Miami and Clemson are all set to face off in the ACC Championship after the Hurricanes throttled No. 3 Notre Dame and the Tigers beat Florida State—setting the stage for a game that could be a defacto College Football Playoff play-in game.
Army 21, Duke 16
Duke fell short against Army on Veteran’s Day in its sixth straight loss. The Blue Devil offense sputtered once again, gaining just 253 total yards and making several costly mistakes, including a fumble, interception and blocked punt, which Black Knight Javhari Bourdeau returned 25 yards for a touchdown to give Army a 14-3 lead in the second quarter. With 4:15 remaining, Duke had a chance to win the game down just 21-16, but punted after gaining seven total yards in five plays, putting the nail in its coffin. The Blue Devils will need at least one, if not two wins to make a bowl with Georgia Tech and Wake Forest left on the schedule—with their high APR, they could sneak into the postseason with just five wins.
No. 7 Miami 41, No. 3 Notre Dame 8
In one of the biggest games of the season, the No. 7 Hurricanes dominated the No. 3 Fighting Irish in a game that felt over after the first quarter. Miami quarterback Malik Rosier threw for a touchdown and ran for another while running back DeeJay Dallas also added two touchdowns on the ground as the Hurricanes embarrassed Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish turned the ball over four times, including an interception returned for a 65-yard touchdown. Miami hopes to jump into the College Football Playoff discussion and deserves to do so after dismantling Notre Dame. With Louisville's win against Virginia, the Hurricanes clinched the ACC Coastal Division and a spot in the ACC Championship.
North Carolina 34, Pittsburgh 31
North Carolina managed to come away with a tight win over Pittsburgh, just its second of the season. The Tar Heels were led by wide receiver Anthony Ratliff-Williams, who returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, threw for a score and caught the go ahead score late in the fourth quarter to steal a road win. Unless Pittsburgh wins out, neither team will make a bowl.
No. 4 Clemson 31, Florida State 14
With a comfortable win against the Seminoles, Clemson has clinched its spot in the ACC Championship game Dec. 2. The Tigers won the battle in the trenches, rushing for 227 yards and four touchdowns while holding Florida to just 29 rushing yards. Clemson will play Miami in the ACC Championship game that will most likely pit two top four teams against each other and make the playoff picture a little murkier come December.
Georgia Tech 28, No. 17 Virginia Tech 22
In the only real upset of the week, the Yellow Jackets handed Virginia Tech its second straight loss with the help of two long touchdown passes from quarterback TaQuon Marshall—who also rushed for two scores. The two passing touchdowns, for 60 yards and 80 yards respectively, were the only two passes that Marshall was able to complete in the game—but he made them count. After suffering a tough loss to Miami the week before, the Hokies were unable to find their footing again and suffered a crushing blow at the hands of the middling Yellow Jackets.
No. 23 North Carolina State 17, Boston College 14
In a low scoring game, North Carolina State was able to bounce back from two straight losses with a comeback victory. The Wolfpack were helped by running back Nyheim Hines, who scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 50-yard run halfway through the fourth quarter.North Carolina State looks forward to Wake Forest next week while Boston College will play Connecticut in a game that might determine their chances at a bowl game.
Wake Forest 64, Syracuse 43
In a high-scoring barn burner, Wake Forest came away with a road victory against Syracuse. The Demon Deacons were led by quarterback John Wolford who had 363 yards passing, 136 yards rushing and six total touchdowns (three in the air and three on the ground). His performance combined with junior running back Matt Colburn’s, who also had 237 yards rushing and two touchdowns, contributed to the 734 yards of total offense for Wake Forest—which yielded 621 yards to the Orange. With the win, Wake Forest has seemingly clinched itself a bowl game, while Syracuse needs wins against Louisville and Boston College to get itself there.
Louisville 38, Virginia 21
It was a close one in the first half until Louisville and Lamar Jackson blew it open late with three unanswered touchdowns. Jackson accrued 342 yards of total offense, making him the only player ever to have two seasons in a career with at least 1,000 yards rushing and 3,000 yards through the air. The Cardinals became bowl-eligible with the win, while the Cavaliers had already hit the six-win mark.
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