Around the ACC: Week 3

It was an interesting week in the ACC. Miami showed some vulnerability.  Louisville said that they want to be the ones in the conversation about who makes it to Charlotte.  Virginia lost and Virginia Tech won, but neither game had bearings on the conference standings.  Clemson did come back to notch their first ACC win while handing UNC its first ACC loss, and both Syracuse and Stanford fell to 0-2 in ACC play, which probably eliminates those schools from title contention since they are projected to be bottom feeders anyway. 

The league went 4-3 in non-conference games this past weekend, but three of those victories were at the hands of FCS schools.  ACC teams only went 1-3 against Power 4 non-conference foes, with the lone victory belonging to, ahem, Virginia Tech, who beat Maryland on the road in a statement win. 

ACC Football
@ACCFootball

𝗣𝗟𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗘𝗘𝗞: Week 3 🔗 theacc.co/26FBpotwwk3 https://t.co/n6O

Virginia Tech Finally Beats a Non-ACC P4 Team! 

For the first time in 17 tries dating back to the 2017 opener, Virginia Tech beat a non-conference P4 team. Also for the first time since 2017, Virginia Tech is 3-0. And if not for a few head-scratching failed two-point conversion attempts, this would have been a rare one-score victory.

I was in Mayland’s SECU Stadium to watch this game, which makes the weekend even better.  The atmosphere was great, and when the Maryland fans started to turn the home crowd from a Red Effect to a Bleacher Effect, the Hokie faithful took over. 

It was LOUD in the Virginia Tech sections of that stadium, which ran behind most of the visiting team’s bench.  And that is because thousands of Tech students, alumni, and family members were on hand to watch this incredibly improved version of their team, this Phoenix of a turkey that has risen from the ashes of a decade and a half of meh football. 

To think, almost exactly a year from the date that Tech was embarrassed in its own building by Old Dominion, almost a year from the date that the Hokies fired their football coach, the Virginia Tech football team made a statement on national television that they are back! 

I’m not ready to talk ACC title or College Football Playoff yet (which, by the way, aren’t far-fetched goals all of a sudden), because I am just savoring this win.  Seriously, when was the last time Hokie Nation could enjoy a meaningful win like this?   

To quote the youth, it has been a minute. 

I am loving this new offensive efficiency.  I am loving the clutch plays, the offensive identity. It is a joy to watch this team jump to early leads and continue to pour on the points.  As a long-time Hokie fan (I graduated in 1993), I am used to defensive dominance and offensive lethargy from my Hokies. 

Now the team is scoring at a historic pace. 

It is still early, and a lot can happen.  But what I have seen I have liked.  A lot.  We as a fan base were excited to hire James Franklin, and already he is delivering a great return on investment.  We are watching a different football team, a much better team than we have seen in ten years. In Franklin’s words, it is starting to look, feel, and smell big time. 

There are a lot of great images from Saturday night in College Park. One of the best was watching Franklin high-five the fans on his way off the field.  Magical. 

Rich Luttenberger
@RichLuttVT

@coachjfranklin thanking the fans! Great road win against a power conference opponent, first since 2017. Go #Hokies! @SonsofSatVT @HokiesFB

Weekly Superlatives 

• The Biggest Game of the Week: Held in Louisville, Kentucky, the Cardinals outscored SMU 41-31, essentially swapping rankings in the process.  Louisville is now 16th in the AP poll, while SMU fell to 22.  Both teams have already logged one in the loss column, but Louisville’s L is out of conference, so this was a big win for them. The toughest ACC opponent on the Cardinals’ remaining schedule is Pitt, so they have a very good shot at making the conference title game.  

• The Worst Loss of the Week: Everyone has seen it by now.  And if you haven’t, then click here.  North Carolina State lost on a shocking last second fumble in their own end zone as time expired.  Head Coach Dave Doeren chose to attempt to run out six seconds instead of the other options – a punt or a safety then a free kick.  I can understand his choice, but the play design was just brutal.  And not only was this an ACC loss to an SEC school, but the Wolfpack twice blew 17-point leads.  Did I say brutal?  And if you are a gambler, this was a bad beat.  Vanderbilt was favored by 3.5 points!  Outside of a miraculous turnaround, I don’t see how Doeren survives this season. 

• The So Happy They Lost Game of the Week: In front of a few dozen of their fans who bothered to make the trip to Charlotte, Virginia dropped a P4 non-conference game to West Virginia, 38-27.  Not that I’m suddenly rooting for the Mountaineers, but I do have respect for that program and that fanbase.  I feel the polar opposite about UVa. If you question why, just look at this Wahoo tweet: 

• The How Did You Not Cover the Spread Game of the Week: Miami, who was rolling 31-7 in the third quarter, only beat Wake Forest 33-20.  Had Wake not thrown a late interception near the goal line, this would have been a one score game.  I still think the ‘Canes are the team to beat in the ACC, but for the first time this season, they showed weakness.  They need to address that, because, as we all know, it is a long season and what happens in September isn’t always indicative of what will happen in November. 

• The How Did You Not Cover the Spread Game of the Week Part II: Boston College hosted Maine but only won the game 22-16.  This is the same Black Bear team that was blown out at Appalachian State, 55-3, the same team that lost 23-14 at home to (***checks notes***) Merrimack. Yes, BC barely beat their FCS brethren to the north by almost the same score as a Merrimack!  Virginia Tech travels to Boston this weekend, and it will be very disappointing if the Hokies don’t win by a few touchdowns. 

• The Can Someone Please Loan Us 100 Million Dollars Game of the Week: Florida State had a chance to make a statement against Alabama.  And they sure did, but not the one they wanted to make.  After storming out to a 21-6 lead midway through the second quarter, the Seminoles proceeded to surrender 44 points in the final two and a half quarters, including three touchdowns in a two-minute span to end the first half. Head Coach Mike Norvell’s isn't sitting on a hot seat; rather, he is swimming in the River Phlegethon.  But can Florida State actually afford to fire him this year?  Their athletic department closed 2025 with $437 million of debt. Norvell’s buyout is just under $50 million, but firing him means firing his coaches and hiring a new head coach and staff.  FSU’s debt would soar above half a billion dollars.  I realize that they just fired their athletic director, which usually signals a soon-to-be change in football head coach, but can that state school really take on half a billion dollars of debt? The crazy thing is that I think the answer by November will be yes. 

Looking Ahead to Week 4 

As mentioned already, Virginia Tech travels to Beantown to take on Boston College in what could be a nor'easter-soaked game.  Even with the rain and wind, the Hokies are a much better football team and should move to 4-0.  However, they rarely play their best football in Alumni Stadium, so this is not an automatic W. I’m hoping the game leans more toward the favorable historical averages between these two schools. 

That’s pretty much it for the ACC slate this weekend.  There are only four conference matchups, and all of the non-conference games are against G6 or FCS opponents.   

Honestly, it’s a rather ho-hum week in general for FBS football.  Even though there are six top-25 matchups, four are in the SEC and the other two are in the BIg Ten, and none of them are screaming “watch me.” Maybe it will be a good Saturday to take in the Hokies' game at noon then enjoy the evening with some other fall activity. 

Go Hokies!