ACC Football: 5 storylines to follow during Week 4 action

2. Upperclassmen finally getting their chance

Upperclassmen around the league are finally getting their chance to shine and some are making the most of it while others are fading away. Florida State running back Jacques Patrick finally had his chance to start with the departure of Dalvin Cook and ran for 2.8 yards per carry.

On the other hand, Georgia Tech junior quarterback TaQuon Marshall has run for 600 yards and six touchdowns in only two games. USC grad transfer quarterback Max Browne has struggled mightily at Pitt and so has LSU grad transfer Brandon Harris at North Carolina. Miami quarterback Malik Rosier hasn’t had a large sample size, but the junior did look strong against FCS team Bethune-Cookman.

There’s also Duke senior running back Shaun Wilson who has bumped his yards per carry up three entire yards from 4.1 to 7.1 so far in 2017. Wilson already has a third of the carries he had a year ago in this young season. North Carolina wide receiver Austin Prohel, who played second fiddle to Ryan Switzer a year ago, is averaging just under 15 yards per reception.

The biggest standout “wait your turn” player across the ACC has been Kelly Bryant. The Clemson quarterback sat behind legendary Tiger Deshaun Watson to then be challenged by freshmen enrollees. Bryant won the job, many thought Dabo Swinney just went with the safe pick, but he has impressed thus far. He’s thrown for 733 yards, two touchdowns and has run for five more scores against major competition like Auburn and Louisville.