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Georgia Tech (3-3) at Miami
(4-2)
12:00 ESPN
Why to Watch: It’s too
early to call these two
desperate, but after each lost
last week, the loser of this
game will be out of the ACC race
and on to the wondering over
what went wrong. Georgia Tech is
already out of the hunt at 1-3,
but outside of a date with
Virginia Tech, it’s smooth
sailing until the regular season
finale against Georgia. At least
the Yellow Jackets are losing
tight battles, while Miami
suffered the indignity of
getting pasted by North
Carolina. Both have the
potential to be better, and both
should be in a good position for
a strong bowl bid if they can
cut down on mistakes. For Miami,
four Kyle Wright interceptions
against the Tar Heels were
deadly, while the Yellow
Jackets, who’ve won two in a row
against the Canes, struggled
with a lost fumble and two
missed field goals in the
two-point loss to Maryland.
Why Georgia Tech Might Win:
Tech plays great defense,
leading the nation in tackles
for loss and is second in sacks,
while pressure is the last thing
Wright needs after throwing six
picks in the past two weeks. The
Yellow Jackets can also control
the clock with their strong
ground game, while being able to
rely more and more on QB Taylor
Bennett to open up the passing
game. If it comes down to field
position, Tech has a huge
advantage, leading the nation in
punting, while Miami is 108th
averaging more than ten yards
less.
Why Miami Might Win: The
Hurricane defense is phenomenal
when it plays up to its
capabilities. Again, when it
plays up to its capabilities,
and not like its performance in
the first half against North
Carolina. Javarris James and
Graig Cooper aren’t going to run
wild on the Georgia Tech
defense, but they should be just
effective enough to keep the
chains moving for extended
stretches. It doesn’t happen
often, but the Canes are able to
crank out home runs in spurts.
Considering it’s all about
momentum with this team, the
defense should feed off a few
big scores.
Who to Watch: If you go
back to the final seven games of
the ’06 season, GT running back
Tashard Choice has rushed for at
least 100 yards in 11 straight
contests when he played a full
game. The streak started last
year against the Hurricanes with
a 107-yard, one score
performance, and he’ll need to
hit the century mark again this
week for the Yellow Jackets to
have any shot at pulling off the
road upset.
What Will Happen: The
Hurricanes were a mess early
against UNC but rallied and just
barely missed pulling off the
comeback. Even in the loss, the
offense sparked up enough to
carry over just enough this week
to come up with the win.
CFN Prediction:
Miami
27 ... Georgia Tech 23
..
Line: Miami -2.5
Must See Rating: (5 Hideki
Matsui's "collection" - 1 The
Heartbreak Kid) ... 3
South Carolina (5-1) at North Carolina (2-4)
3:30 PM ET ABC
Why to watch: In a strange
midseason non-conference matchup between
two teams that haven't faced each other
since 1991 (a 21-17 North Carolina win),
each is coming in on a positive note.
The Tar Heels won their first D-I (fine,
FCS) game of the year with a stunning
33-27 win over Miami, while the
Gamecocks have won two straight to be
3-1 in SEC play. While South Carolina
hasn't consistent, it gets something to
work right in every game to get the win.
In a 38-23 win over Kentucky, it was the
defense that came through with several
big plays and two fumble returns for
scores. Against Mississippi State, it
was the passing game. Against Georgia,
it was the bend-but-not-break D. North
Carolina finally got the offense
working, at least for a half, against
Miami, and with only two home games
left, and only one home date in a
four-game stretch after this, a win here
is a must.
Why South Carolina might win: The
first half against Miami wasn't the norm
for the Tar Heel offense. It showed off
a little bit of speed and explosion, but
the attack doesn't have enough of a
running game to establish anything from
the start, while the passing game
doesn't get enough deep balls to loosen
things up. UNC is efficient throwing the
ball, but against the nation's number
one pass defense, it's not going to be
able to stretch the defense and keep
things moving. The Tar Heel offensive
line isn't going to be able to get much
of a push against the USC defensive
front.
Why North Carolina might win:
It's not like the Gamecock offense is
cranking out yards in bunches. It's
starting to run the ball better, and
Chris Smelley is growing into a improved
passer, but everything feeds off the
defense. The Tar Heels have to limit the
turnovers, which isn't a given, and let
the special teams shine, thanks to
Terrence Brown and the punting game.
