ACC Rooting Guide: Week 8

This week will feature mostly conference games, with a few non-conference games. Plus, the ACC finally has a game on Thursday night! Yes. One game I'm really looking forward to is the Miami Hurricanes' game at the Louisville Cardinals this Saturday at 12:00 p.m. The Canes are looking better after their bye week.

Let's root some!

Boston College @ Virginia Tech – October 17th at 7:30 p.m. EST, TV – ESPN

Football fans will know after today's game whether BC's loss to Virginia was the beginning of the end for the Eagles in 2024 or whether coach Bill O'Brien righted the ship during the break week. In the meantime, the Hokies will have to take care of business at home. I know a Tech win boosts Miami's resume a little, but I don't care. Let's go to BC.

Florida State @ Duke – Oct. 18 at 7:00 p.m. EST, TV – ESPN2

As a Miami fan, would I rather face this year's FSU team after a Seminoles win or loss? After a win it might be a little better. To be honest, I don't think that plays a role in this rivalry. Switching gears, I really have no dislike for Duke coach Manny Diaz. He didn't make it as a Canes coach, but he brought the turnover chain and some really good football players with him. It could have been worse considering what Miami fans have been through over the last 20+ years. Let's go, Duke.

Matchup of the week

Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Virginia @ #10 Clemson – 10/19 at 12:00 p.m. EST, TV – ACC Network

It's definitely easy for this to be the match of the week. Plus, I couldn't visit Notre Dame again; I'm tired of her. Either way, Virginia is looking good this season. They almost upset Louisville and are playing good team football overall. I don't think Clemson coach Dabo Swinney will allow his team to take the Cavaliers lightly. However, as one commentator pointed out last week, I should argue against Clemson because they are Miami's main rival at the top of the ACC. He's right! Let's go to Virginia.

Wake Forest @ UConn – October 19th at 12:00 p.m. EST, TV – CBS Sports

Will I watch a second of Demon Deacons football before they play the Hard Rock in the home finale in Miami? Probably not. If Wake loses at UConn this Saturday, I definitely won't. It seemed like just yesterday that Wake Forest had Sam Hartmann at quarterback, an exciting offense and major bowl game aspirations. Two years later, they are underdogs at UConn. Yikes. Let's go to Wake Forest.

#12 Notre Dame @ Georgia Tech – October 19th at 3:30 p.m. EST, TV – ESPN

The Yellow Jackets are in the perfect position to pull off an upset here. Two losses have taken them off the radar a bit, but they're still tough and are especially fired up when a top-ranked team comes to town. Also, I hope GT's defense challenges Notre Dame's QB Riley Leonard to throw the ball. I don't think he can play the whole game. Plus, ND's running game is too good to try and last for sixty minutes. I believe in the magic of the Yellow Jacket! Let's go to Georgia Tech.

NC State @ Cal – Oct. 19 at 3:30 p.m. EST, TV – ACC Network

One of these teams will finally get a conference win after this game. NC State is having a “year from hell” season and Cal is having a “what if” season. Neither is fun, but I think the “what if” season is much worse because you're constantly thinking about the close losses and what it would be like if your team won those games. Give me “Year from Hell” all day long. Okay, this is getting sad. Let's go to NC State.

#21 SMU @ Stanford – October 19th at 8:00 p.m. EST, TV – ACC Network

ACC stands for Atlantic Coast Conference. The prime time game on the Atlantic Coast Conference's own network is SMU at Stanford. For the uninitiated, SMU is located in Dallas, TX and Stanford is in Northern California. Hmmm. Meanwhile, the Big Ten had Ohio State at Oregon last Saturday, while the SEC had Georgia at Texas and Alabama at Tennessee this Saturday. The ACC is truly doomed. Let's go SMU.

Until next week!