Atlantic Coast Conference News and Notes
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PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (Sports Network)
ATLANTIC DIVISION:
BOSTON COLLEGE - The Eagles (6-3) moved to a perfect 6-0 at home this season with a 31-10 victory over Central Michigan this past weekend. Boston College got another solid rushing effort from sophomore Montel Harris, who rumbled for 136 yards and two TDs to lead the way. Placekicker Steve Aponavicius became the school's all-time leading scorer in the win, with a field goal and four extra points, giving him 267 career points, surpassing placekicker Brian Lowe (262 points from 1986-89). With the win, the Eagles became bowl eligible for the 10th straight season. BC, which is 3-2 in ACC play, is idle this weekend, before getting back to conference action on November 14th in Charlottesville against Virginia.
CLEMSON - The Tigers took a break from the ACC and FBS competition this past weekend and made light work of Coastal Carolina in a 49-3 rout. The victory improved Clemson to a sterling 23-0 against members of the Football Championship Subdivision. Heisman hopeful C.J. Spiller played a little more than one quarter in the game, with five carries for 27 yards and one TD. Earlier in the week, Spiller was suffering from turf toe, but his absence against the Chanticleers wasn't problematic, as speedster Jacoby Ford stood up. Ford caught a TD pass and threw one, as Clemson rolled up 400 yards of total offense. With the touchdown pass, Ford joins Spiller as the only two players in Clemson history to have scored touchdowns five different ways (rushing, receiving, punt return, kickoff return, and throwing a TD). The ground game flourished despite Spiller's reduced role, with 252 yards. Andre Ellington (88 yards) and Jamie Harper (76 yards) led the way. The Tigers, who are 3-2 in league play, will get back to conference business this week, when the team plays host to Florida State.
FLORIDA STATE - It was a shootout in Tallahassee with Florida State coming out on top in a 45-42 barn-burner against NC State. Quarterback Christian Ponder orchestrated an eight-play, 66-yard drive in the final three plus minutes, with Bert Reed's three-yard end around finishing off in the end zone. Suffering from a rib injury early on, Ponder still completed 26-of-40 passes for 277 yards and one TD. The ground game was lethal for FSU, which churned out 278 yards and a whopping 8.4 yards per carry. Jermaine Thomas was unstoppable on the ground, amassing 186 yards on his 20 carries, with two scores. It marked the best game by an FSU rusher since the 2005 Gator Bowl (Leon Washington - 195 yards). The 67,712 fans in Doak Campbell Stadium represented the smallest crowd in the last 16 years, as FSU has struggled in 2009. The Seminoles, who lost their first three ACC tilts, have now won two in a row and will try to finish the season strong, starting with a road trip to Death Valley this weekend against Clemson.
MARYLAND - The Terrapins were idle this past weekend and needed the break, having lost three straight games to fall to 2-6 on the season. In league play, Maryland has won just one of its four games and sits near the bottom of the Atlantic Division, just ahead of winless NC State (0-4). The Terps will get their chance to get back in the win column, when they visit the Wolfpack in Raleigh this weekend.
NC STATE - With a 45-42 loss to Florida State this past weekend, the Wolfpack are now the only winless team in ACC action at 0-4. It certainly wasn't a lack of offensive production that did in Tom O'Brien's squad in Tallahassee, as quarterback Russell Wilson led an offense that churned out 538 total yards, including Wilson's 349 passing yards and five TDs. The passing yards and TDs were career-highs for Wilson and the total yardage was the most by NC State since 577 yards in 2004 against North Carolina. Owen Spencer was the top target downfield, hauling in five balls, for 165 yards and one TD. Jarvis Williams certainly made the most of his three receptions, as each landed him in the end zone. The Wolfpack will get another shot at their first conference win when they welcome the Maryland Terrapins to Raleigh this weekend.
WAKE FOREST - Riley Skinner completed 29-of-43 passes, for 349 yards and two TDs, but watched the game from the sidelines with a fouth-quarter injury, as Wake dropped a heartbreaking 28-27 setback to nationally-ranked Miami-Florida. Skinner, who also rushed for 43 yards and another TD, moved into second place in the ACC in career completions with 824, trailing on NC State's Philip Rivers. Skinner also went over 2,000 yards passing on the season, marking the fourth straight season he has eclipsed 2,000 yards, with only Rivers and Duke's Thaddeus Lewis achieving that mark in ACC history. Wake, which is 4-5 overall and 2-3 in league play, will attempt to get back to .500 when the team travels to Atlanta to take on the red-hot Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
COASTAL DIVISION:
DUKE - The Blue Devils continued their success in-conference by earning their third straight ACC victory with a 28-17 victory over Virginia in Charlottesville this past weekend. It marks the first time since 1994 that Duke has won three straight games. With the win, Duke is surprisingly in second place in the Coastal Division (3-1) and just one win from becoming bowl eligible. The ACC's leading passer, Duke QB Thaddeus Lewis, once again had a strong outing, despite facing a feverish Virginia pass rush that sacked him six times. Lewis completed 24-of-40 passes, for 343 yards and one TD. Donovan Varner (seven receptions, for 113 yards) and Conner Vernon (seven receptions, for 103 yards and one TD) both had big outings down the field. Placekicker Will Snyderwine was also instrumental in the victory, making five field goals. Lewis became the first Duke player and just the third in ACC history to throw for over 2,000 yards in four straight seasons, joining NC State's Philip Rivers and Wake Forest's Riley Skinner. The Blue Devils will attempt to continue their recent success with a road trip to Chapel Hill this weekend against rival North Carolina.
