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Duke (3-3) at Vanderbilt (5-2),
3:00 EST
Why to watch: It might
not be an ordinary afternoon
when Duke travels to Nashville
this Saturday. After losing
back-to-back road games to
Mississippi State and Georgia,
Vanderbilt remains one game away
from the bowl eligibility that’s
escaped it for more than a
quarter-century. If the ‘Dores
can secure that magical sixth
win in front of the home crowd,
the celebration just might empty
the stands and topple the goal
posts. Duke has been authoring a
surprise season of its own,
playing markedly better under
first-year head coach. Even
after getting whipped in the
second half by Miami a week ago,
the Blue Devils can get right
back in the postseason chase
with a road upset this weekend.
At some point, they’ll need to
win a game or two they’re not
supposed to in order to bowl for
the first time since 1994.
Why Duke might win: The
Blue Devils need to turn this
into a shootout, the kind of
game Vanderbilt can’t win. The
Commodores have been among the
nation’s most feeble offenses
all year, ranking a sorry 118th
in the country and getting
nothing out of the passing game.
If Duke can jump out to a lead
behind the pitch-and-catch combo
of Thaddeus Lewis to Eron Riley,
Vandy will have a difficult time
mounting a comeback. The Duke D
has been better than expected,
picking off eight passes in the
last four games and getting good
effort from a front seven led by
DE Greg Akinbiyi, DT Vince
Oghobaase, and linebackers
Vincent Rey and Michael
Tauiliili.
Why Vanderbilt might win:
The Commodores are going to shut
down Duke’s primary key to
victory, its passing attack.
Vandy has an outstanding
secondary that features corners
D.J. Moore and Myron Lewis, and
safeties Ryan Hamilton and
Reshard Langford. Moore will
blanket Riley, forcing the Blue
Devils to rely more than they’d
like on the nation’s 90th-ranked
running game and complimentary
receivers, like Raphael
Chestnut. The Commodores are a
disciplined, well-coached team
that doesn’t make penalties and
leads the SEC in sacks.
Who to watch: Moore isn’t
just one of the nation’s
best-kept secrets at cornerback.
He’s also a dynamite special
teams performer, who’ll be
counted on to give Vanderbilt
good field position. He’s No. 7
nationally in punt returns,
making for an interesting match
up with a Duke special teams
unit that’s gotten dramatically
better in Cutcliffe’s first
season in Durham.
What will happen: Get
ready to holler, Vandy fans.
After wrestling teams from the
SEC for four straight weeks, the
Commodores will revel in an
opportunity to face a less
physical opponent. They’ll
control the tempo of the game on
defense, while getting the
necessary production from QB
Mackenzi Adams and RB Jared
Hawkins to pull away in the
second half.
CFN Prediction:
Vanderbilt 27 … Duke 14 …
Line: Vanderbilt -10
Must See Rating: (5 SNL
with Palin – 1 Jose
Canseco: Last Shot) … 2.5
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Virginia (4-3) at Georgia Tech
(6-1),
3:30 EST, ESPNU
Why to watch: Without
much warning, this week’s game
at Bobby Dodd Stadium shapes up
as a pivotal showdown in the
Coastal Division race. Both
schools have just one loss in
league play, and with Virginia
Tech traveling to Tallahassee,
the winner in Atlanta could end
the weekend in sole possession
of first place. The Cavaliers
may be trumping the Yellow
Jackets as the ACC’s biggest
surprise. On life support and
looking for a quarterback after
four games, Virginia has rallied
with consecutive wins over
Maryland, East Carolina, and
North Carolina to move above
.500 and into conference
contention. Just like a year
ago, the team is thriving on
good coaching, solid defense,
and resiliency in tight games.
Georgia Tech is for real in Paul
Johnson’s first season. The
Jackets have won four in-a-row,
including at Clemson on
Saturday. They’re likely to be
getting better as the season
progresses, a harrowing concept
for the rest of the league.
Why Virginia might win:
One thing you can count on from
an Al Groh team is that the
defense will be tough and won’t
make many mistakes. The unit was
very green in September and it
showed, but it’s made a quantum
leap in the last month, stopping
the run and getting after the
passer. Clint Sintim and the
linebackers have been terrific
throughout the recent stretch,
stringing out plays and making
stops behind the line. Georgia
Tech will move the ball on the
ground, but it’s still having
problems scoring when it gets
into the red zone.
