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.
Clemson at Miami
Game Recap: Clemson shut out Miami 58-0, handing the Hurricanes their worst loss in school history and the third largest shutout ever for an ACC in-conference game. Clemson dominated this game on the ground as 10 different players contributed to rushing for 416 total yards. Miami absolutely could not move the ball between either quarterback that tried in this game, amassing only 6 first downs compared to Clemson’s 33.
Key Players: Deshaun Watson was very quiet in this game as he really wasn’t needed since Clemson was rushing the ball so well. Watson did pass for 143 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 98 yards and a touchdown. Lead back Wayne Gallman rushed 22 times for 118 yards and a touchdown.
Miami’s offense had a very rough day with only 146 total yards and 3 turnovers. Quarterback Brad Kaaya left in the 2nd quarter after a blow to the head, and backup Malik Rosier came in to complete only 7 of his 22 at tempts and 2 interceptions. Stacy Coley was heavily targeted 8 times, but he was covered well since he only finished with 54 yards.
Key Injuries: Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya suffered a concussion and is questionable for this week against Duke. Miami receiver Rashawn Scott left the game with an apparent shoulder injury and is also questionable going into Saturday.
Players to Watch: Clemson visits NC State this week. The matchup is definitely a downgrade, as NC State has a top 10 defense on paper. However Clemson is by far the most talented offense NC State has faced, so we would still take a good look at Wayne Gallman, Deshaun Watson, and Artavis Scott.
Miami takes on Duke, another solid defense on paper. Duke only allowed Virginia Tech to score 24 points in regulation last week before an overtime explosion that ran up the scoreboard. We have to expect a bounce back this week, but with an interim coach taking over, it may be tough to predict any success against the Blue Devils.
Florida State at Georgia Tech
Game Recap: “What a time to be alive” were the words to close the call on one of the most stunning finishes of the season as Georgia Tech pulled off the huge upset 22-16 over Florida State. Tied at 16 with seconds left in the game, Florida State lined up to kick the game winning field goal when Georgia Tech blocked the kick. Instead of falling on it to force overtime, sophomore Lance Austin proceeded to return the ball 78 yards to pay-dirt for the win. This kick six-like finish sparked the Yellow Jackets’ first win in 6 weeks as they had dropped their previous 5 games.
Key Players: Dalvin Cook had a statistically down day as he carried 17 times for only 82 yards and a touchdown plus 4 receptions for another 50 yards. While Cook can put up monster numbers, we have now seen twice where he also can be kept at bay for a mere mortal performance. The Florida State passing game was not very explosive at all as Everett Golson only managed 210 yards and no touchdowns. Kermit Whitfield led the team in receiving with 6 catches for 61 yards.
Georgia Tech did not get much going on offense as they only managed 1 touchdown on the day. Quarterback Justin Thomas was the only one remotely near fantasy relevance as he rushed for 88 yards and their only touchdown. With Patrick Skov now sidelined, we saw Marcus Marshall receive the lion’s share of carries with 16, but he could only manage 69 yards.
Key Injuries: Georgia Tech’s Patrick Skov missed the game with an unspecified injury and is questionable to play against Virginia this week.
Players to Watch: Even after seeing him struggle this week, Dalvin Cook will remain on our radar as the Seminoles try to bounce back against Syracuse this week. The Syracuse defense has not been too impressive this year as they rank 94th against the pass, so look for Golson and his trio of receivers in Kermit Whitfield, Jesus Wilson, and Travis Rudolph to be in play depending on who is priced where.
Georgia Tech takes on Virginia. If Skov remains sidelined, Marcus Marshall will represent a decent tournament option as we continue to look for a running back to explode in this offense. Justin Thomas has been subpar all year and is not on our radar for consideration.
Duke at Virginia Tech
Game Recap: This game started with fireworks on offense and certainly ended the very same way as Duke held off Virginia Tech in 4 overtimes 45-43 to remain undefeated in ACC play. The first 3 drives of the game resulted in touchdowns until these talented defenses woke up to take over the following 3 quarters. After Virginia Tech tied it up on a prayer to Bucky Hodges in the end zone, 4 overtimes ensued with the teams nearly doubling their regulation scores before Duke put the game away as Thomas Sirk converted the 2-point play for the win.
Key Players: As you can imagine from 4 overtimes, there were quite a few fantasy relevant players in this game. Starting with Duke, we saw Thomas Sirk put up some monster numbers as he passed for 4 touchdowns and 270 yards while leading the team in rushing with 109 yards from 18 carries. Sirk has dominated the Duke ground game all season, making their running backs all but irrelevant for fantasy consideration. Senior wide receiver Max McCaffrey finished with a season-high 6 receptions for 94 yards and 2 touchdowns, both of which came in the first quarter.
For Virginia Tech, we are beginning to see a very strong emergence of what could be a workhorse back in Travon McMillian. This freshman star has been playing very well lately, rushing for 96 and 99 yards in the 2 games leading up to this one. His carries have steadily increased from 11, 16, and finally 29 in this game against Duke. McMillian finished the day with 142 yards and 2 touchdowns as he doubled the carries of all other backs combined. This usage of McMillian is very encouraging and something we will be watching going forward. Speaking of usage, let’s talk about sophomore tight end Bucky Hodges. Hodges has been on our radar all year, but our chief complaint was lack of red zone targets. Well, that was nowhere near a concern in this game as Hodges exploded for 3 touchdowns and 101 yards on 5 receptions—a career high in both yards and touchdowns. Hodges scored all 3 touchdowns through the air, something we find very encouraging for his prospects going forward. WR1 Isiah Ford finished with a healthy reception total of 9, but for only 67 yards and 0 touchdowns.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: Duke squares off against Miami this week, so if this game makes the primetime slate, we consider Thomas Sirk to be the only relevant option as no other offensive players have proven to be reliable.
