Clemson 27, Syracuse 21 – The Syracuse Orange plundered Clemson with its first 6-0 record since 1987 and while the ‘Cuse had a 21-10 lead after three quarters, plundering took a different definition which turned the momentum toward the Tigers.
The Orange stopped Clemson on a 3rd-and-long early in the fourth quarter, but when backup quarterback Cade Klubnik went out of bounds on the play, Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff was hit with an unnecessary roughness penalty as he and Klubnik made contact out of bounds.
Clemson took advantage and went on to score on that possession.
On the following drive by the Orange, quarterback Garrett Shrader was literally pushed while he was out of bounds on the play and no penalty was called. Arguably, the no-call was worse for the Orange as truthfully neither call should have been made.
Syracuse was also assessed two holding penalties in the second half that cost them solid plays which would have potentially given them opportunities
Clemson rushed for 293 yards in the game and head coach Dabo Swinney benched quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei in the second half in favor of Klubnik. Will Shipley posted 172 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.
“I guess we have to sacrifice a billy goat or something the next time we play Syracuse,” said Swinney. “Crazy stuff happens when we play these dudes.”
Wake Forest 43, Boston College 15 – Demon Deacons quarterback Sam Hartman passed for 313 yards and five touchdowns and ran for one as Wake Forest moved to 6-1 with an easy home win over Boston College.
Hartman hit Taylor Moran with two of his first four touchdown passes as WFU built a 28-9 lead over the Eagles with 9:50 left in the third quarter.
The brilliance of Hartman lies in his consistent ability to complete passes in high percentages and find the key matchups for the group of backs and receivers that are threats in the Wake Forest offensive attack.
Since he became the quarterback in 2018, Hartman has passed for 11,021 yards with five games remaining, which is the heart of WFU’s schedule.
“When you play well, you have fun,” noted Hartman. “I think that’s the big message with our offense. When guys are moping around, it’s different. When you are having fun and executing at a high level like we’ve done the last couple of weeks, it’s a lot more fun.”
Louisville 24, Pitt 10 – Cardinals quarterback Malik Cunningham was back on Saturday night as he comped 10-of-21 passes for 122 yards and rushed nine times for 46 yards.
The matchup was about Louisville’s defensive efficiency as the Cardinals held the Panthers to 326 total yards as running back Israel Abanikanda rushed for 129 yards on 28 carries.
Pitt led, 10-3, at the end of the third quarter, but Cunningham tied the game on a 9-yard touchdown pass to Josh Lifson. This was followed by a 59-yard fumble return by the Cardinals’ Kei’Trel Clark.
The Panthers’ defense was on-point overall as it held Louisville to just 312 total yards.
“We won the turnover margin including that last one we picked up and ran it in to seal the game,” said Cardinals coach Scott Satterfield. “It was a total team effort tonight.”
Virginia 16, Georgia Tech 9 – The Cavaliers picked up their first ACC win of the Tony Elliott era on Thursday night as quarterback Brennan Armstrong scored on a one-yard run and hit wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks with a 44-yard touchdown pass.
Armstrong completed 20 of 35 passes for 255 yards while rushing for 91 yards and the score on 13 carries.
Georgia Tech had won two in a row since the firing of head coach Geoff Collins, but the Yellow Jackets lost quarterback Jeff Sims, who was injured in the second quarter. GT could not convert any of the four turnovers that their defense accrued.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers defense was on point as it held the Yellow Jackets to only 201 total yards while sacking quarterbacks on eight occasions.
“I thought the guys did a great job of preparing and defensively for them to come out and have eight sacks and shut down the run and give the offense opportunity after opportunity, just really proud of how those guys responded and played down the stretch,” explained Elliott.
Duke 45, Miami 21 – The Hurricanes have been besieged by injuries nearly all season and Saturday they were dominated by Duke who forced eight turnovers, accrued seven tackles for loss and accumulated six sacks.
Hurricanes quarterback Tyler Dan Dyke was knocked out of Saturday’s game with an injury in the second quarter and he did not return. The rash of turnovers really didn’t manifest itself until Van Dyke went down.
Backup quarterback Jake Garcia threw three interceptions as all four of Miami’s drives in the fourth quarter ended in turnovers.
The ‘Canes had problems with the Duke rushing attack, first and foremost, as the Blue Devils amassed 200 rushing yards on 42 carries.
“We came here on a mission with a purpose and understanding that it is going to take tough-minded people with the right demeanor that can approach the right way,” said Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal.
