2007 Around the ACC: Week 1

Week 1 of college football is in the books. Well, almost. We’ve still got
the Bowden Bowl coming up tonight that will help shake out the Atlantic
Division. The other 10 ACC teams played on Saturday, and the results were mixed.
Some performed well, and others showed why the ACC is considered one of the
worst BCS conference. This is the first of our weekly team-by-team look around
the ACC.

Current Standings

ATLANTIC DIVISION
School Conference Overall
Boston College 1-0 1-0
Maryland 0-0 1-0
Clemson 0-0 0-0
Florida State 0-0 0-0
NC State 0-0 0-1
Wake Forest 0-1 0-1
COASTAL DIVISION
School Conference Overall
Georgia Tech 0-0 1-0
Miami 0-0 1-0
North Carolina 0-0 1-0
Virginia Tech 0-0 1-0
Duke 0-0 0-1
Virginia 0-0 0-1


Boston College (1-0, 1-0)

Boston College defeated Wake Forest 38-28 in Chestnut Hill. Matt Ryan showed
why he is regarded as the ACC’s top quarterback by completing 32-of-52 passes
for 408 yards, with five touchdowns and two interceptions. BC didn’t do much
on the ground, rushing for just 54 yards. Pass defense is a concern, as the
Eagles gave up 368 yards in the air, but they shut down Wake’s running game.
The Demon Deacons had just two yards rushing on 24 attempts!

Boston College is off to a 1-0 start in the ACC, which gives them a leg up in
the Atlantic Division.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Matt Ryan. 32-of-52, 408 yards, 5
    touchdowns, 2 interceptions.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: DeJuan Tribble. 7 tackles, 1 tackle for
    loss, 3 interceptions.

Up Next: NC State in Chestnut Hill


Duke (0-1, 0-0)

The Blue Devils led 14-11 at halftime and promptly got outscored 34-0 in the
second half to lose to UConn 45-14. The Duke secondary was ripped for 298 yards
through the air, while they also allowed 189 yards on the ground. The Blue Devil
offense could muster just 169 yards of total offense.

Not much more you can say about that one. Duke is Duke.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Jabari Marshall, 94 yard kickoff return for
    a touchdown.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Vincent Rey. 17 tackles, 1.5 tackles for
    loss, 1.5 sacks.

Up Next: Virginia in Charlottesville


Georgia Tech (1-0, 0-0)

Georgia Tech was the most impressive ACC team of the weekend, dominating
Notre Dame in South Bend 33-3. Their offensive line was dominant, as expected.
Tailback Tashard Choice had 26 carries for 196 yards and was not tackled in the
backfield a single time. Quarterback Taylor Bennett was sacked just once.

Defensively, Georgia Tech’s vaunted defense racked up nine sacks and
allowed just 122 yards of total offense, including -8 on the ground. The Yellow
Jackets could possibly be the team to beat in the ACC Coastal Division.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Tashard Choice. 26 carries, 196 yards, 2
    touchdowns, 3 catches for 22 yards.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Darrell Robertson. 6 tackles, 3 tackles for
    loss, 1.5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery.

Up Next: Samford in Atlanta


Maryland (1-0, 0-0)

Maryland defeated 1-AA Villanova in College Park in their season opener. The
Terps were solid on both sides of the ball. Offensively, they were balanced with
221 yards rushing and 207 passing. Jordan Steffy was 19-of-24 for 174 yards and
an interception. Keon Lattimore and Lance Ball dominated the game on the ground.
Defensively Maryland allowed just 187 total yards.

Overall, a good start for the Terps, although it was against a 1-AA opponent.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Keon Lattimore. 21 carries, 106 yards, 3
    touchdowns, 6 catches for 33 yards.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Dre Moore. 3 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 2
    sacks.

Up Next: Florida International in Miami


Miami (1-0, 0-0)

The Hurricanes whipped overmatched Marshall 31-3 in Coral Gables on Saturday.
Miami dominated the game on the ground. Freshman tailback Graig Cooper had 116
yards on just 12 carries, while Javarris James had 14 carries for 99 yards. The
running game appears to have improved some.

However, the passing game left a lot to be desired. Quarterback Kirby Freeman
was just 9-of-21 for 81 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. If Miami
is one dimensional against Oklahoma next week, they’ll have a long afternoon.
Defensively, Miami held Marshall to 234 yards and intercepted four passes.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Graig Cooper. 12 carries, 116 yards.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Calais Campbell. 5 tackles, 1.5 tackles for
    loss, 1 interception, 1 pass deflected.