Virginia Tech will definitely be challenged this week as they visit Boston College. While Travon McMillian has been very impressive, we can only consider him a tournament option against the nation’s best rushing defense. The rest of this offense also gets a major downgrade as this is a matchup to be avoided.
Pittsburgh at Syracuse
Game Recap: Pittsburgh surprised Syracuse with a gutsy fake punt late in the 4th quarter to set up a game winning field goal as time expired for the 23-20 victory. Syracuse has now lost 4 straight, while Pittsburgh is having one of their best seasons in years as they remain undefeated in ACC play.
Key Players: While wide receiver Tyler Boyd didn’t find the end zone, he definitely made his mark on fantasy scoreboards with 12 receptions for 93 yards. Qadree Ollison was the best value from this offense as he easily paid off his salary with 103 yards and 2 touchdowns.
While we don’t typically give much consideration to the Orange’s offense, we have to call out a few guys that have been performing well as of late. Steve Ishmael led the team in receiving with 7 catches for 114 yards and a touchdown, his best game of the season and 3rd straight game with a touchdown. Syracuse running back Ervin Phillips scored in his 2nd straight game as he finished with 6 receptions for 50 yards. Phillips is used strictly in the passing game as Jordan Fredericks takes on most of the heavy lifting on the ground (finished 12 carries for 91 yards).
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: While we continue to see Tyler Boyd struggle to find the end zone, he is literally all the Panthers have in the passing game as other receivers are banged up. However since Pittsburgh takes on North Carolina’s #2 ranked passing defense this Thursday, we may have to look elsewhere for receiving options unless Boyd is priced down on the small slate. Qadree Ollison looks to a solid option as North Carolina has struggled with the run this season.
Syracuse visits Florida State this week, and outside of a tournament play of Ishmael or Phillips, we will have to avoid the Orange as usual since the Seminoles’ have a very solid defense.
NC State at Wake Forest
Game Recap: The Wolfpack’s day was defined on the big play, scoring 4 touchdowns of 50+ yards each within the first quarter. These 4 touchdowns would be all their offense could muster on the day, but it is all that was needed as Wake Forest could not generate more than 17 points as NC State held on for the 35-17 victory.
Key Players: NC State’s quick start consisted of contributions in both the passing and rushing games. Quarterback Jacoby Grissett put up 2 touchdowns on 270 yards, with the majority of those yards coming in this first quarter. After that, as you would imagine, the rushing game flourished. Matt Dayes led the charge with 205 yards on 16 carries with 2 touchdowns. Dayes busted a couple huge runs touchdowns in the first quarter, one for 85 yards followed by another for 57 yards.
The Wake Forest offense could not muster much in this game as quarterback Kendall Hinton was their only standout player. As starter John Wolford was largely ineffective, Hinton came in and ended with 107 passing yards and 75 rushing yards with 2 touchdowns on the ground. Tight end Cam Serigne was shut down here, catching only 1 ball for 3 yards on the day.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: While NC State exploded for 15 minutes here, we would expect them to have much less luck as they take on the #3 Clemson Tigers this week. Matt Dayes as a tournament option should be your only play to consider here.
Wake Forest takes on Louisville on Friday night, and with the quarterback position up in the air, we will be largely fading them in this contest.
Boston College at Louisville
Game Recap: The Boston College offense was absolutely stifled as Louisville snuck by with the 17-14 victory. With only 2 offensive touchdowns in this game, none of which came through the air, there really was little to neither watch nor talk about from a fantasy perspective.
Key Players: The defenses dominated this game as not a single player put up a fantasy-worthy performance. One interesting note is that even though Lamar Jackson started, he was out-rushed by Reggie Bonnafon. This is a situation we will look to continue avoiding as the year progresses.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: Louisville faces off against Wake Forest in a less than desirable matchup as the Demon Deacons have the 35th ranked defense on paper. We have not seen much from the Louisville offense this season, and while Lamar Jackson is still the starter at quarterback, we still will look to avoid the Cardinals.
As usual with Boston College, we will be avoiding them their offense as they take on Virginia Tech.
Virginia at North Carolina
Game Recap: North Carolina’s defense led them to victory behind 5 takeaways as the Tar Heels topped Virginia 26-13. North Carolina has been lights out in the second half, allowing only 24 points combined against all 5 FBS opponents this season. Virginia had an uncharacteristically productive game on the ground as they outrushed North Carolina, but sloppy quarterback play ultimately limited their offensive upside.
Key Players: North Carolina’s Marquise Williams was not his usually explosive self as this was his first game all season without a touchdown. All 3 touchdowns were scored on the ground, as Elijah Hood punched in a couple of short scores on his way to 101 yards on the day.
Virginia’s Taquan Mizzell had another solid day as he rushed over 100 yards for the first time this season while catching 6 passes on his way to 174 total yards on offense. While he could not find the end zone, these were still very respectable numbers for his salary.
Key Injuries: None
Players to Watch: North Carolina takes on #23 Pittsburgh on Thursday night. The Panthers present a tough matchup for North Carolina as they are only allowing 308 yards per game this season. Marquise Williams will be in play, but his price will need to be down for us to consider him here.
Virginia’s Taquan Mizzell has been Virginia’s only constant on offense—we would not consider anyone else as the Cavaliers face off against Georgia Tech on Saturday.