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ACC Football: Three Impact Coastal Division Games in Week 6
Which ACC Football Coastal Division games are the biggest of the weekend?
Week Six is a return to the mix for top 25 matchups. After dropping to three such matchups in week 5, albeit all being top ten, week six returns to the status quo of four.
Two of those games take place in the SEC. Number one Alabama travels to play at #16 Arkansas. In the only top ten matchup of the week, #9 Tennessee looks to continue its destiny on the road against #8 Texas A&M.
The other two matchups involve ACC football teams. On top of that three of those four teams are Coastal Teams. So without further ado, let’s jump into this week’s three impact games.
Virginia Tech at North Carolina (Saturday, Oct 8th @ 3:30 pm)
Virginia Tech is coming off a bye week. UNC is coming off back to back come from behind wins. Are the Hokies going to be rusty? Or are the Heels going to be worn out? The answers will determine who takes the lead in the Coastal race?
Things going for the Hokies: QB Jerod Evans. The Hokies QB might be the most overlooked QB in the nation (possibly even more so than the Tar Heel one). In the last two games he has thrown for 535 yards and eight touchdowns. He has also rushed for 145 yards and another score.
The Defense. The Hokies defense currently ranks ninth in yards allowed per game, nationally. In their last two games they have allowed an average of 284 yards and 9 points per game. They also forced three turnovers while only giving up one.
Things going for the Tar Heels: QB Mitch Trubisky. The Tar Heels QB ranks seventh in the nation and second in the ACC in passing yards. He ranks sixth in passer rating, third in QBR, and leads the nation in completion percentage. His 13 passing touchdowns ranks 13th in the nation and he is one of only two quarterbacks with double-digit scores and no interceptions.
Oct 1, 2016; Tallahassee, FL, USA; North Carolina Tarheels wide receiver Ryan Switzer (3) runs the ball during the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports
One of the reasons Trubisky looks so good is because of Ryan Switzer. The senior wide receiver ranks sixth nationally in receiving yards and fourth in receptions. In his last two games, he has 30 reception s for 366 yards.
Home Field. The Heels are on a nine-game home winning streak. They are also playing a team that has not played a true road game this season. Last season that helped keep the Hokies in the game and force OT. This season it may be more than the Hokies can handle.
The key to this game is one simple question: Are the Hokies for real? If they are then they can win this matchup for the tenth time since joining the ACC. If they aren’t then UNC makes it two in a row and extends their home winning streak to ten and their ACC regular season streak to 11.
Georgia Tech at Pittsburgh (Saturday, Oct 8th @ 12:30 pm)
Oct 1, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers running back James Conner (24) looks on from the sidelines against the Marshall Thundering Herd during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Georgia Tech is coming off consecutive home losses. Pittsburgh is coming off a big home win. If Pitt wins they keep their Coastal Dreams alive. If Tech wins they keep their coach off the hot seat.
Things going for the Yellow Jackets: Pitt’s passing defense. I struggled to find positives for the Yellow Jackets. They do rank in the top 25 nationally in rushing yards. However, the best thing going for them is the Panther’s secondary. Pitt ranks third to last in both total passing yards allowed and passing yards per game. In other words, if you want to beat the Panthers, you have to do it through the air.
Things going for the Panthers: Quadree Henderson. The all-around player has 937 all-purpose yards on the season, tied for first in the nation. Pitt’s Run Defense is also legit. The Panthers rank fourth nationally by holding opponents to 69.8 per game.
They also have Home Field. Pittsburgh is currently 3-0 in games played at home and 0-2 everywhere else. Georgia Tech will be playing their first true road game of the season. One last thing, the perceived plus for Tech is misleading. The Yellow Jackets are averaging only 108 yards per game through the air. That also just happens to rank third to last in the nation.
Pitt’s run defense is legit. There is a reason UNC started throwing the ball as much as they did. If the Panthers shut down the Jacket’s run game, Tech will lose three in a row. If Georgia Tech can find a way to move it on the ground, they might have a shot. Let’s just say I am leaning more toward a Panther’s victory than a Yellow Jacket’s upset.
Florida State at Miami (Saturday, Oct 8th @ 8:00 pm)
For the first time in a long time, Miami is the higher ranked team in this rivalry. Miami has looked stout and has a 4-0 record to show for it. Florida State has not been as sharp and has already dropped two games this season.
Things going for the Hurricanes: QB Brad Kaaya. Miami’s quarterback has been solid of late. In his last two games, both on the road, he has 609 passing yards and four touchdowns. He also leads the ACC in yards per attempt. RB Mark Walton was finally shut down against Georgia Tech. The Sophomore Running Back is averaging over 110 yards and two touchdowns per game.
Miami’s Pass defense has also been outstanding. The Hurricanes rank first nationally in passing yards allowed and third overall in passing yards per game. Meanwhile, the FSU Passing Defense has been less stellar. The unit is allowing 247 yards per game. Last week they allowed over 400 passing yards to UNC.
Things going against the Hurricanes: The Moment. This will be the first Ranked team Miami has faced this season. Even though it is at home, FSU has been a hurdle the Hurricanes have not been able to overcome recently. Miami hasn’t beaten FSU in their last six tries and hasn’t beaten FSU in Miami since 2004.
The last time Florida State started an ACC season 0-3 was 2009. They actually beat UNC that year for their first ACC win. In other words, it doesn’t happen often. The game is in Miami, so that should favor the Hurricanes. Of course, there is another hurricane that could really cause trouble for this game. As long as Miami takes care of the ball and continues to play solid defense, they should improve to 5-0 this season.
One to keep an eye on: Army at Duke (Saturday, Oct 8th @ 3:30 pm)
Oct 1, 2016; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach David Cutcliffe greets his players as they come off the field after a Virginia Cavaliers touchdown in the first half at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports
Which Duke will come to play? The one that beat Notre Dame in South Bend? Or the one that got handled by Virginia in Durham? A lot of that will have to do with the health of Jela Duncan. A healthy Duncan will do a lot for Duke. An injured one could mean yet another loss for the already downtrodden Blue Devils. Army meanwhile will be looking for their fourth win of the season. Last year they won two games total, so doubling that number five games in would be huge.
The only other Coastal team is Virginia who gets a bye this week. So that is seven teams and with that let’s get going with another amazing week of ACC football in the Coastal Division.
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