoles in the conference standings.

Let’s do some rooting.

Virginia @ #11 Louisville - 11/9 at 7:30 PM EST, TV - ESPN

Virginia’s role as ACC spoiler had a big hiccup last Saturday as they got smoked by Georgia Tech, 45-17. I think the Cavaliers are happy they aren’t going to finish the season winless in the ACC. Louisville has righted the ship after their loss to Pitt, beating Duke and Va Tech by a combined score of 57-3. The Cardinals’ defense looks good and their running game is a force to be reckoned with. I was looking forward to a one-loss Louisville team taking on a two-loss Miami team next week with some real ACC Championship Game implications on the line. Sadly, that ship has sailed. Let’s go Virginia.

Georgia Tech @ Clemson - 11/11 at 12:00 PM EST, TV - ABC

The Yellow Jackets are 4-2 in the ACC. While that’s not unbelievable, it’s not something I saw coming after their late September home loss to Bowling Green. Tech coach Brent Key deserves a ton of credit for making his team better throughout the season, especially on offense. Clemson is 2-4 in conference play, but is coming off a big home win against Notre Dame. The Tigers still have a good defense and they looked much better on offense against ND than they have in weeks. I could see them finishing the season strong. Let’s go Clemson.

Virginia Tech @ Boston College - 11/11 at 12:00 PM EST, TV - ACC Network

The Hokies got whooped by Louisville last week in what was their most important game of the year. That’s a shame. They are another team I haven’t watched a single second of this season. I don’t think I’m missing anything. BC has won five in a row after a 1-3 start. They have an athletic quarterback who makes opposing defenses uncomfortable. It’s like watching the inverse of Tyler Van Dyke. Let’s go Boston College.

NC State @ Wake Forest - 11/11 at 2:00 PM EST, TV - CW Network

The Wolfpack are fired up after beating Clemson and Miami in back-to-back weeks. NC State’s defense is good, no doubt. Their offense is...not good. They struggle to move the ball and don’t have anyone who scares you besides that speedy freshman, Kevin Concepcion. Lucky for them, Clemson and Miami were completely inept on offense and kept shooting themselves in the foot. Maybe Wake can put some drives together and score some points. Let’s go Wake Forest.

Pittsburgh @ Syracuse - 11/11 at 3:30 PM EST, TV - ACC Network

The Panthers have lost three in a row after their huge upset win against Louisville. FSU dominated them last Saturday despite not having their top two wide receivers available. It can’t get much worse, unless you’re Syracuse. Yikes. The Orange have lost five in a row. They’ve only scored 44 points in those five losses. 44! That is putrid. This game might be their best chance at avoiding a winless season in the ACC. Let’s go Syracuse.

Matchup of the Week

Photo by Peyton Williams/Getty Images

Duke @ #24 North Carolina - 11/11 at 8:00 PM EST, TV - ACC Network

I’m not sure this isn’t the best game of the week even if Miami vs FSU is included. The Canes are a disaster on offense and the Noles are primed to give their rival a beatdown on Saturday. UNC got right against Campbell last weekend, but can’t afford any more conference losses if they want a shot to play FSU in the ACC Championship Game. With Riley Leonard out for the season, Duke is coming into this matchup of stud quarterbacks without theirs. That’s a big problem. That said, I could still see this game coming down to the wire. Let’s go Duke.