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NC State
(0-1) at Boston College
(1-0) 2:30
PM ESPN2
Why to Watch:
Forget the fact that Boston
College can sprint to a 2-0 lead
on the way to a possible ACC
Atlantic Division title, this
one is all about the return of
former Eagles coach Tom O’Brien
to his old stomping grounds.
O’Brien, who directed BC to six
straight bowl wins before
abdicating last year for what he
considered a better opportunity
in Raleigh, must find a way to
make sure his Wolfpack doesn’t
stagger out of the blocks as it
did in a 25-23 loss to Central
Florida last Saturday. BC,
meanwhile, is on a high after
overcoming some early troubles
of its own to whip Wake Forest.
Why North Carolina State
Might Win: Who knows BC
better than O’Brien? The former
coach will have his team as
prepared as anyone will be for
the Eagles all year. This week,
he had to make a big call.
Instead of going with Daniel
Evans, who showed excellent
decision making but limited arm
strength during the pre-season
and broke BC’s heart last year
with a game-winning touchdown
pass as time ran out, O’Brien is
giving the starting nod to
Nebraska transfer Harrison Beck,
who threw for 207 yards and two
scores last week. Beck may not
be as judicious as Evans, but he
has the arm strength to stretch
the field. BC was sharp in the
passing game last week, with QB
Matt Ryan throwing for 408 yards
and five scores, but the ‘Pack
allowed just 93 yards passing
against UCF, so it might be able
to keep the air-happy Eagles
grounded somewhat.
Why Boston College Might Win:
The Eagles will be able to load
up against Beck, because top
Wolfpack tailback Toney Baker
suffered a season-ending knee
injury against the Knights. Not
that Baker was a revelation
against UCF, since he and his
fellow State backs were limited
to minus-14 yards rushing in the
first half last Saturday. And
when Beck does pass, he’ll have
to deal with senior corner
DeJuan Tribble, who picked off
three passes last week as the
leader of a strong Eagle back
seven. The Eagles weren’t a
ground juggernaut against the
Deacons, but the expected return
of tailback L.V. Whitworth
should fortify their running
attack.
Whom to Watch:
Ryan may not be on anybody’s
Heisman short list quite yet,
but his opening salvo last week
against the Demon Deacons
certainly caught the eyes of NFL
scouts, who are considering him
for first-round status come
April. Ryan did throw two picks
against Wake, but he completed
61.5% of his passes and showed
the kind of versatile skills and
leadership necessary to be a
big-time prospect and winner at
this level. This is his team,
and if he’s the star he’s
supposed to be, he won’t let the
Eagles lose to a mediocre team
like State.
What Will Happen:
Beck should do well
statistically, but with no
ground game to speak of, he
won’t have much time and will
make some shaky throws. BC,
meanwhile, will continue its
fast start on the arm of Ryan.
CFN Prediction:
Boston
College 38 ... NC State
20
... Line: Boston College -16.5
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2
Final Score:
UL Monroe
(0-1) at Clemson
(1-0) 1:00
PM GamePlan
Why to Watch:
If you liked what you saw in the
first half of Clemson’s 24-18
win over Florida State in the
Bowden Bowl, then you should be
tickled Saturday. The Tigers may
suffer a bit of a letdown, and
if UL Monroe plays like it did
last year in the oh-so-close
42-40 loss to Kentucky, and
catches a big break or five,
this could be closer than
expected. The Tiger speed is
something to behold, and the
blitzing defense can be hellish,
provided there is some
discipline among its members,
but ULM can run, too.
Why UL Monroe Might Win:
The Warhawks ran the ball well
last week against Tulsa, and in
tailback Calvin Dawson (150
yards vs. the Golden Hurricane),
they have a proven ballcarrier
with more than 2,000 career
yards and nine 100-yard games.
The Warhawks also held a 17-14
halftime lead against Tulsa, so
they have the potential to scare
a better opponent, provided they
can sustain the success and get
the running game going. If this
gets close, ULM has a weapon in
kicker Cole Wilson, who has made
12 straight field goals.
