It’s Miami FSU week! Woo! While that is by far the biggest conference game of Week 6, there are some other solid contests on the slate. Clemson is coming off a bye and looking to take out their frustrations
on a bad UNC team. Virginia Tech is on a two-game winning streak after firing their coach. Duke travels to Berkeley to take on Cal in a late-night matchup. Speaking of matchups, we have a solid “Matchup of the week” as well.
Week 6 bye teams: Georgia Tech, Stanford
Let’s do some rooting.
Clemson @ UNC – 10/4 at 12:00 PM EST, TV – ESPN
The Tar Heels are a nice opponent for a talented, yet struggling team coming off a bye like Clemson. As bad as the Tigers have looked this season, a loss to this year’s UNC team would be catastrophic. I just don’t see that happening. Belichick’s team has outscored the two Group of 5 teams they played, 61-9. Against the two Power 4 teams, they’ve been outscored 82-23. That is atrocious. Looking at UNC’s schedule, they could easily lose eight or more games this year. Having said all that, it would be better for Miami’s recruiting, etc. if Clemson completely fell apart. Let’s go UNC.
Boston College @ Pittsburgh – 10/4 at 12:00 PM EST, TV – ACCN
It’s a matchup of former Big East rivals each looking for their first conference win of the season. Both of these teams’ coaches are tough guys. I would expect them to have their guys fired up. Based off my extensive research of not watching one minute of either team so far this season, I think Pitt has the talent advantage, plus they’re playing at home. It’s now or never Bill O’Brien! Time to make it happen! Let’s go Boston College.
Wake Forest @ Virginia Tech – 10/4 at 1:00 PM EST, TV – CW
Wake looks so much better than they did last season. They should have beat Georgia Tech, and now they have a very winnable road game to snap their six-game losing streak in conference play. As mentioned above, the Hokies have won two in a row since firing their coach. I’m not buying into a turnaround though. I think it was who they played more than anything. I believe in Dickert and the Demon Deacons! Let’s go Wake Forest.
Campbell @ NC State – 10/4 at 2:00 PM EST, TV – ACCN Extra
They’re hosting a small non-conference school, but it is funny that NC State has struggled recently, and got relegated to ACCN Extra with a 2 pm EST kickoff time. That’s rough. I still like the Wolfpack. Dave Doeren has been a good coach for years, and they have a rising star in quarterback CJ Bailey. The future could be bright for NC State, but I think a lot of that rides in what they do this offseason. They need to hit on both their high school recruiting class and transfer class to get to where they want to go in 2026. Let’s go NC State.
Syracuse @ SMU – 10/4 at 3:30 PM EST, TV – ACCN
If SMU’s defense doesn’t play well against backup Syracuse quarterback Rickie Collins, then they officially have no chance of competing with the Miamis, FSUs, and GTs of this season. There have been so many backup quarterbacks in college that have come in and looked great, that I can’t rule that out happening for Collins. Rhett Lashlee has had an extra week to coach his team up and get them focused on conference play. I think that will work for at least one week. Let’s go SMU.
Matchup of the week
#24 Virginia @ Louisville – 10/4 at 3:30 PM EST, TV – ESPN2
I have seen FSU prognosticators say that Miami is a better matchup scheme-wise for the Seminoles. Virginia was actually a tougher offense to defend. Umm..huh? I believe that is what the kids call “cope”. The best part about FSU’s 2-10 2024 season was how quiet their fans were; quite refreshing. Oops, we have our “Matchup of the week” to discuss. Virginia is ranked and everyone’s darling. Louisville is undefeated and flying under the radar. This is an easy one for me. I want the Cardinals to stay undefeated for their trip to Coral Gables in Week 8. Let’s go Louisville.
Duke @ Cal – 10/4 at 10:30 PM EST, TV – ESPN
Ah, the dreaded 10:30 PM EST kickoff for the east coast team traveling west. The Golden Bears fans are going to be fired up tomorrow night. Not as much as when Miami and ESPN’s College GameDay came to Berkeley last year, but it will still be a raucous environment. Both teams are coming off ACC wins and looking to climb the standings, while keeping that zero in the conference loss column. I can’t root for Cal, and I have a soft spot for Manny Diaz. Let’s go Duke.
See you next week!