Up Next: Oklahoma in Norman


North Carolina (1-0, 0-0)

The Butch Davis era got off to a good start on Saturday, as UNC defeated 1-AA
James Madison 37-14. The Tar Heels led 24-0 in the second quarter
and never looked back. Offensively, UNC looked much improved throwing the ball
with r-freshman quarterback T.J. Yates at the helm. The running game left a lot
to be desired, gaining just 100 yards and averaging 2.9 yards per carry.

Defensively, 250 yards of total offense sounds good, but there is still work
to be done. The Tar Heels gave up 150 yards on the ground. Two JMU running backs
gained at least 71 yards on the ground.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: T.J. Yates. 13-of-18, 218 yards, 3
    touchdowns, 1 interception.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Durell Mapp. 9 total tackles, 8 of them solo

Up Next: East Carolina in Greenville


NC State (0-1, 0-0)

The Tom O’Brien era at NC State did not open quite as well as Davis’ did
at Chapel Hill. The Wolfpack fell behind Central Florida 25-3 at halftime, and
ultimately lost 25-23. They did manage 357 yards of total offense, but just 85
yards came on the ground. Tailback Toney Baker was lost for the season with a
knee injury, a devastating loss for the Wolfpack.

Defensively, NC State was stout against the pass, allowing just 93 yards.
However, UCF tailback Kevin Smith gashed them for 217 yards rushing on 35
carries and ran for three touchdowns. The Wolfpack used two quarterbacks,
Harrison Beck and Daniel Evans. Beck will likely be the starter for the
remainder of the season after nearly leading the Wolfpack back in the second
half.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Harrison Beck, 17-of-28, 207 yards, 2
    touchdowns, 1 interception.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Ernest Jones. 12 tackles, 1 tackle for loss,
    1 pass broken up.

Up Next: Boston College in Chestnut Hill


Virginia (0-1, 0-0)

Virginia continued their road woes on Saturday, losing 23-3 to Wyoming on
Saturday. They didn’t just lose, they got dominated. The Hoos managed just
110 yards of total offense, while allowing Wyoming to rack up 471 yards. The
game could have been worse. Wyoming missed a 37 yard field goal, threw an
interception at the UVA 36, and fumbled inside the UVA 10 yard line.

UVA managed just seven yards rushing as a team, while Cowboy running back
Devin Moore rumbled for 125 yards on 18 carries. The other Wyoming tailback,
Wynel Seldon, added 74 yards on the ground. UVa quarterback Jameel Sewell had a bad game, going
11-of-23 for 87 yards, with two interceptions. Coach Al Groh inserted true
freshman Peter Lalich into the game with less than five minutes to go and
Wyoming up 23-3, burning Lalich’s redshirt.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Nobody
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Chris Long. 6 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1
    sack.

Up Next: Duke in Charlottesville


Virginia Tech (1-0, 0-0)

Virginia Tech didn’t play particularly well, but managed to defeat a
well-coached East Carolina team 17-7 in Blacksburg. The story of the game was
Tech’s running game, or lack thereof. As a team, the Hokies had just 33 yards
on 31 carries. Branden Ore was limited to 70 yards on 23 carries.

Sean Glennon was 22-of-33 for 245 yards, with one touchdown and one
interception. Sam Wheeler had seven catches for 81 yards and a touchdown, and
Justin Harper had five catches for 64 yards. Defensively, Macho Harris had a
great game with two passes broken up and an interception returned for a
touchdown.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Sam Wheeler. 7 receptions for 81 yards and a
    touchdown.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Macho Harris. 2 tackles, 1 interception
    returned for a touchdown, 2 passes defended.

Up Next: LSU in Baton Rouge


Wake Forest (0-1, 0-1)

Wake Forest not only lost to Boston College, but they also lost starting
quarterback Riley Skinner to a separated shoulder. Wake threw the ball well,
with 366 yards as a team, but managed just two yards on the ground. Backup
quarterback Brett Hodges was 17-of-23 for 130 yards, with one touchdown and one
interception.

The Wake defense shut down BC’s running game, but they had no answer for
Matt Ryan, who threw for 408 yards. It appears that the secondary is still the
weak spot on Wake’s defense. However, there aren’t that many good
quarterbacks in the ACC, so if you’re going to have a weakness on defense, the
secondary is as good a place as any.

  • Offensive Player of the Game: Kenneth Moore. 15 catches, 126 yards, 1
    touchdown.
  • Defensive Player of the Game: Jeremy Thompson. 6 tackles, 2 tackles for
    loss, 2 sacks.

Up Next: Nebraska in Winston-Salem

Tonight

Tonight on ESPN, Florida State travels to Clemson to take on the Tigers in a
game that will continue to shake up the Atlantic Division. The winner of tonight’s
game will join Boston College at the top of the Atlantic standings, and those
two teams will have the best chance to represent their division in the ACC
Championship Game.