ACC Previews - Week 12
Boston College and Clemson to Determine Atlantic Division title;
Maryland, Miami and NC State are Seeking Bowl Eligibility
Courtesy of The ACC
November 12, 2007
Heading into the final two weeks of the
season, the ACC’s “Road to Jacksonville”
narrows to a pair of Divisional
Championship Games in the next two
weeks.
This week, the Atlantic Division
title will be determined as 17th-ranked
Boston College travels to 15th-ranked
Clemson for a 7:45 pm contest which
will be nationally-televised on
ESPN2. The game will include two of
the most prolific passers in the nation
in BC’s Matt Ryan, 6th nationally in total
offense, and Clemson’s Cullen
Harper, who ranks 13th nationally in
passing efficiency. The Tigers, winners
of 4 straight, and the Eagles, who have
lost two straight tight games after winning
their first 8, will each look to punch
their ticket for Jacksonville.
The ACC’s
Coastal Division title contest will have to wait until Nov. 24 when 10th-ranked
Virginia Tech travels to 14th-ranked
Virginia. The Cavaliers, winners of 9
of their last 10 games, are off this week,
while the Hokies, who have captured
seven of eight, host Coastal Division foe
Miami in a 3:30 pm game that will be
regionally televised by ABC. The Hurricanes
of Coach Randy Shannon are
one of three ACC squads who enter this
weekend with 5-5 records and are looking
to be bowl eligible.
Also looking to qualify for post-season play are NC
State, who is traveling to face Wake Forest
in a 4 pm game that will be televised
on ESPNU, and Maryland, fresh
off its upset of then 8th-ranked BC, will
venture South to Tallahassee for a 12
noon game with the Seminoles of Head
Coach Bobby Bowden which will be regionally-televised by the Raycom/Lincoln
Financial Sports Network.The Terrapins
are led by QB Chris Turner, who threw for
337 yards against the Eagles, while FSU
is looking for the return of its injured signal-caller Drew Weatherford.
Raycom/LFS
will be splitting its network this Saturday
and will also televise the North Carolina
at Georgia Tech contest from Bobby Dodd
Stadium in Atlanta. Tech tailback Tashard
Choice, healthy after a two-game absence,
ran for 170 yards against Duke last week,
topping the 1,000-mark for the season.
The Blue Devils round out ACC action for
the week, traveling to Notre Dame for a
2:30 pm contest with the Fighting Irish that
will be nationally-televised on NBC-TV.
Saturday, November 17
North Carolina (3-7, 2-4 ACC)
at Georgia Tech (6-4, 3-4 ACC)
Noon; R/LFS
Bobby Dodd Stadium (55,000)
The Series: Georgia Tech leads 22-17-3;
Georgia Tech leads 14-7-0 at Atlanta, Ga.
The Coaches:
North Carolina - Butch Davis: 3-7 (1st season) at UNC; 54-27 (7th season) overall
Georgia Tech -
Chan Gailey: 43-31 (6th season) at GT; 67-42 (9th season) overall
Game Preview: Georgia Tech opens a two-game homestand, welcoming the North Carolina Tar Heels in a Noon match up Saturday ... The contest will be regionally televised
on the Raycom/Lincoln Financial Sports Network ... The last time the two
teams, which started the 42-game series in 1915, met was in 2006 when Georgia Tech
defeated UNC 7-0 in Chapel Hill, N.C ... The Yellow Jackets have won eight of the last
nine meetings and look to win their third straight victory against the Tar Heels ... North Carolina’s
last win in Atlanta was a 16-13 decision in 1997 ... Tashard Choice, the ACC’s leading rusher
(114.9), return to action against Duke last Saturday rushing for 170 yards and two TDs ... Choice
has 3,020 yards and 27 touchdowns rushing in his three seasons at Tech ... North Carolina
freshman QB T.J. Yates has thrown for 2,297 yards and 12 TDs ... Tar Heel WR Hakeem Nicks is
third in the ACC in both receptions (6.1) and receiving yardage (75.8).
