Here is a game-by-game recap of each team in the ACC conference to catch you up from last weekend’s action, including Key Players, Injuries, and Players to Watch.
Florida State at Clemson
Game Recap: Clemson remains undefeated as they handed Florida State their 2nd loss of the year winning 23-13. This was a low scoring game for both teams, particularly Florida State as it is tied for the lowest point total under coach Jimbo Fisher’s tenure. The Clemson defense limited Florida State to only 2 of 12 on third down with only 1 offensive touchdown in total coming from Dalvin Cook’s 75-yard scamper to start the game.
Key Players: Deshaun Watson had another nice game as he threw for 297 yards and a touchdown while leading the team in rushing with 107 yards on 16 carries. Considering his salary, these numbers were merely OK and left you hoping for a lot more out of him. The lack of touchdowns really hurt his value, but this was relatively expected against the Florida State defense. Wayne Gallman had a decent game, barely breaking the 100-yard mark and grabbing a late touchdown to ice the game. He also added 3 receptions for 32 yards, his highest receiving total of the season. Tight end Jordan Leggett had a huge day as he led the team in receiving with 6 receptions for 101 yards. This was Leggett’s first game over 100 yards as he now has 23 total receptions for 305 yards and 6 touchdowns on the season.
For Florida State, there is not much to mention outside of Dalvin Cook as they only managed 13 points on the day. Cook busted a couple of huge plays for his first couple of carries as he finished the day with 194 yards and a touchdown. Cook’s 194 rushing yards was the most by a Florida State player in a losing effort in their school’s history. The Seminoles’ passing attack could not get going as backup Sean Maguire barely managed to complete 50% of his passes for 164 yards and 1 interception.
Key Injuries: Florida State quarterback Everett Golson missed this game again, but is now listed as probable to return this week against NC State. Dalvin Cook looked fine as he returned from a nagging ankle injury.
Players to Watch: Clemson moves on to a relatively weak schedule to close out the season, facing Syracuse in their next contest. Syracuse is allowing 438 yards per game, the 101st worst in football. Clemson should be heavily favorited, so we will look for Wayne Gallman to get plenty of work while Watson remains on the radar depending on his price. Tight end Jordan Leggett is in consideration, while receiver Artavis Scott continues to lead the team in receptions on a weekly basis and will be a cheaper option for you.
Florida State will face NC State, and based on what we have seen out of them lately, Dalvin Cook will be your primary target for fantasy purposes. You may get Golson at a discount as he has been out, so keep an eye on his salary.
Duke at North Carolina
Game Recap: It’s not often that we see an ACC divisional game with over 1200 yards and 97 points of offense, but that was the story here as North Carolina absolutely rolled over Duke 66-31. The 60+ points scored by North Carolina is the most in program history in a single game against Duke. What is even more impressive is the fact that Duke’s defense had been solid all season up until here.
Key Players: Tar Heel Quarterback Marquise Williams was the standout player of this game as he posted a monster stat line of 494 passing yards and 4 passing touchdowns while adding 30 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Williams characteristically spread the ball around with 12 different player catching a pass and all 4 touchdown passes going to different receivers. He was chucking the ball downfield all day as 5 different receivers had pass plays of 49 or more yards, with the longest being an 89-yard touchdown bomb to Ryan Switzer to start the game. This is now the second week in a row in which Switzer hauled in a long ball for the touchdown and over 100 total yards. With Williams having accumulated 404 of his passing yards in the first half alone, we saw running back Elijah Hood get some opportunities as he led the team with 17 carries for 69 yards and 3 touchdowns.
The Duke offense did not exactly struggle here, they just really could not keep up with the fast paced Tar Heels attack. Quarterback Thomas Sirk had a decent statistical day due to his rushing success, finishing with 2 touchdowns and 74 yards on the ground with 191 passing yards and 2 interceptions. Duke’s offense ran all over the Tar Heels to the tune of 327 total rushing yards, with Jela Duncan leading the charge as he finished with 115 yards and a touchdown on only 13 carries. Shaquille Powell also had solid numbers averaging 7.5 yards per carry with 98 yards on his 13 carries.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: North Carolina will take on Miami at home this week, and we look for Marquise Williams to be one of the highest priced quarterbacks on the board. You have to have an eye on Switzer as a GPP play as well after how we’ve seen him used in recent games.
Duke will face Pittsburgh this week. Thomas Sirk may have more success in the passing game after what we saw from Pittsburgh’s pass defense this past week, but he still remains a relatively mediocre play. Jela Duncan could be a cheap tournament option for Duke, but he splits carries with Shaquille Powell who is used more often in the passing game.