Why Georgia Tech might win:
While Virginia’s D has been
good, Georgia Tech’s has been
better. Much better. Dave
Wommack should get strong
Broyles Award consideration for
what he’s doing with this group,
molding it into a top 5 unit in
scoring and total defense. It
all starts up front with linemen
Vance Walker, Darryl Richard,
Michael Johnson, and Derrick
Morgan, who have tormented
opposing blockers all year. The
pressure created from the
defensive line has helped lead
to a dozen picks and the
nation’s No. 6 pass efficiency
defense. At this early stage of
his career, Virginia’s Marc
Verica is a marginal
quarterback, who’ll make more
mistakes than game-changing
plays when faced with constant
heat.
Who to watch: Georgia
Tech QB Josh Nesbitt returned
injury last week, immediately
showing why he’s the cornerstone
of the option in Atlanta. He was
sharp in his first game back,
throwing a touchdown pass to
favorite target Demaryius
Thomas and rushing for 77 yards
and another score. With that
game behind him, he’ll be even
sharper this weekend, especially
at home.
What will happen: The way
Georgia Tech is running the ball
and playing defense, it’s going
to be tough to beat the rest of
the season. As well as Virginia
is playing, it simply doesn’t
have enough playmakers on
offense to deliver the upset. In
another tough brawl, the Jackets
will get two scores from RB
Jonathan Dwyer and one from
Nesbitt to take over first place
in the division. .
CFN Prediction: Georgia
Tech 21 … Virginia 10 … Line:
Georgia Tech -12.5
Must See Rating: (5 SNL
with Palin – 1 Jose
Canseco: Last Shot) … 3.5
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Consultants FREE selections
North Carolina State (2-5) at
Maryland (5-2),
3:30 EST, ESPN360
Why to watch: Try to make
sense of Maryland at your own
peril. Nothing about this
program has made much sense this
year. The same team that lost to
Middle Tennessee State and was
swamped by Virginia has also
beaten Cal, Clemson, and Wake
Forest when all three were
ranked. Saturday’s 26-0
suffocation of the Demon Deacons
pulled the Terrapins into a
first place tie in the Atlantic
Division and was a microcosm of
their unpredictability. Now that
the Terps have shown they can
engineer upsets, they’ve got to
prove they can win when it’s
expected. North Carolina State
must be feeling a little left
out these days. Although it did
beat East Carolina when the
Pirates were ranked, the
Wolfpack is the league’s only
team without a conference
victory. State has battled
through injuries for much of the
year, and gave scares to Boston
College and Florida State in
recent weeks before fading down
the stretch.
Why North Carolina State
might win: The Wolfpack has
been playing better of late, and
depending on which Maryland team
shows up, the Terps are always
vulnerable. Heck, a Sun Belt
team nailed them in September.
The N.C. State defense was
noticeably tougher with DT
Alan-Michael Cash and LB Nate
Irving off injured reserve,
although Irving was unable to
finish the game. Maryland has
averaged just 15 points over the
last three weeks, and doesn’t
get enough production from QB
Chris Turner to intimidate
opposing defensive backs. If
Jamelle Eugene and Andre Brown
can keep the chains moving on
the ground, Maryland is capable
of tightening up in the second
half of a close game.
Why Maryland might win:
Raleigh is home to the worst
offense in the ACC. North
Carolina State has been held to
10 or fewer points three times,
and is averaging just 284 yards
a game, which won’t cut it on
the road versus the Terrapins.
Maryland RB Da’Rel Scott is
healthy again, and pining for a
shot at the league’s most
generous run defense. The
behemoth Terp line will blow the
Pack off the ball, creating
space for Scott and Davin
Meggett to repeatedly get to the
second level.
Who to watch: Whether
he’s taking a handoff or
catching a pass, Maryland WR
Darrius Heyward-Bey is always a
threat to bring the crowd to its
feet. Although Terrapin
quarterbacks don’t always do a
great job of getting him the
ball, he is coming off a
career-high 11 catches for 101
yards and a touchdown versus
Wake Forest. If at any time
State loses track of where No. 8
is on the field, it’s already
too late.
What will happen: Is
Maryland capable of blowing this
game? You bet. If the Terps get
sloppy or lazy, they’ll get
plucked by a Wolfpack team still
playing with a lot of fight. The
more likely scenario has them
surviving at home, where they’ve
yet to lose in 2008, behind
Scott’s first 100-yard day since
Week 2. .
CFN Prediction: Maryland
28 … NC State 16 … Line:
Maryland -11.5
Must See Rating: (5 SNL
with Palin – 1 Jose
Canseco: Last Shot) … 2.5
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Consultants FREE selections
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ACC Predictions, Oct.
25, Part 1 |