ACC Week In Review – Week Five

Time for another installment of the ACC Week in Review. This was arguably the most successful week of the season, as the ACC went an undefeated 5-0 in conference play, albeit against largely unimpressive competition. Let’s review the week that was in the conference.

Wake Forest faced off against Boston College in a showdown of two of the lesser teams in the conference, but it may be time to raise the Demon Deacons up a little bit. Wake beat BC, 27-19, to move to 3-1 on the year and 2-0 in the conference. The Eagles have now lost to both Duke and Wake Forest at home, the first team to do so since 1994. Josh Harris and Brandon Pendergrass each ran for short touchdowns, and Tanner Price threw a 47-yard touchdown to Chris Givens to seal the deal. Chase Rettig was awful as usual (4.0 yards per attempt), but Montel Harris got his yards (108 yards, 4.9 per carry).

Maryland started off slow against Towson, leading 7-3 at halftime, but four Tiger turnovers ended up helping the Terps along to a 28-3 win. Maryland was actually outgained on the day (378 to 335) and was in general the worse team on the day. Danny O’Brien threw for two touchdowns, but averaged 5.9 yards per attempt and was pulled for C.J. Brown on one late drive. The only savior was defensive tackle Joe Vellano and the running game – Davin Meggett had 102 yards on 16 carries, Justus Pickett had 82 yards on 14 carries and his first collegiate touchdown, and D.J. Adams scored an impressive early touchdown before disappearing completely.

Georgia Tech continued their dominance of the early season, defeating NC State 45-35. The Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 21-0 lead thanks to two Orwin Smith touchdown runs and a Tevin Washington touchdown pass, but the Wolfpack scored two touchdowns to tighten the gap. Georgia Tech then scored three consecutive touchdowns to open up the fourth quarter, opening up a 42-14 lead. The Yellow Jackets’ D eased up at that point, as NC State score three touchdowns (including two in the last 34 seconds) compared to a Georgia Tech Field goal to make it the 45-35 final. The leading rusher on the day was actually NC State’s James Washington, who carried the ball 20 times for 131 yards and a score. On the Tech side, Smith had 74 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries, and Washington had 160 yards of total offense.

Virginia faced off against one of the worst teams from one the worst conference in college football in Idaho, and just eked out a 21-20 victory after the Vandals elected to go for the game-winning two point conversion attempt in overtime rather than the tying extra point. The Cavaliers took a 14-0 lead after two Perry Jones touchdowns – one in the air and one on the ground. Two field goals from Idaho made it 14-6, and with a little over three minutes left in the fourth quarter Idaho blocked a punt and returned it four yards for a touchdown. The ensuing successful two-point conversion sent it to overtime, where the Hoos were able to get the win. Michael Rocco had a solid day (66.7 completion percentage, 240 yards, one touchdown, 8.0 yards per attempt), and Jones ended up with 151 yards of total offense and two scores.

After a slow start, Miami ended up blowing out FCS opponent Bethune-Cookman by a score of 45-14. Jacory Harris was 12/17 for 175 yards and two touchdowns, and Lamar Miller ran 14 times for 102 yards and two scores.

In the game of the week, Clemson absolutely pummeled Virginia Tech, shutting them down and winning 23-3. After a Hokie field goal tied the game at 3-3 in the second quarter, it was all Tigers. Andre Ellington ran for a one-yard touchdown, Tajh Boyd threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Allen, and Mike Bellamy ran for a 31-yard score to give the Tigers a marquee victory. This game bodes extremely well for the Tigers – they had relied all season on explosive performances from Boyd and Sammy Watkins. Neither of them played too well in this game, and they were still able to beat one of the top dogs in the conference, and soundly.

Duke continued their winning streak (that’s odd to type) to three games with the 31-27 defeat of a solid Florida International squad. Sean Renfree passed for 335 yards on a 28/43 day with two touchdowns and no interceptions, both Conner Vernon and Donovan Varner ended up with over 100 yards receiving, and Juwan Thompson ran for two touchdowns in the Blue Devils’ victory.

North Carolina defeated perennial ACC buster East Carolina 35-20, in another typical case of offensive efficiency. Bryn Renner was great (11.5 yards per attempt, four touchdowns, no interceptions, 65% completion) and Giovani Bernard continued his great year with 24 carries for 146 yards and a touchdown. Erik Highsmith caught three passes for 94 yards and a score, Dwight Jones caught six for 93 yards and two touchdowns, and the Tar Heels were able to cruise to a win against a team that outgained them by 34 yards (a +4 turnover margin helps, ask Maryland).