The "Divisional Implication" Games
#16 Boston College at #22 Wake Forest, 7:00 PM, ESPN2
This is simple. If BC wins this game and then hold serve at home against Duke and Maryland then the Thanksgiving night game in Miami means absolutely nothing because the Eagles will be 6-1 in the ACC and hold the tiebreaker over Clemson who will presumably finish 6-2. If Wake Forest wins the Deacons still need to win out to stay ahead of Clemson who hold the tiebreaker on them but should they lose another game then BC would need to hold serve at home and then win at Miami. So like I said the simplest scenario would be for BC to win in Winston-Salem. Which they should do because I am a glutton for punishment in picking against WF.
Boston College 24 Wake 22
#23 Virginia Tech at Miami, 8:00 PM, ABC
So let me get this straight. Wake and BC are playing for first place in the Atlantic division and are both ranked so they get stuck on ESPN2. VT and Miami who are playing for second place in the coastal division get to be one half of the ABC Saturday night game. Of course there was a time when this game would have been worthy of being a national game on ABC which is what ACC thought they were getting when they enticed these two to join, not two also ran teams who can barely keep themselves ranked and get in fights on the field. Maybe the original ACC schools can sue both these teams for fraud and get some sort of damages paid out for loss of reputation. Oh and VT should win thus ending any hope Miami had left of possibly winning the Coastal. VT's hope is still not much better given Georgia Tech's remaining schedule.
Virginia Tech 21 Miami 13
#20 Georgia Tech at NC State, 7:00 PM, ESPNU
This game has implications only because if GT loses they drop into a mathematical tie with the VT/Miami winner. In reality GT owns the tiebreaker so all they need to do is beat UNC and Duke to ensure a divisional title and trip to Jacksonville even if they lose to the Wolfpack. Yellow Jacket fans are nervous because NC State shows up to play ranked opponents while laying eggs against lesser foes. GT has enough offensive weapons and a very good defensive coordinator in Jon Tenuta to make NC State's offensive woes look even worse.
Georgia Tech 27 NC State 10
Maryland at #19 Clemson, 12:00 PM, ESPN2
Technically Maryland is still in the hunt for a division crown, that is until this game ends when they will be 3-2 in the ACC. Maryland is playing better but Clemson is most likely hopping made over the loss in Blacksburg and ready to punish someone. Plus, this is in Death Valley.
Clemson 38 Maryland 13
The "Trying to Get Bowl Eligible" Game
Virginia at Florida State, 12:00 PM, Raycom/LF
Let's take a trip in the Wayback Machine to the preseason when ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach wrote an article about the upcoming ACC, which I proceeded to jump up and down on earning me a link on Deadspin.com. In that artcle, Schlabach wrote the following:
3. The most dangerous offensive weapon in the ACC won’t be Georgia Tech’s Calvin Johnson. It will be FSU quarterback Drew Weatherford, who will blossom in his second season as a starter. With receivers De’ Cody Fagg, Chris Davis and Greg Carr, the Seminoles will become feared again on offense. With another intimidating defense, FSU will be among the last undefeated teams in college football and in contention for the BCS title game.
Now, I know that we all get predictions wrong and this is not so much as shot at Schlabach as it is a chance to laugh at the prediction itself which not only says Weatherford was going to be the best offensive player in the ACC this season but also says FSU would be one of the last undefeated teams and contend for the BCS title game. Well heading into this week FSU is 4-4 overall and Weatherford is now the backup QB in favor of Xavier Lee who ran and passed all over Maryland last week in a 27-24 loss. UVa on the other hand needs to win two of the next three in order to reach a bowl game. Unfortunately for the Cavs this is the first of two road games they will face, the other being Virginia Tech. In between they play Miami and the common denominator between the three is they all still play very good run defense and UVa is still one of the worst offenses in the nation.
FSU 31 UVa 6
The "Please Will Someone at UNC Sneak Into Wallace Wade and Kidnap Paul Johnson" Game
Navy at Duke, 1:00 PM
Duke is capable of playing good defense they just did not do it last week against Vanderbilt. This week facing the triple option they will probably have their hands full trying to stop the Midshipmen. Johnson, who has shown interest in the UNC job, has to know it would behoove him to make a good showing at Duke since some in Tar Heel Nation are not entirely sold on him and the administration seems to be looking at Butch Davis right now. I still think Johnson will be in contact with someone from UNC this weekend while he is in town. It is the perfect cover and unless someone stakes out the Navy hotel no one would know it was going on. Duke is still looking for a win which leads to a very serious question. Which task is more difficul: UNC finding a good football coach or Duke finding a win in football? And while you discuss that I will be calling hotels to see if I can find the Midshipmen.
Navy 42 Duke 14
The "This Was Probably Seemed Like a Really Good Idea When They Scheduled It" Game
UNC at Notre Dame, 2:30, Notre Dame Broadcasting Company(or as some call it NBC)
UNC 23 Norte Dame 20. And here is the reason why.
Last Week: 5-2
This Season: 51-17