Week 2 in the ACC was one of those weekends, that makes John Swofford smile. It was undefeated Saturday for the conference capped off by Virginia Tech’s return to national relevancy with their victory at Ohio State.
Let’s get to the 10 quick takes on the ACC for Week 2.
1) Welcome back Virginia Tech, we’ve missed you.
Critics of Virginia Tech, said Frank Beamer didn’t have it anymore. They said the Hokies didn’t recruit well enough to be nationally relevant. Virginia Tech proved them all wrong.
The Hokies played like it was the mid 2000s in winning at Ohio State Saturday night. They were physical on defense, and opportunistic on offense. Bud Foster called a masterpiece, and QB Michael Brewer wasn’t perfect, but he’s a gamer and is tough as nails. This was vintage Virginia Tech. Does it mean Virginia Tech is back? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet, but it is the kind of signature win that the program badly needed, and it gives the Hokies a chance at having a special season.
Great win for Virginia Tech, and congrats to my ACC podcast and blog partner Mr. @Hokiesmash. Enjoy that outstanding victory!
2) ACC has an undefeated Saturday
Virginia Tech had the win of the day obviously for the ACC, but quietly the conference had a solid day. While some in the national media try to push the narrative that the ACC is surviving, the real point is they are not losing. Lower division wins over power 5 teams have dotted the scoreboard the last 2 weeks. Close or not the ACC is taking care of business. Winning against brand name programs is the most important thing, but don’t discount NOT LOSING to lower division teams. It also counts…
The ACC’s football restoration project continues to take another small step forward.
3) Clemson was very mad
After they wilted in the 4th quarter against Georgia, Clemson played angry today. Yes it was only SC State, but the Tiger held the Bulldogs to only 44 total yards in a 73-7 win. I like Cole Stoudt at QB, but when you watch Deshaun Watson he has next level ability. This is going to an interesting situation to watch.
The Tigers now have two weeks to prepare for Florida State.
4) Pittsburgh is going to be a Coastal Division factor.
Remember during the off-season when I said if Pittsburgh won at Boston College, they had a real shot at a 5-1 or 6-0 start. Well the Panther dominated BC, and I think that 5-1, 6-0 start is a real possibility. James Conner is a beast at RB, and Tyler Boyd is one of the best WRs in the ACC. This is a physical team, that you need to start paying attention to.
5) I don’t know what to make of Georgia Tech
This is one ACC team I don’t have a bead on. One minute they look like a 2-10 team, and in the next they look like coastal contenders. Today they were at one point down 21-14 to Tulane before scoring the next 24 points.
Justin Thomas looked solid running the triple option, even though he made a couple of big mistakes. In my opinion he’s the furthest along any QB has been at Georgia Tech 2 games into their career. We’ll see if the Jackets can find some consistency soon. They’ll need it with surging Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh later in the year.
6) Louisville looks good, I mean real good.
The Cardinals and ACC look like a perfect fit. The ACC has made recent football strides, and Louisville only enhances that. They’ve outscored their first two opponents 97-34. Saturday it was a dominanting 66-21 win over Murray St.
Louisville heads to Virginia next week in what is now a very intriguing game. The Cavaliers have some talent especially on the defensive side of the ball. They will challenge the Cardinals.
7) Survive and Advance for North Carolina
I don’t trust UNC’s defense, and it’s going to catch up the Tar Heels sooner rather than later. They probably should have lost Saturday to San Diego St. but they found a way to sneak out the W with an interception in the endzone.
Survive and advance North Carolina, but two games into the season and I’m sticking with Virginia Tech to win the Coastal
8) Wake Forest wins!
Wake Forest defeated Gardner-Webb 23-7. I don’t know what else to say here, except Wake Forest will not go winless.
9) Does Florida State have anything to worry about?
I didn’t watch much of the Florida State game with The Citadel, but it appears the Seminoles dominated this one. As deep as the Seminoles are, they had 3 defensive linemen hurt in the game. The Seminoles do have 2 weeks to prepare for Clemson, so that should help getting players healthy. My early feeling on that game is that the Seminoles are still 14-20 points better than Clemson, but I feel fairly confident it won’t be the blowout it was the year before.
10) How many ACC teams should be ranked Sunday?
2 Weeks ago the ACC was criticized for having only 3 ranked teams. Sunday they should have 5 teams (FSU, Clemson, UNC, Virginia Tech, and Louisville) ranked in the top 25. Duke and Pittsburgh are just on the outside looking in. Not bad for the underrated conference.
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