Last Time Out: With the efforts of RB Tashard Choice, who ran for 119 yards on 32
carries and a TD to help the then-No. 19 Yellow Jackets beat North Carolina 7-0 last
season, Georgia Tech clinched a spot in the 2006 ACC championship game ... Choice
also had for 32 yards receiving, while QB Reggie Ball completed 10-of-24 passes for 78
yards and an interception ... UNC limited WR Calvin Johnson to just three catches for 13
yards ... Choice’s 3-yard TD run early in the second quarter capped a 20-play, 83-yard
drive, which spanned 10 1/2 minutes, and was enough to seal the victory ... That drive
was the longest at the time in the ACC in 2006 in terms of number of plays and time ... The
Tar Heels finished with 211 total yards, while converting just 2-of-13 third downs.
Maryland (5-5, 2-4 ACC)
at Florida State (6-4, 3-4 ACC)
Noon; R/LFS
Doak S. Campbell Stadium (82,300)
The Series: Florida State leads 15-2-0;
Florida State leads 8-0-0 at Tallahassee, Fla.
The Coaches:
Maryland - Ralph Friedgen: 55-29 (7th season) at MD; 55-29 (7th season) overall
Florida State -
Bobby Bowden: 299-86-4 (32nd season) at FSU; 372-117-4 (42) overall
Game Preview: Florida State welcomes Maryland Saturday for a Noon contest ... The
game, which will be regionally-televised on the Raycom/Lincoln Financial Sports Network,
marks the Seminoles’ final home game of the 2007 season ... The last time the two
teams met was in 2006 when Maryland defeated FSU 27-24 at College Park ... The
Terrapins have won two of the last three contests, while Florida State had a 14-0 streak
against the Terps, a mark that dates from 1966-2003 ... The Seminoles lead the series 15-2,
including a perfect 8-0 in Doak Campbell Stadium ... Maryland’s tailback duo of Lance Ball and
Keon Latimore have combined to rush for 4,017 yards and 41 touchdowns in their careers ... Florida
State ranks fourth in the ACC and 14th nationally in rushing defense (100.2) and have limited five
of its first 10 opponents to under 100 yards rushing.
Last Time Out: QB Sam Hollenbach threw three TD passes, aiding the Terrapins to
a 27-24 decision over Florida State and making Maryland bowl eligible in 2006 ... The
victory was the second time in 17 tries that the Terps defeated Florida State ... Maryland
led 27-14 in the third quarter, but was not assured the victory until DL Jeremy Navarre
blocked a 46-yard FG attempt with 42 seconds remaining ... FSU QB Xavier Lee went 22-for-36 for 286 yards and two TDs in his first career start, while WR Chris Davis finished
with eight catches for a career-high 132 yards for the Noles ... Hollenbach finished 9-for-
16 for 113 yards and had two TD tosses in the first half.
Duke (1-9, 0-7 ACC)
at Notre Dame (1-9)
2:30 pm; NBC
Notre Dame Stadium (80,795)
The Series: Notre Dame leads 2-1-0;
Notre Dame leads 2-0-0 at South Bend, Ind.
The Coaches:
Duke - Ted Roof: 6-43 (5th season) at DU; 6-42 (5th season) overall
Notre Dame -
Charlie Weis: 20-15 (3rd season) at ND; 20-15 (3rd season) overall
Game Preview: Duke opens a two-game road swing to close out the 2007 season with a
2:30 p.m., contest at Notre Dame Saturday, which will be nationally-televised on NBC ... Both
squads look to record their second win of the 2007 season ... The teams renew competition following
a break span of four decades as the squads met three times between 1958 and 1966 ... both
teams are coming off 41-24 setbacks with the Fighting Irish losing to Air Force while the Blue Devils
falling to Georgia Tech ... The two teams have met three times previously with the
Fighting Irish holding a 2-1 series lead ... Duke sophomore QB Thaddeus Lewis has
thrown for 225 yards or more five times this season ... Lewis ranks seventh on the
school’s career passing yardage list (4,224) and fifth in touchdown passes (30) ... Junior
WR Eron Riley is averaging 21.5 yards per catch and is fourth in the ACC in receiving
yards per game (75.1) ... Riley ranks eighth all-time at Duke in receiving yards (1,641)
and seventh in TD receptions (14) ... Notre Dame ranks fifth nationally in passing defense,
yielding only 164.9 yards per game.