Notre Dame at Pittsburgh
Game Recap: The Pittsburgh offense simply could not keep up as they fell to #5 Notre Dame 30-42. Notre Dame only outgained Pittsburgh by 39 total yards and had 4 more first downs, but the big plays ultimately were what the Panthers lacked as Notre Dame scored on 5 passing touchdowns by quarterback DeShone Kizer.
Key Players: Other than Tyler Boyd, nobody really stood out on the Pittsburgh offense. Boyd continued his campaign of mediocrity as he finished with 84 rushing yards and a touchdown from only 3 receptions. This was his season-low in receptions, but the rare touchdown made up for it in terms of fantasy points. Boyd also added 42 rushing yards on 3 carries which helped inflate his day.
Key Injuries: While not related to Pittsburgh, Notre Dame’s lead running back CJ Prosise left with what looks to be a concussion and is questionable for this week against Wake Forest.
Players to Watch: Pittsburgh will travel to Duke in what should be a low scoring affair. Despite seeing Duke get absolutely smashed by the Tar Heels this past weekend, we still will not be expecting high upside from the Pittsburgh offense. Tyler Boyd will be your only play to consider here.
Virginia at Miami
Game Recap: Miami held off a late charge by Virginia to secure the 27-21 victory. On paper, Virginia actually had the edge in this game as they won the time of possession battle while gaining 6 more first downs and nearly equal total yardage. If not for a late offensive pass interference that nullified a Virginia touchdown, we could be telling a different story here.
Key Players: Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya returned from injury to put up a very solid in-game performance, but lacking fantasy numbers with only 286 passing yards and 2 touchdowns plus 1 interception. Stacy Coley was his favorite target by far, amassing 7 receptions for 132 yards and a touchdown. This was a very nice fantasy game considering Coley’s affordable price if this game was on your slate. The Miami rushing game could not get going as they averaged only 4.3 yards per carry with 1 touchdown from Mark Walton.
Virginia’s only player of note was again running back Taquan Mizzell, who continues to put up noteworthy fantasy performances from his usage in the passing game. Mizzell finished with a team-high 8 receptions for 40 yards in addition to 91 rushing yards from 18 attempts. Over his last 4 games, Mizzell has at least 5 catches for 30+ yards in each while rushing. He also is averaging over 17 carries and 85 rushing yards per game, but has only scored in one game during that stretch.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: The Hurricanes take on North Carolina next week. While the rushing game is not their strong suit, we saw Duke run all over North Carolina’s defense—so look for Joseph Yearby to find more room here. Stacy Coley should be an attractive option as well, while Rashawn Scott may be underpriced but still has upside as a top option in their passing attack.
Virginia’s only option worth considering remains to be Taquan Mizzell. Regardless of matchup, he should be considered a safe cash game play depending on his salary.
Syracuse at Louisville
Game Recap: Louisville played well on both sides of the ball as they amassed over twice as many yards and 10 more first downs than Syracuse on their way to the 41-17 victory. This was a sloppy game as the teams combined for 7 turnovers, but despite Syracuse’s defense forcing 4 of those 7, the Orange’s offense simply could not make the plays it needed.
Key Players: Louisville’s Kyle Bolin started in place of Lamar Jackson (concussion) and had one heck of a day as he passed for 362 yards and 3 touchdowns with 1 interception. The Louisville rushing game was on fire as well with 3 players averaging over 5 yards per carry, the most productive of which was Brandon Radcliff. Despite only carrying 10 times, he ended the day with 117 total yards---that is 11.7 yards per carry. While it was concerning for him to not get the majority of carries, he was wildly productive as the Louisville offensive line just dominated Syracuse. Tight end Cole Hikutini caught his first 2 touchdowns of the year in what was an outlier of a game for him.
There were no stand-out performances from the Orange. WR1 Steve Ishmael had a paltry 4 receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown that helped his stat line, but that is about it.
Key Injuries: Lamar Jackson is not listed on the injury report, so for all intents and purposes we would expect him to play this week.
Players to Watch: Louisville will square off against Virginia in a game that we would not expect to make many DFS slates.
Syracuse faces Clemson in what should be a blowout—avoid the Orange here.
NC State at Boston College
Game Recap: NC State shut out Boston College through the first 58 minutes of this game as the Wolfpack earned a 24-8 victory. The game started with some fireworks as NC State completed an 83-yard touchdown play with not much offense at all after that.
Key Players: NC State did not have a single player over 35 rushing yards as they limped along without starter Matt Dayes who is lost for the year. There were no standout performances in this game.
Boston College was held to only 28 yards rushing while their quarterback turned it over 3 times. They only scored once here, and we wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if that is their last touchdown of the year
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: NC State visits Florida State, and without Matt Dayes, it is tough to expect much out of their offense.
The Boston College offense is to be avoided regardless of matchup.
