Can Miami lock up an ACC Championship berth this weekend?

The No. 6 Miami Hurricanes will be on the road to take on Syracuse Orange. 

The Hurricanes lead the all-time program 16-7. They have won six straight over Syracuse. The last win for Syracuse over the Hurricanes was in 1998, which the Orange won 66-13.

Miami and Syracuse last met in 2017. The Hurricanes won 27-19 at Hard Rock Stadium.

Fran Brown is Syracuse's head coach. It’s his first season with the program, and he is doing a phenomenal job. The team is 8-3, they’re 5-1 at home. He’s a straight shooter and knows how to galvanize the troops.

Prior to Syracuse, Brown worked alongside coaches at schools such as Georgia, Rutgers, Temple, and Baylor. He learned from the best coaches at each institution.

Syracuse is averaging 31 points a game, 454 yards per game (19th in the country), 361 passing yards per game (2nd in the country), and 2.2 sacks (22nd in the country). 

Syracuse has allowed five blocked kicks throughout the season (130th in the country) and allowed two blocked punts (124th). If you’re the Hurricanes, you can take advantage of these golden opportunities. 

Quarterback Kyle McCord has thrown for 26 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for 3,946 yards. He has completed 78 percent of his passes. 

McCord fits well in the Syracuse offense because of his skill set. However, he needs to get rid of the ball quickly. Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward is one of the most effective quarterbacks who can do this. 

McCord is probably the most productive quarterback the Hurricanes will face this season so far. Syracuse is a deep team. McCord has improved in under-pressure situations and getting the ball to open receivers, which was an issue when he was the quarterback at Ohio State.

Syracuse receivers are great at contesting catches, which helps McCord to make deep throws. 

A player to keep an eye on is Syracuse wide receiver Trebor Peña. He leads the ACC with 743 receiving yards. He’s the Xavier Restrepo for Syracuse. That’s their go-to guy. His best performance was in Week 2 against Stanford when he recorded ten receptions for 101 yards. 

Prediction: Miami wins 30-26

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