Last Time Out: The last time the Blue Devils and the Fighting Irish played was in
1966, exactly two weeks prior to Notre Dame clinching the National Championship in a
51-0 decision over USC ... QB Terry Hanratty and head coach Ara Parseghian led the
Fighting Irish to a 9-0-1 mark that season, locking in at the No. 1 and No. 2 ranking for five
consecutive weeks ... Notre Dame defeated Duke 64-0, one of the six times the Irish
shutout their opposition over the 1966 season.
Miami (5-5, 2-4 ACC)
at Virginia Tech (8-2, 5-1 ACC)
3:30 pm/ ABC
Lane Stadium (66,233)
The Series: Miami leads 16-8-0;
Miami leads 5-4-0 at Blacksburg, Va.
The Coaches:
Miami - Randy Shannon: 5-5 (1st season) at UM; 5-5 (1st season) overall
Virginia Tech -
Frank Beamer: 164-84-2 (21st season) at VT; 206-107-4 (27th) overall
Game Preview: Miami takes to the road to face 10th-ranked Virginia Tech, in the first of two
road games for the Hurricanes to conclude the 2007 season ... The 3:30 p.m. nationally-televised
contest on ABC marks the 25th contest between the two squads, who met last in 2006 when VT
defeated Miami 17-10 in the Orange Bowl ... Beginning in 1953, Miami won the initial 12 meetings
and has won four of the last seven ... The Hokies are tied for 10th nationally in turnover margin
(+1.00) and over the last seven games Tech has forced 22 turnovers ... Virginia Tech is ranked 3rd
nationally in scoring defense (15.0), passing efficiency defense (95.6) and eighth in total defense
(297.0) ... Miami is ranked 27th nationally in total defense (333.1) ... Tech TB Branden Ore is 10th
in the ACC in rushing (59.3) and has scored a TD in six of his last eight games ... Hurricane senior
QB Kyle Wright ranks seventh all-time on the Miami’s career passing yardage list (5,422) and
eighth in touchdown passes (35).
Last Time Out: Then-ranked No. 23 Virginia Tech defeated Miami 17-10 last season
in the Orange Bowl ... The Hokies have now beaten Miami eight of the last 12 times the
teams have played and three of the last four ... VT held the Canes to 237 total yards,
including just 84 through the air ... The Hokies also intercepted three passes and setup two
offense TDs ... Brandon Flowers had two interceptions and broke up another pass, finishing
with two TDs, including an 8-yard game-winner with 1:39 remaining ... Tyrone Moss
has 103 yards on 13 carries, including a 50-yard TD run, for Miami ... VT QB Sean
Glennon completed just 5-of-19 passes for 86 yards and one interception.
NC State (5-5, 3-3 ACC)
at Wake Forest (6-4, 4-3 ACC)
4:00 pm; ESPNU
BB&T Field (31,500)
The Series: NC State leads 60-34-6;
NC State leads 30-11-1 at Winston-Salem, N.C.
