Things to watch this weekend in the Atlantic Coast Conference:
No. 11 Wake Forest (8-1, 5-1 ACC, No. 13 CFP) at No. 25 SMU (7-2, 5-2), Saturday, noon ET (ESPN)
The Demon Deacons can take a huge step toward
claiming a spot in the last ACC championship game with a win, as well as staying in the chase for a College Football Playoff berth. They need a healthy Gio Lopez after the quarterback got banged up in the win against Virginia and missing last week's 77-0 romp against Merrimack. Coach Jake Dickert started the week by saying Lopez would be “ready to go” for an offense that has scored at least 38 points for five straight games.
The Mustangs are part of a logjam of four two-loss teams in the league and scored 51 points behind star QB Kevin Jennings in a home win against Virginia Tech last week.
Duke (7-2, 4-2) at No. 5 Miami (8-1, 6-0, No. 7 CFP), Saturday, noon ET (ABC)
The Hurricanes are coming off a loss at Notre Dame that dropped them from the No. 1 ranking in the AP Top 25 and CFP ranking. The Blue Devils are coming off wins against Boston College and N.C. State by a combined margin of 88-5. And there's the reunion of Miami quarterback Darian Mensah with the Duke program he led to an ACC title last year before his unexpected transfer triggered an offseason legal fight.
Louisville (6-3, 5-2) at North Carolina (5-4, 2-3), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
The Cardinals are still in the ACC race after regrouping from back-to-back losses with four straight wins while averaging 43.5 points. They visit a UNC team that has shown solid improvement in Bill Belichick's second season — notably by giving then-No. 1 Miami fits in a 38-35 loss — and is looking for a sixth win to secure bowl eligibility.
— Virginia Tech RB Jeffrey Overton Jr. The sophomore ran for 123 yards and two touchdowns in last week's loss to SMU, marking the third time he cracked 100 yards this year — including 209 yards in a September win against Boston College. The Hokies host Stanford on Saturday.
— Virginia QB Beau Pribula. The Cavaliers need a win, emerging from an open week on a three-game losing streak to put their chase for bowl eligibility in question entering Saturday's visit from California. Pribula started the year with four straight games with multiple TD passes, but he's managed just one scoring throw in the past three games while throwing for 212 yards or less in each.
Interim coaches are 2-1 so far at Florida State and N.C. State. The Seminoles beat Boston College in Rick Stockskill's debut and visit Pittsburgh on Friday night. The Wolfpack fell to 1-1 under Todd Goebbel with last weekend's loss to Duke. N.C. State hosts Syracuse on Saturday in its home finale. ... Georgia Tech visits Clemson on Saturday, with the Yellow Jackets' home win last year ending a nine-game skid in the series dating to 2015. ... Duke running back Nate Sheppard is No. 2 nationally in rushing (132.1) and fourth in rushing touchdowns (17). ... Jennings and Mensah rank among the national passing leaders. Jennings is fifth in average yardage through the air (307.1) and Mensah is seventh (299.3) while Mensah is second in passing TDs (28) and Jennings is tied for fourth (25).
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