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We're all fans of one ACC team: Syracuse. But (surprise!), there are also 13 other teams in the football conference. Every Monday, we'll try and recap what happened all around the league, and where possible, relate it all back to the Orange.
Scores
Pittsburgh 17, Syracuse 16
North Carolina 80, Old Dominion 20
Duke 28, Wake Forest 21
Clemson 52, Citadel 6
Miami 45, Virginia 26
East Carolina 42, NC State 28
Georgia Tech 66, Alabama A&M 7
Florida State 80, Idaho 14
Boston College 29, Maryland 26
Takeaways/Lessons
We've already spent a lot of time going over Syracuse's deplorable loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday, so not even going to rehash here. The Panthers managed to add their names to the list of bowl eligible ACC teams, which now stands 10, and Syracuse remains on the bubble going into the final game.Speaking of bowl eligibility, though...
The other ACC team to clinch a postseason spot this weekend was North Carolina, who ran roughshod over Old Dominion and won by a resounding score of 80-20. Quarterback Marquise Williams threw for five touchdowns and halfback T.J. Logan ran for three scores as well in the romp, which was actually just a 14-13 UNC lead after one quarter. The Heels' sixth win completes an impressive comeback from a 1-5 start and there's still more. With a win over Duke this coming weekend, North Carolina could not only prevent Duke from winning the Coastal, but pull themselves into a tie for the lead.
That aforementioned win over Duke though is no sure thing at all. The Blue Devils rebounded from a slow start over Wake on Saturday to win 28-21 and pick up victory No. 9 (!!!) on the year. At 9-2 (5-2), Duke just has to beat arch rival North Carolina to earn themselves a trip to the ACC Championship. While it's great to win a division title, whoever manages to limp out of the Coastal is likely to just serve as a sacrificial lamb to Florida State, a team that appears destined to play for a National Championship. Once again, the 'Noles took care of business too, racking up their 11th win, this time against Idaho. The resounding 80-14 victory fails to truly describe the rout that occurred though, which Florida should keep in mind next week.
Elsewhere, Miami set fire to UVa and sent them on their way to an almost assured 2-10 death of a season. NC State's misery continued against an East Carolina team that likely wants to face off with Duke now to prove they're the best squad in North Carolina. And finally, Boston College continued an impressive turnaround this season by beating Maryland on a last-second field goal. Oh, and running back Andre Williams ran for 263 yards on Saturday, which gives him 2,073 on the year. Talk about "tired legs" all you want, but the Orange should fear him going into the season finale. We should also be taking notes on how to use our own running backs.
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ACC Standings, Post-Week 13
ATLANTIC | CONF W-L | OVERALL |
Florida State | 8-0 | 11-0 |
Clemson | 7-1 | 10-1 |
Boston College | 4-3 | 7-4 |
Syracuse | 3-4 | 5-6 |
Maryland | 2-5 | 6-5 |
Wake Forest |
2-6 | 4-7 |
NC State | 0-7 | 3-8 |
COASTAL | CONF W-L | OVERALL |
Duke |
5-2 | 9-2 |
Georgia Tech | 5-3 | 6-4 |
Virginia Tech |
4-3 | 7-4 |
North Carolina |
4-3 | 6-5 |
Miami |
4-3 | 7-3 |
Pittsburgh | 3-4 | 6-5 |
Virginia | 0-7 | 2-9 |