The Coaches:
N.C. State - Tom O’Brien: 5-5 (1st season) at NC State;81-50 (11th season) overall
Wake Forest -
Jim Grobe: 43-39 (7th season) at WF; 76-72-1 (13th season) overall
Game Preview: Wake Forest hosts in-state and ACC foe NC State Saturday in a 4
p.m. game televised by ESPNU ... The two North Carolina squads last met in 2006 when
the eventual ACC Champion Deacons defeated the Wolfpack 25-23 in Raleigh, N.C ... Wake
looks to win its third straight contest in the 100-game series ... The two teams tied in their
initial 1895 meeting 4-4 in Raleigh, while NC State went on to win the next 10 and 14 of
the next 15 ... The Demon Deacons have won three of the last four contests; however, all
of which were decided by six points or less ... Over his last five games NC State
freshman TB Jamelle Eugene is averaging104.8 yards rushing per game and 4.4 yards
per carry ... WF’s Kenneth Moore leads the ACC and rank’s 14th nationally in receptions
per game (7.0).
Last Time Out: PK Sam Swank kicked three FGs of more than 50 yards and QB Riley
Skinner threw a TD pass to lead Wake Forest past NC State 25-23 last season ... Nate Morton had
the 57-yard TD catch just before halftime for the Demon Deacons, who ended a 10-game losing
streak at Carter-Finley Stadium and earned their first win in Raleigh since 1984 ... The win gave
head coach Jim Grobe the school record for most ACC wins with 15, while also giving Wake Forest
its first 6-1 start since 1979 ... The Deacs held onto a 22-14 halftime lead ... Swank became the fifth
player to kick three FGs of 50-plus yards in a single game in NCAA history and the first since
UNC’s Dan Orner in 2002 ... RB Toney Baker ran for two TDs to lead the Wolfpack, while Wake’s
Skinner completed 9-of-14 passes for 124 yards in the win.
Boston College (8-2, 4-2 ACC)
at Clemson (8-2, 5-2 ACC)
7:45 pm; ESPN2
Memorial Stadium (81,473)
The Series: Series tied 7-7-2;
Series tied 2-2-1 at Clemson, S.C.
The Coaches:
Boston College - Jeff Jagodzinski: 8-2 (1st season) at BC; 8-2 (1st season) overall
Clemson - Tommy Bowden: 68-40 (9th season) at CU; 86-44 (11th) overall
Game Preview: No. 15 Clemson hosts 18th-ranked Boston College in the Tigers’ last home
game of the season, a 7:45 p.m. nationally-televised match up on ESPN2 ... The last time the two
squads met was in Clemson, S.C., in 2006, when BC defeated Clemson 34-33 in double overtime ...
The Eagles have won the last three meetings and four of the last five ... Clemson won the
initial two meetings between the two teams ... seven of the 16 previous games contested between
the two teams have been played on baseball fields, three at Fenway Park and four on (Boston)
Braves Field ... The first meeting between the teams, which are tied in the series at 7-7-2, was in the
1939 Cotton Bowl ... Boston College QB Matt Ryan leads the ACC and ranks sixth nationally in total
offense (329.2) and has completed 46-of-80 passes for 433 yards and one TD in two previous
games against the Tigers ... Clemson QB Cullen Harper leads the ACC and ranks 13th nationally
in passing efficiency (154.1).
Last Time Out: Freshman KO return specialist Jeff Smith returned one kickoff for a
96-yard TD and had three other long runbacks to help BC force overtime last season,
then LB Jolonn Dunbar blocked an extra point in the second OT to give the Eagles a 34-33 victory over then-No. 18 Clemson ... Smith totaled 213 kickoff return yards in the win,
while Ryan Ohliger, who missed a 36-yard FG in the fourth stanza, kicked a 35-yarder
on BC’s first possession of overtime ... It was the second consecutive year the Eagles
beat Clemson in OT ... In 2005, the Eagles took a 10-0 lead in their first-ever ACC road
game before beating the Tigers 16-13 in OT ... BC QB Matt Ryan, who didn’t practice with
the first string the previous week due to an ankle sprain, finished 22-for-38 for 212 yards
and a TD ... Clemson WR Chansi Stuckey caught 11 passes for 124 yards and RB James
Davis ran 24 times for 93 yards and two TDs for the Tigers. |