Around the ACC: Week 2

Story posted September 17, 2021 in CommRadio, Sports by Ethan Ellis

In Week 2 of the college football season, the ACC had a lot of great action this past weekend. The conference currently has four ranked teams, Clemson, Virginia Tech, Miami and North Carolina. This was the first week that Virginia Tech had been ranked after they defeated North Carolina the week prior.

While there were no high rivalry games or games between ranked opponents, Week 2 still provided an entertaining week in football.

The most talked-about game in Week 2 came from two teams who are not ranked. On Saturday night in Tallahassee, the Seminoles came in looking for an easy win against Jacksonville State, but as the game went on it looked to be anything but that. The Seminoles had a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter with just five minutes left but then Jacksonville was able to kick a field goal with 4:45 left and follow that up with a last-minute touchdown by Damond Philyaw-Johnson to seal the upset, 20-17. The Seminoles will look for their first win of the year when they travel to Wake Forest to take on the Demon Deacons.

No. 19 Virginia Tech hosted Middle Tennessee State University at Lane Stadium in an out-of-conference match. The Hokies handily beat the Lightning 35-14. Virginia Tech quarterback Braxton Burmeister completed 14 of his 24 passes for 142 yards and one touchdown. Raheem Blackshear led the Hokies in rushing with 10 carries for 53 yards and two touchdowns. The Hokies move to 2-0 on the season and will take on West Virginia University this week.

No. 6 ranked Clemson hosted South Carolina State in a battle for the bragging rights to football dominance in the state of South Carolina. The Tigers were trying to regroup after a loss to Georgia that dropped them three spots in the rankings. Quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei led the passing attack for the Tigers as he completed 14 of his 24 attempted passes for 171 yards and had one touchdown and one interception. Will Shipley led Clemson in rushing as he had an impressive 8 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns. Clemson beat unranked South Carolina State 49-3 and will take on Georgia Tech this Saturday.

No. 22 Miami hosted their first game of the season last Saturday as they took on Appalachian State University. Miami Quarterback D’Eriq King, who many see as a favorite to win the Heisman, started at quarterback for the Hurricanes and completed 20 of his 33 passes for 200 yards. Cam’Ron Harris led the Hurricanes in rushing with 18 carries for 91 yards and one touchdown. Miami was in danger of falling to 0-2 on the season as App. State led by one with only five and a half minutes left in the game. But then with only 2:04, Andres Borregales drilled a 43-yard field goal through the goalposts to win the game for Miami, 25-23. The Hurricanes will be at home again this Saturday as they take on Michigan State.

With the intensity that has been seen in the ACC in the two weeks so far, there’s no telling what this season could bring.

Ethan Ellis is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email him at ece5133@psu.edu