Why Clemson Might Win: If
the team that held FSU to a mere
62 total yards in the first half
shows up, en route to a 24-3
halftime lead, there is no
“might” here. Clemson will win
by 50. But the Tigers have to be
focused and can’t let down. The
blitzing Tiger D that forced the
‘Noles into eight first-half
punts and an 0-for-9 success
rate on third down, and which
registered five sacks, should be
stout enough to shut down
Dawson. ULM QB Kinsmon Lancaster
threw for just 66 yards against
Tulsa and isn’t likely to turn
it up a notch against the speedy
Tiger secondary.
Who to Watch:
Clemson QB Cullen Harper had a
solid debut and certainly
silenced the people who were
clamoring for an early unveiling
of true freshman Willy Korn.
Harper completed 14-of-24 passes
for 160 yards and two
touchdowns. He didn’t make too
many bad decisions and was in
charge of the offense. He even
overcame some adversity when
guards Thomas Austin and Brandon
Pilgrim had to leave the game
with injuries. While he isn’t
going to wow too many people,
that’s not his job. As long as
he doesn’t turn it over and lets
the star running backs James
Davis and C.J. Spiller do their
jobs, the Tigers will roll.
What Will Happen:
The Warhawks may be able to
stick around for a while,
because Clemson is coming off an
emotional game and a short week,
but there’s a big difference
between scaring Tulsa for a half
in front of 22,000 in Monroe and
hanging with the Tigers before
83,000 in Death Valley.
CFN Prediction:
Clemson
45 ... UL Monroe 10
... Line: Clemson -23
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2
Final Score:
Duke
(0-1)
at Virginia
(0-1)
Why to Watch:
The two most inept ACC teams
last week, with each coming off
humiliating losses, need to do
something positive very, very
quickly. Duke managed but 169
total yards in a 45-14 loss to
Connecticut, but that looked
like an old Oklahoma wishbone
juggernaut performance compared
to what Virginia managed in the
23-3 loss to Wyoming. The
Cavaliers were able to muster
but 110 yards in the loss, the
team’s lowest total since 1980.
UVA had just over 19 minutes of
possession, had five first downs
and only seven yards rushing. As
the old cliché goes,
“Something’s got to give.”
Why Duke Might Win: The
Blue Devils have lost 20 in a
row, and has only beaten one FBS
team in their last 31 games, but
they have a shot if the defense,
which played well enough in the
first three quarters of the game
against Connecticut, can pitch
60 minutes against the
Cavaliers. Given UVA’s offensive
woes, that’s a distinct
possibility. Linebacker Vincent
Rey is the who can quickly
kickstart the D and the one who
needs to be the main man against
the run after making 17 tackles
in his first ever start.
Why Virginia Might Win:
The Blue Devils went on an
80-yard touchdown drive on their
first possession against UConn,
and managed 89 yards the rest of
the way. They’re not likely to
put 50 on the board. For the
Virginia offense, they are
sticking with starter Jameel
Sewell this Saturday even after
putting in Peter Lalich to try
to get things going. Sewell
completed just 11-of-23 passes
for 87 yards, but he was strong
at the end of last year and has
the talent to carry the game by
himself. What he needs is some
consistency, and to get the ball
more to freshman Staton Jobe,
who averaged 13.5 yards on his
two catches against the Cowboys.
The Virginia defense may have
given up 471 total yards to
Wyoming, but that’s what happens
when the offense leaves you on
the field all day. This is a
better unit than that, and the
shaky Duke defense gives it a
chance to make up for last
Saturday’s statistical meltdown.
The Cavs will also get a field
position edge thanks to Duke’s
shaky punting game. The Blue
Devils punted seven times last
week, with the longest a
35-yarder.
Whom to Watch:
Sewell is a run-pass type who
led the team in rushing and
throwing yardage in ’06 and has
the potential to be a
spread-attack monster. What he
must do against Duke is resist
the temptation to do everything
himself and trust his ground
game. When he does throw, he has
to be sharper, since the
Cavaliers do have a bunch of
targets at his disposal. Sewell
is just a sophomore, so his best
days are well ahead of him, but
at 6-3, 219, with a strong arm
and good legs, he can make
plays.
