By Curran Campbell
We had another week of coastal chaos, and another week of football teams performing at levels of derp never seen before by mankind. We also have our third team so far this season to hit the bottom of the power rankings, keep reading and find out who has become the worst of the worst.
Miami
Miami took advantage of too many Pitt mistakes and busted out the turnover chain 3 times in a gross 16-12 victory over the Panthers. The Miami offense continues to be absolutely dreadful, as they only put up a measly 208 yard of total offense. That being said, they did enough to win and that’s all that matters at the end of the day.
Louisville
Tailback Javian Hawkins and quarterback Micale Cunningham combined for 233 yards rushing as Louisville took 28-21 victory over Virginia. The scoreboard would indicate a close game but the Cardinal ground attack was just too much to handle for the Hoos, and Louisville completely dominated the second half of play.
Clemson
Clemson beat Boston College 59-7. That is all.
Florida State
Florida State started running away with it early, and a couple of garbage time touchdowns made it look way closer than it really was as the Noles took care of Syracuse 35-17. Cam Akers continues to look like one of the top 3 tailbacks in the conference along with Clemson’s Travis Etienne and Louisville’s Javian Hawkins as he put up 144 yards and 4 touchdowns on the ground.
North Carolina
Carolina kind of played like garbage against Duke if we are going to be honest. They did their very best to make sure the Victory Bell stayed in Durham for a fourth straight year, but as most of you probably know already, it’s back in Chapel Hill. The Heels barely, and I mean barely held on for a 20-17 victory as the Tar Heel defense really did play their best game of the season and Chazz Surratt made the big play with 14 seconds left with the interception on the Deon Jackson jump pass when it really mattered. We will have a lot more to say about this game in the Duke section of this ramble.
Pitt
So far this season, Pitt has had a habit of playing the same level of football as their opponent. Playing up to Penn State and UCF, while playing down to the likes of Duke, Syracuse, Delaware, and now Miami in a 16-12 loss. Kenny Pickett was dreadful, going 18-32 for only 146 yards and throwing it to the wrong colored jersey twice. The Pitt defense was good, as it has been all season, but if that offense doesn’t clean it up, they’re going to continue to struggle down the stretch.
Virginia
Virginia on the road is bad. Virginia at home is good. Unfortunately, we were stuck with road Virginia on Saturday as they dropped this one to Louisville 28-21. UVa is now 1-3 on the road and it’s not going to get any easier as they have to travel to Chapel Hill next week. Until UVa can figure out how to win on the road, they will not be the team they are capable of being. Which in my opinion, is a 9 win season with a coastal crown. So far, they’re underperforming.
Boston College
I am sorry that you guys had to lose 59-7 to Clemson. That is all.
Syracuse
Syracuse football continues to disappoint me in new ways every single week. This time with a 35-17 loss to another bad team, this time it was Florida State. The offensive line is still dreadful, surrendering 7 sacks, and quarterback Tommy DeVito isn’t getting any better as the season progresses. DeVito has been lauded as the QB of the future for the Orange and his performance has been so bad that the Orange are now prowling the transfer market looking for another quarterback. A report from Chris Carlson of syracuse.com indicates that former North Carolina quarterback Cade Fortin will be taking an official visit to Syracuse this week. Take with that what you will.
Duke
Duke lost the Battle for the Victory Bell for the first time since 2015. A 20-17 loss in a game you had every opportunity to win stings, and really all the blame can be put on two guys. Those being quarterback Quentin Harris and offensive coordinator Zac Roper. First up to be grilled, Quentin Harris. On the surface, 22-39 for 229 yards with one touchdown and one pick isn’t terrible. That being said, the interception came on a wide open throw that Harris simply missed deep in Carolina territory, taking at least 3 points away from the Blue Devils. Outside of the interception, Harris missed quite a few crucial 3rd down throws that could have kept the ball moving for Duke and avoided having to put together a final drive in the first place. Now Zac Roper, you’re going to be remembered for this mistake for a long, long time. Who in the right mind calls a jump pass at the 2 yard line with your tailback throwing it? If you want to throw the ball there, you run a fade route to one of your receivers who the Carolina corners had been struggling with the whole game. But for whatever reason, Roper took a class at the Larry Fedora School For Coaches That Get Too Cute Near The Goal Line, and went with the jump pass by the tailback. Yikes.
Power Rankings
- Clemson, duh.
- Wake Forest
- North Carolina
- Virginia Tech
- Louisville
- Virginia
- Florida State
- Pitt
- Duke
- Boston College
- NC State
- Miami
- Georgia Tech
- Syracuse
Predictions
NC State at Wake Forest: Wake Forest, 35-24
Boston College at Syracuse: Syracuse, 21-20
Virginia Tech at Notre Dame: Notre Dame, 38-17
Miami at Florida State: Florida State, 34-10
Wofford at Clemson: Clemson, 100-0
Pitt at Georgia Tech: Pitt, 45-24
Virginia at North Carolina: North Carolina, 31-28
Last week’s predictions: 4-1
Season total: 13-9