Brown is averaging 43 yards per kick,
while the team is 19th in the nation in
net punting. Winning the field position
battle is a must.
Who to watch: If nothing else,
North Carolina freshman T.J. Yates is
getting his early experience against the
best. He threw three touchdown passes in
each of his first three games, and
hasn't thrown one over the last three,
but he's had to face South Florida,
Virginia Tech, and Miami. As if that
wasn't a tough enough trip of defense,
now he gets South Carolina, and while
he's not going to throw for 300 yards,
he can't throw an interception and has
to hit at least one early deep throw.
Until he does, USC will load up against
the short to midrange passes he's thrown
so far.
What will happen: It'll be
typical South Carolina football. It
won't be a thing of beauty, but the
defense will keep the UNC offense under
wraps, while the offense will run the
ball well in an efficient win.
CFN Prediction:
South
Carolina
31 ... North Carolina 20 ...
Line: South Carolina -6.5
Must See Rating: (5 Hideki
Matsui's "collection" - 1 The
Heartbreak Kid) ... 2.5
Connecticut (5-0) at Virginia
(5-1)
3:30 EST ESPNU
Why to watch: One of
these two upstarts is going to
become bowl eligible way earlier
than anyone could have imagined
before the season began. In
fact, neither Connecticut nor
Virginia was considered a lock
to even win six games this year,
a testament to how both schools
have been bucking the forecasts
so far in 2007. While the
Huskies have mostly fattened up
on a weak schedule, their last
two wins over Pittsburgh and
Akron were never in doubt. With
a brutal second half to come,
they’d really like to pocket win
No. 6 now, rather than sweating
it out in November. During
Virginia’s current five-game
winning streak, it’s won three
games by five points or else,
including last week’s 23-21
stress-fest over Middle
Tennessee. The cardiac Cavs are
atop the ACC Coastal at 3-0 and
finding ways to win toss-ups,
signs that Al Groh’s young team
is maturing on the fly. One of
these two schools is living a
lie that’ll be exposed by early
Saturday evening.
Why Connecticut might win:
Virginia’s issues on offense
this season are not going to get
solved against a Husky defense
that’s No. 4 nationally in both
scoring and total defense. Led
by junior bookends Julius
Williams and Cody Brown, and LB
Danny Lansanah, Connecticut
creates plenty of pressure and
turnovers while allowing just 89
yards a game on the ground. If
the Cavaliers have any problems
running the ball without injured
workhorse Cedric Peerman,
they’ll labor to move the chains
with inconsistent QB Jameel
Sewell and the nation’s
102nd-ranked passing attack.
The recent emergence of Andre
Dixon to go along with Donald
Brown gives the Huskies two very
capable backs to rotate in and
out of the lineup.
Why Virginia might win:
The Cavaliers defense has been
exceptional so far this season,
bending at times, but rarely
breaking. It’s allowing just
under 100 yards a game on the
ground since the opener, while
relying on talented ends Chris
Long and Jeffrey Fitzgerald to
generate constant havoc on
opposing quarterbacks. Virginia
can slow down the Connecticut
running game, putting the onus
on Tyler Lorenzen and an iffy
passing game to make plays on
third-and-long.
Who to watch: Whoever
runs the ball better in this
game wins. Period. With
leading rusher Peerman out with
a knee injury, it’s up to
redshirt freshman Keith Payne
and converted receiver Andrew
Pearman to spark the Virginia
ground game this week. The
aptly-named Payne is a 6-3,
235-pound thumper with the
potential to be a terrific
between-the-tackles back in the
ACC.
What will happen: With
Virginia and Connecticut in the
same building, do not expect a
thing of beauty, or much offense
this Saturday. While the
Cavaliers have played in a
number of tight games, the
Huskies have not. That
experience, along with
home-field advantage, will be
enough to eke out another
nail-biter in Charlottesville.
CFN Prediction:
Virginia
23 … Connecticut 19...
Line: Virginia -3.5
Must See Rating: (5
Hideki Matsui's "collection" - 1
The Heartbreak Kid)
... 3
ACC Week
7 Predictions, Part 1 |