ACC Football Review: How Cal’s Conference Opponents Fared This Week

This week’s ACC results suggest things are lining up nicely for Cal’s chances to do well in conference play.

Cal (3-0) does not play four of what appear to be the five best teams in the ACC, as Miami, Georgia Tech, Florida State and Clemson are not on the Bears’ schedule. It leaves Louisville as the only presumed title contender Cal must face, and we don’t know yet whether the Cardinals are any good.

The rest? Well, Virginia Tech fired head coach Brent Pry on Sunday after just three games.

We'll take look at how the eight ACC opponents Cal will face after this Saturday’s nonconference game against San Diego State. We will then wrap things up by explaining how the eight ACC opponents the Bears do not play fared.

How the ACC teams Cal will face fared:

Boston College (1-2, 0-1 ACC)

Boston College hosts Cal on Saturday September 27

Saturday’s result: Stanford 30, Boston College 20

The story: Boston College somehow lost to a Stanford team that some people thought would go 0-12 and was considered the worst Power Four Conference team.

“We were terrible tonight,” Boston College coach Bill O’Brien said.

Indeed.

The Eagles committed three turnovers, one of which was an interception that Stanford returned for a touchdown, another was fumble after Boston College had reached the Stanford 1-yard line and the third was a fumble after the Eagles had reached the Stanford 17-yard line.

Stanford had gained just 19 rushing yards the previous week against BYU, but the Cardinal ran for 223 yards against Boston College.

The Eagles don’t look like much of a threat in the ACC based on Saturday’s showing at Stanford.

Duke (1-2, 0-0 ACC)

Duke comes to Cal on Saturday, October 4

Saturday’s result: Tulane 34, Duke 27

The story: Duke put up some impressive numbers, including 452 yards of total offense, but the final score of this one was close only because Duke scored 11 points in the final three minutes.

Blue Devils quarterback Darian Mensah threw 51 passes as Duke tried to play catch-up after trailing by margins of 24-3 and 34-16.

This was not a pleasant return to Tulane for Mensah, who was a standout quarterback for the Green Wave last season before transferring to Duke. CBS Sports reported that it is believed that Mensah will receive $8 million over the next two season at Duke.

Duke committed five turnovers in last week’s loss to Illinois, and had mishaps that thwarted three field-goal attempts against Tulane.

There is no shame is losing on the road to Tulane (3-0), but the bottom line is that Duke heads into conference play on a two-game losing streak.

North Carolina (2-1, 0-0 ACC)

North Carolina comes to Cal on Friday, October 17

Saturday’s result: North Carolina 41, Richmond 6

The story: The Tar Heels rolled over their FCS opponent as expected on Saturday, and Demon June took advantage of the weak competition to rush for 148 yards on just 14 carries. June leads the ACC in rushing with 400 yards and an 8.3 yards-per-carry average.

But wins over Richmond and Charlotte the past two weeks cannot erase the reputational damage done by the 48-14 loss at home to TCU in the opener. We still wonder whether Bill Belichick can boost the Tar Heels’ football reputation in his first season as a college head coach.

Virginia Tech (0-3, 0-0 ACC)

Virginia Tech hosts Cal on Friday, October 24

Saturday’s result: Old Dominion 45, Virginia Tech 26

The story: The folks in Blacksburg are stunned and angry, and Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry got fired Sunday just three games into the season. Losing to South Carolina and Vanderbilt in the Hokies’ first two games is one thing, but there is no excuse for a lopsided loss at home to Old Dominion, which was picked to finish fifth in its seven-team division in the Sun Belt’s preseason coaches poll.

The Hokies were booed at halftime when Old Dominio took a 28-0 lead into intermission, and things did not improve in the second half, when the Monarchs pushed their lead to 45-13.

Virginia Tech committed three turnovers and allowed Old Dominion to pile up 527 yards of offense.

Virginia (2-1, 0-0 ACC)

Virginia comes to Cal on Saturday, November 1

Saturday’s result: Virginia 55, William & Mary 16

The story: Virginia piled up 700 yards of offense and 30 first downs in a statistics-enriched performance that didn’t prove much. William & Mary is an FCS team that lost to Furman in its opener this season.

Virginia had two players (Harrison Waylee and Noah Vaughn) rush for more than 100 yards apiece on Saturday.

The 35-31 road loss to North Carolina State in the Cavaliers’ second game tells us more about Virginia.

Louisville (2-0, 0-0 ACC)

Louisville hosts Cal on Saturday, November 8

Saturday’s result: Louisville had a bye this week

The story: We don’t know what to make of Louisville because its schedule has offered no challenges so far.

A 14-point win over preseason Sun Belt favorite James Madison should not overlooked completely, but the 51-17 win over FCS school Eastern Kentucky tells us little. This week’s game against Bowling Green may not further our knowledge of this season’s Cardinals either.

Stanford (1-2, 1-0 ACC)

Stanford hosts Cal on Saturday, November 22

Saturday’s result: Stanford 30, Boston College 20

The story: Stanford showed some character in its bounce-back effort following a last-second loss to Hawaii and a lopsided loss to BYU.

Beating Boston College in a game the Eagles all but handed to the Cardinal does not suggest Stanford will finish in the top half of the ACC standings, but gaining 223 yards on the ground against the Eagles gives Stanford something to lean on now.

And it ensured that Stanford will not go winless under interim head coach Frank Reich.

