ACC Games to Watch: Week 9
Another week, another slate of pivotal late season games. The Miami Hurricanes may be out of the conference championship picture, but there's still plenty of drama going down in the ACC as the season hits the home stretch. Will Clemson remain undefeated? Will North Carolina push for a title berth?
That final shape up of the conference should be a little clearer after this weekend. These are the biggest games from the ACC in Week 9...
Notre Dame at Syracuse- 12 p.m. (EST)
The Fighting Irish started sluggishly this year, but they seem to have overcome that, at least a little bit. Notre Dame's 4-3 heading into a crucial matchup with one-loss Syracuse, who had Clemson on the ropes last weekend. Will Notre Dame have enough momentum to catch the surprising Syracuse Orangemen sleeping?
'Cuse is in the midst of a one of the best campaigns that the program has ever produced. Sure, they've got a bitter taste in their mouths from their loss against Clemson, but they're still far better off than anyone expected them to be. Another quality win, led by running back Sean Tucker, against the Fighting Irish will do a lot in securing a primetime bowl game for the Orange.
Wake Forest at Louisville- 3:30 p.m. (EST)
Don't look now, but Wake Forest is back in the top ten and they're headed to Louisville for a clash with the Cardinals. The No. 10 Demon Deacons are 6-1, with their lone defeat coming at the hands of Clemson in a 51-45 shootout. Other than that, they've been unstoppable and quarterback Sam Hartman seems to be hitting his stride after throwing five touchdowns against Boston College last weekend.
For the Cards, they've got some momentum of their own building, having won three of their last four contests. The only loss in that stretch came in a 34-33 nail biter against Boston College, which Louisville could have won. Unfortunately, Wake just beat Boston College by 30 last Saturday, so the Cardinals may be a bit out of their depth in this one.
Pittsburgh at North Carolina- 8:00 p.m. (EST)
It hurts to see someone else living your dream. That's how Hurricanes fans have to feel watching the No. 21 Tar Heels sitting comfortably atop the ACC's Coastal Division. North Carolina's been better than expected, and freshman quarterback Drake Maye has set the conference on fire. He's lit up just about every defense he's faced and UNC has put up over 50 points twice this season already, including one 63-point outing against Appalachian State.
The Tar Heels will play primetime hosts to the Panthers, who've taken a tumble since starting the year in the AP Top 25. Pitt's quarterback Kedon Slovis has disappointed, posting as many interceptions as touchdowns (five touchdowns and five interceptions). Slovis was predicted by many to be one of the conference's best passers, but that hasn't panned out for the Panthers. If they can't find a way to score, this one might get out of hand pretty quickly.
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