ACC Roundup: Chaotic Energy

In what’s shaping up to be college football’s whackiest year since 2007, the ACC is doing its part to contribute to the chaos.

When we started these ACC roundups at the beginning the of the year, the hope was to chart out a path for BC to the top of the Atlantic Division. With those hopes dashed, we’re now looking through the schedule to see how future opponents are faring and what we think are realistic expectations for the rest of the year.

The rest of BC’s season starts with Syracuse, BC’s next opponent, who toppled Virginia Tech, who BC plays in two weeks, 41-36 at the Carrier Dome. The Orange are now 4-4, while Virginia Tech has slid to 3-4 after three straight losses.

Syracuse looks much improved from the team that eked one out over Liberty back in September, and lost to FSU — since then, they’ve lost two tight games to Wake and Clemson before winning at Lane Stadium. It’s looking like an increasingly challenging #OrangeEagle matchup next week.

After Syracuse and VT, BC travels to Georgia Tech. GT stumbled yesterday, losing 48-40 to Virginia. The Jackets are now 3-4 overall and 2-3 in ACC play. GT has given up 127 points in its last three games and looks to be reeling defensively. They will hope to bounce back next weekend against Virginia Tech.

Penultimate BC opponent Florida State had a nice little scrimmage against UMass yesterday, falling behind 3-0 but bursting UMass’s upset hopes by going on a little 59-0 run. The Minutemen were unable to dig themselves out of that one. Don’t look now, but Florida State has won three games in a row and sits at 3-4 after a disastrous start to the season.

The Eagles round out the season with Wake Forest, who seem determined to both waltz away with the ACC while also looking as chaotic as possible by doing it. They beat Army 70-56 (you read that correctly) and are now 7-0. With Duke and UNC on deck, can Wake be 9-0 going into a pivotal showdown with NC State on November 13? They seem to keep finding a way.

Outside of BC’s future opponents, the big story of the day in the ACC was Clemson losing again, 27-17, to Pitt - who is now 6-1 and in strong position in the Coastal. Can we get a Wake-Pitt ACC Championship Game? Frankly, it’s tough to see who’s going to reel in Pitt in the Coastal, though they are a pretty adept program at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

NC State, who still look like the top threat to Wake in the Atlantic, lost 31-30 to Miami to fall to 5-2.

So what’s the situation now in the ACC?

For all the chaos, Wake and Pitt look to be in really really good shape at the top of each division. NC State is in position to challenge Wake in the Atlantic, and just need to beat them head-to-head if they keep pace the rest of the way. On the Coastal side, Pitt has a big one against Miami next week; the Hurricanes are suddenly one of three coastal teams (along with UVA and VT) that have two losses, putting them potentially within striking distance.

Outside of Wake, NC State, Pitt, and UVA, it’s a real mess — every single other team in the ACC is either 4-3 or 3-4 and it’s tough to say which teams have the inside track as they all jostle for bowl position.