What Will Happen:
At home, the Cavaliers should
get somewhat healthy against the
hapless Blue Devils, who have
problems on both sides of the
ball and lack the depth to hang
tough for four full quarters.
Virginia isn’t exactly a
juggernaut, but it has more
talent than Duke.
CFN Prediction:
Virginia 28 ...
Duke
16
... Line: Virginia -16
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2
Final Score:
UAB
(0-1)
at Florida State
(0-1) 5:00 PM
ESPNU
Why to Watch:
This one can be instructional if
only to see whether FSU can
rebound after a lousy outing, at
least for around three quarters,
in the 24-18 Bowden Bowl loss to
Clemson. The ‘Noles fell into a
24-3 halftime hole, and though
they fought back late, they
couldn’t get all the way out.
Most disconcerting were the
myriad errors made on both sides
of the ball. Mental mistakes,
lack of discipline, dropped
passes and missed tackles all
contributed to the shaky debut.
As for UAB, its fans are
wondering what in the world
happened at Michigan State, even
though this is supposed to be a
rebuilding year in every way.
Early in the second quarter, the
Spartans held a 35-0 lead and
were on their way to a laugher.
New coach Neil Callaway could
use a breather, and he isn’t
going to get it with a visit to
Tallahassee against a mad team.
Why UAB Might Win: The
only hope to keep this close is
if FSU is a bit cashed after a
short week. The Blazers looked
awful against Michigan State,
and it will take a dramatic
turnaround to hang in. Some good
news came from quarterback Sam
Hunt, who threw for 214 yards
and a score, but the UAB ground
attack must improve, after
managing just 13 yards on 25
carries. That was bad, but so
were the 298 yards and five TDs
amassed by the Spartans against
the Blazers. FSU’s front
offensive wall is shaky, so UAB
has a chance to get better
against the run.
Why Florida State Might Win:
There’s no possible way the
Seminoles can be as inept as
they were against Clemson, is
there? The first half alone was
a disgrace: 62 yards of total
offense, eight punts and no
success in nine third-down
conversion attempts. Blame part
of it on nerves, since the team
was clearly tight playing in
coordinator Jimbo Fisher’s new
attack. You can credit an
offensive line that had a true
freshman, redshirt frosh and
sophomore among its starters.
But FSU wasn’t buttoned down on
either side of the ball, and you
can’t blame youth on captains
De’Cody Fagg and Greg Carr, each
of whom dropped two passes that
would have been first-down
conversions. So, FSU will be
looser and more focused, and the
defense that missed so many
tackles will be more
disciplined. That’s why UAB is
the perfect opponent. The
Blazers look to be extremely
overmatched, something which
should give the Seminoles
confidence. Even though QB Drew
Weatherford wasn’t spectacular
(17-of-34, 142 yards), he did
complete 10-of-18 after
intermission for 114 yards and
two scores. And the defense that
looked rotten in the first half,
pitched a shutout and allowed
just 82 total yards in the
second.
Who to Watch: It’s all
about Fisher, who was advertised
as the man who would fix the FSU
offense. There is still time for
that to happen, but he had
better make sure this team
doesn’t have the same mental
lapses it did against Clemson.
Players lined up in the wrong
spots. Assignments were missed.
Passes were dropped. Fisher
brings a new creativity to the
offense, but he had better make
sure there is sufficient
discipline, too, because the
‘Noles don’t have the pure
talent on that side of the ball
to overcome mistakes.
What Will Happen: It’s
all about Florida State’s mood.
If it comes out focused and
fired up, it’ll roll with ease.
More than likely, this will be a
workmanlike performance by
Florida State with a few big
plays sprinkled in here and
there to get the Nole fans happy
for a little while.
CFN Prediction:
Florida
State 45 ... UAB 10
... Line: FSU -34
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 1.5
Final Score:
ACC Fearless Predictions, Week
Two, Part 2
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