It’s Notre Dame week! I am incredibly bummed out that Malachi Toney will not have the chance to play in South Bend to help his Miami Hurricanes beat the Fighting Irish two years in a row. Don’t get me wrong, this is terrible news. That said, this Saturday is a gigantic opportunity for some of Miami’s other skill players to step up. I think Elija Lofton, Daylyn Upshaw, and Cooper Barkate are excited to show they can carry a top-flight passing game. Also, Notre Dame’s CFP case should be toast if its
second loss is to a Miami team missing its best offensive skill player. I cannot wait for this game.
I will now be using CFP rankings. Not that there will ever be more than one non-Miami ACC team in the Top 25 this season. (Sigh).
Let’s do some rooting.
Matchup of the week
Virginia Tech @ SMU – 11/6 at 7:00 PM EST, TV – ESPN
This game lost some juice with SMU losing at Syracuse last week. Come on Lashlee! How do you let your squad lose to Syracuse? Ugh. Also, do we think Lashlee is a legit candidate for the FSU job? Not to hate on the Seminoles, but I think SMU is a better job right now. The Dallas area has a ton of money and has not been shy in throwing it behind Lashlee and his football program. Meanwhile, one YouTube college football pundit said he thought James Franklin will be one and done in Blacksburg. That would be crazy. This is a tough one, but I think I want Franklin and the Hokies to be at least a somewhat big matchup for the Canes. Let’s go Virginia Tech.
FSU @ Boston College – 11/7 at 12:00 PM EST, TV – ACCN
Could the Seminoles get their first road win since the year 2024 immediately after Mike Norvell is fired? Maybe. I think Bill O’Brien will have his Eagles squad ready to go at home this week. That is despite the 47-2 loss at Duke last week. 47-2? Geez. There is nothing interesting to say about FSU that doesn’t involve its coaching search. Let’s go Boston College.
Clemson @ Syracuse – 11/7 at 12:00 PM EST, TV – ESPN2
Fran Brown’s Orange have won two in a row and have some momentum on offense with quarterback Steve Angeli returning to form, plus five-star freshman receiver Calvin Russell III becoming a go-to guy since his return from his preseason Achilles injury. Syracuse’s offense looked legit in its game-winning drive against SMU last week. On the other side, Dabo is giving a press conference saying how impressive it is that Clemson has won at least six games for the last 25 years. Umm..okay. He must know how poor that will go over with the Clemson fanbase. Whatever. I think Syracuse will win the game. Let’s go Clemson.
UNC @ UConn – 11/7 at 12:00 PM EST, TV – CBSS
Both these teams are 4-4. Thrilling. UConn has a loss to Maryland, a school that fired its coach during this season. Not great. The Tar Heels will be looking to rebound after their close loss to Miami. If Bill Belichick can find a solid quarterback solution for next season, UNC might be a team worth watching in 2027. Let’s go UNC.
Duke @ NC State – 11/7 at 12:30 PM EST, TV – CW
Duke coach Manny Diaz is another supposed candidate for the FSU job. As someone who watched Diaz’s Miami teams closely, please let that happen. I have seen some Manny Diaz defenders out there saying how well he’s done at Duke and how it’s different now with NIL. Sure. Fine. Again, I hope it happens. None of this changes the fact that I want the Blue Devils to come of a win before coming to Hard Rock next week. Let’s go Duke.
Merrimack @ #16 Wake Forest – 11/7 at 3:30 PM EST, TV – ACCN
The Demon Deacons somehow went backwards two spots from their AP Poll ranking in the first set of CFP rankings. I understand Wake’s schedule has been light so far, but Jake Dickert’s squad has been blowing teams off the field since the loss to Miami. Also if we are talking about good losses, what team has a better one than Wake Forest? Its one loss is to the number one team in the country. Come on CFP committee! Let’s go Wake Forest.
Louisville @ Georgia Tech – 11/7 at 7:30 PM EST, TV – ACCN
Here come the Cardinals. Jeff Brohm’s squad has won three in a row and have a very manageable schedule moving forward. There is a decent chance Louisville plays for the 2026 ACC Championship in Charlotte. Georgia Tech has lost three in a row after its nice win over Duke in early October. How time flies. I am just now seeing the Yellow Jackets lost to Pitt last week, 34-11. Yikes. The offseason can’t come soon enough for Brent Key. Let’s go Louisville.
See you next week!