SMU (2-1, 0-0 ACC)

SMU comes to Cal on Saturday, November 29

Saturday’s result: SMU 28, Missouri State 10

The story: Yes, SMU won its game on the road on Saturday, but being involved in a nip-and-tuck game for most of the afternoon against a team picked to finish last in what is considered the worst FBS conference (Conference-USA) is not a sign of a powerhouse team.

The Mustangs were expected to rebound from their overtime home loss to Baylor the previous week and right itself against Missouri State. Instead SMU trailed 10-0 early in the game and held only a 14-10 lead in the closing minutes of the third quarter.

SMU looks nothing like the team that was ranked No. 16 in the preseason AP poll or the team that reached the College Football Playoff last year.

SMU still has a talented quarterback in Kevin Jennings, even though he has thrown an interception in each of the Mustangs’ three games. SMU might get it going as the season goes on, but there is no evidence of it yet.

How the ACC teams Cal won’t face fared:

Georgia Tech (3-0, 1-0 ACC)

Saturday’s result: Georgia Tech 24, Clemson 21

The story: Georgia Tech made itself a conference title contender with its win over Clemson on Aidan Birr’s 55-yard field goal on the final play of the game.

The Yellow Jackets’ Haynes King outplayed Clemson’s Cade Klubnik in the quarterback competition, as King was 20-for-28 for 211 yards through the air and added 103 yards on the ground. Championships in Power Four conferences often go to the team with the best quarterback and King has put his name up for consideration.

Georgia Tech deserves the No. 18 ranking it received in Sunday’s AP poll, and the Yellow Jackets’ favorable ACC schedule the rest of the way could put them in the conference championship game.

Clemson (1-2, 0-1 ACC)

Saturday’s result: Georgia Tech 24, Clemson 21

The story: Certainly a 1-2 record for a team ranked No. 4 in the preseason poll is a disappointment, and Cade Klubnik is not playing like the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick some experts predicted he would be.

But losing to LSU by a touchdown or dropping a three-point decision on the road to Georgia Tech do not suggest Clemson is going in the toilet.

You may recall that Clemson and Klubnik looked horrible in their 34-3 loss to Georgia in last year’s opener before the Tigers and their quarterback got it together and won the ACC title. Don’t be too surprised if Clemson, which is now unranked, climbs back up the top-25 rankings over the next few weeks.

Miami (3-0, 0-0 ACC)

Saturday’s result: Miami 49, South Florida 12

The story: Based on Miami’s impressive victory over then-No. 18 South Florida, the Hurricanes look like the best team in the ACC and Carson Beck (23-for-28, 340 yards, 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions) looks like he might be the best quarterback in the conference.

USF, who had defeated Boise State and Florida in its first two games, was supposed to provide a challenge for the Hurricanes. But Miami surged to a 28-6 halftime lead and cruised to its second victory over a ranked team after upsetting then-No. 6 Notre Dame in its opener.

Miami moved up to No. 4 in the AP poll, and looks like the ACC’s best bet for a berth in the College Football Playoff.

The only hesitation regarding Miami is that it has yet to play a road game.

North Carolina State (3-0, 1-0)

Thursday’s result: North Carolina 34, Wake Forest 24

The story: This game was closer than expected as the Wolfpack had to rally from deficits of 14-0 and 24-14 before beating a team expected to finish at or near the bottom of the ACC.

Quarterback CJ Bailey demonstrated his skill with three touchdown passes, and Hollywood Smothers ran for 164 yards this week after rushing for 140 yards in last week’s victory over Virginia.

What attracted the most attention in that game was the smoke that filled the air when a meat smoker in a food truck malfunctioned.

Florida State (2-0, 0-0)

Saturday’s result: Florida State had a bye this week

The story: Florida State improved its image and moved up three spots in the AP poll to No. 7 without playing a game. That’s because the Seminoles’ convincing 31-17 victory over Alabama looks even better now after Crimson Tide squashed Wisconsin 38-14 on Saturday.

Last week’s win over East Texas A&M, when Florida State scored 77 points and rolled up 729 yards of offense, got some attention too, even if it meant little.

Pitt (2-1, 0-0 ACC)

Saturday’s result: West Virginia 31, Pitt 24 (OT)

The story: Pitt blew a 24-14, fourth-quarter lead against a West Virginia team that is still searching for quarterback. The Mountaineers threated to us five quarterbacks against Pitt and ended up using “only” three as they tried to find an offense.

Pitt quarterback Eli Holstein passed for 303 yards with one touchdown and one interception, but he was sacked six times.

Pitt played most of the game without big-play performer Desmond Reid, who suffered an injury in the first quarter. It’s unclear whether he will be available for Pitt’s next game against Louisville, and if he is absent a significant portion of the Panthers’ offense will be absent.

Syracuse (2-1, 0-0)

Friday’s result: Syracuse 66, Colgate 24

The story: Steve Angeli’s five touchdown passes without an interception and the Orange’s 622 yards of offense are impressive numbers, but doing it against an FCS team that also has losses to Monmouth and Villanova this season don’t tell us much.

Nex week’s road game against Clemson will tell us more.

Wake Forest (2-1, 0-1 ACC)

Thursday result: North Carolina State 34, Wake Forest 24

The story: New Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert turned some heads when his team stayed with North Carolina State on the road. The Wolfpack did not take its first lead until the fourth quarter against a Wake Forest team expected to go nowhere this season.

However, it’s difficult to tell whether the Demon Deacons are better than anticipated or were just lucky on Saturday. They scored one touchdown on a kickoff return to start the game and scored another on an interception returned for a touchdown. They can’t count on that happening every wek.

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