Around the ACC: Week 9
Despite the light week in terms of the number of games, the quality from around the ACC made for some must-watch TV during week eight of the college football season.
Starting with the still undefeated Wake Forest Demon Deacons, they found themselves in an unusually high-scoring matchup against Army. In a 70-56 Wake Forest victory, quarterback Sam Hartman had a career day as he threw for 458 yards and five touchdowns during the win.
The Demon Deacons are now 7-0 on the season and have risen to No. 13 in the country as they get set to take on a struggling Duke Blue Devils team this week.
Another exciting game came at the “U” as the Miami Hurricanes pulled off a 31-30 upset over previously No. 18 NC State.
In a turnover-free game, both sides exchanged punches as Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke led the way for the Hurricanes with four touchdowns through the air. While the Hurricanes have disappointed to a 3-4 record this season, they will have a big opportunity to keep their ranked win streak alive as they take on the No. 17 Pitt Panthers this weekend.
Those same Panthers picked up one of their best wins of the season last week as they defeated the Clemson Tigers 27-17.
The defense was the big story for the Panthers as Clemson quarterback D.J Uiagalelei was picked off twice and completed less than half of his passes.
Clemson has struggled on the offensive side of the ball all season as they shockingly drop to 4-3 on the year after last weekend.
Looking at some of the top games this weekend, the North Carolina Tar Heels have a chance to salvage what has been a tough season thus far as they travel to South Bend to play Notre Dame.
Like Clemson, the Tar Heels have failed to live up to their high expectations and currently sit with a 4-3 record. They were able to barely hold off the Hurricanes in a 45-42 win in their last game.
They’ll face a Notre Dame team this weekend that has won its last two matchups, which came against Virginia Tech and USC.
Taking a peek at another independent team facing an ACC opponent, the No. 25 ranked BYU Cougars host the Virginia Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers enter this one with a 6-2 record and on a four-game winning streak where they scored 96 points in their last two games.
There’s bound to be more fireworks as we inch ever closer to the end of college football this season and it’s only a matter of time until we see whether or not there’s more of that this week.
Logan Bourandas is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email lxb5412@psu.edu.