GEORGIA TECH - Tailback Jonathan Dwyer was named the ACC Player of the Year in 2008 and finally showed his form from last year with a career-high 186 yards and three TDs in a 56-31 rout of Vanderbilt. Tech's ground game has mystified the opposition this season and the Commodores had no answer either, as the Yellow Jackets amassed 404 rushing yards on nearly six yards per carry. Dwyer certainly wasn't alone on the ground, as Roddy Jones had 81 yards and one TD on just nine carries and QB Josh Nesbitt added 56 yards and two scores. In all, the Yellow Jackets churned out a season-high 597 total offensive yards, and improved on their best start to a season since winning the national title in 1990. At 8-1, Tech is in the driver's seat in the ACC's Coastal Division at 5-1 and will attempt to close out the division and a spot in the ACC Title game, starting with this weekend's home date against Wake Forest.
MIAMI-FLORIDA - The Hurricanes trailed 27-14 in the fourth quarter, but rallied in the final frame to earn a 28-27 victory over Wake Forest and becoming bowl eligible (6-2), while moving one game over .500 in league play (3-2). Quarterback Jacory Harris threw a 13-yard TD pass to Travis Benjamin with just over a minute to play to earn the victory. Harris has flourished in his sophomore season, including a 330-yard, three TD performance against the Demon Deacons, as he spread the ball around to nine different receivers. It was the sixth straight win for Miami over Wake Forest, which hasn't posted a victory in the series since 1969. Winners of four of their last five games, the Hurricanes will attempt to ride the wave of momentum into this week's clash with Virginia.
NORTH CAROLINA - The Tar Heels finally got in the win column in conference play, with a huge 20-17 upset of nationally-ranked Virginia Tech in Blacksburg last Thursday. Placekicker Casey Barth hit a 21-yard field goal on the game's final play to earn the victory and move UNC to 5-3 on the season overall. The Tar Heel defense was stellar all game long and forced Tech's talented tailback Ryan Williams to fumble with just over two minutes left in the game deep in Hokie territory, allowing the Tar Heels to run the clock down and earn the win with Barth's last-second heroics. UNC limited the Hokies to a mere 256 yards of total offense, including shutting down Virginia Tech's vaunted ground game to just 95 yards. The Tar Heels will attempt to get win number two in- conference when the team welcomes the red-hot Duke Blue Devils to town this weekend.
VIRGINIA - The fifth-ranked pass defense in the nation was torched this past weekend in Charlottesville, as Virginia allowed Duke's Thaddeus Lewis to throw for 343 yards in a 28-17 setback to the Blue Devils. Virginia sacked Lewis six times in the game, but go little offensive support, as the Cavs managed a mere 196 yards of total offense. It marked the second straight time that Virginia has lost to Duke, the first time since 1981-82 that that has happened. Virginia's six sacks are the most since 2008 (six against Richmond), as John-Kevin Dolce (career-high 2.5 sacks) and Nate Collins (career-high two sacks) led the way. The game marked the 1,200th in Virginia history (12th most in NCAA history). Al Groh coached his 174th career game at an ACC school (Wake Forest and Virginia), moving him into sole possession of fourth place all-time, passing Earle Edwards (NC State). The Cavs will attempt to end a two-game slide when the team travels to Miami to take on the Hurricanes this weekend.
VIRGINIA TECH - The Hokies' goal of a third straight ACC title took a huge hit last week, as Virginia Tech fell to North Carolina 20-17 on a last season field goal. The loss was Virginia Tech's second straight and dropped the Hokies to 5-3 overall and 3-2 in ACC play. It was UNC's first conference win of the year. The game looked like it was heading for overtime, but talented tailback Ryan Williams fumbled with just over two minutes to play deep in Tech territory, providing UNC with the opportunity to steal a victory in Blacksburg. Williams has been superb this season despite his first career rushing fumble, as the freshman has run for 930 yards, leading the ACC in rushing (116.2 ypg) with 10 TDs. He will attempt to remove the sour taste from the loss to UNC last weekend, when the Hokies take a break from conference action and travel to Greenville to take on East Carolina in another Thursday night affair.
