2015 Around the ACC: Week 2 Wrapup

By: Justin Cates | Managing Editor

Boston_College_OLD3

Howard 0
Boston College 76

The Eagles thumped Howard 41-0…in the first quarter. It only got more lopsided from there in a game where BC likely didn’t learn a whole lot about its team. The officials allowed the teams to play 10-minute quarters in the second half in an attempt to limit the damage, with limited effect. Darius Wade completed just 3 of 5 passes for 30 yards before things got out of hand and the entire stable of running backs ran wild on the overmatched Bison defense with Jeff Smith gaining 89 yards on five carries with three touchdowns to lead the way. Myles Willis added 77 yards on seven carries and Tyler Rouse had three touchdowns in limited action.

Up Next: No. 9 Florida State

Clemson

Appalachian State 10
No. 11 Clemson 41

The Tiger offense has yet to miss a beat following the loss of Mike Williams in the opener. His replacement Charone Peak grabbed two touchdowns and Deshaun Watson threw for 248 yards as Clemson coasted to a comfortable win. The Tigers led just 3-0 after the first quarter, but in the second period the offense kicked into high-gear to score 28 points and the defense forced three first half interceptions to stifle any upset hopes held by the Mountaineers. Clemson has racked up 925 total yards in its first two easy victories, but they begin conference play on a short week travelling to Louisville for a Thursday night match up this week.

Up Next: @ Louisville

Duke_B

North Carolina Central 0
Duke 55

Duke got off to a bit of a slow start scoring just one touchdown in the first quarter, then the offense got rolling in a big way. Thomas Sirk completed 15 of 22 passes for a career-high 315 yards with three touchdowns. Sirk also added 86 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Shaun Wilson had a huge day as well with 102 yards receiving, 71 yards rushing and touchdown doing each. The big play for Wilson came when he scored on a 89-yard pass from Sirk late in the game. Sirk’s final two passes went for scores and the Blue Devils amassed 655 yards of total offense against their FCS foes in the Bull City Classic.

Up Next: No. 23 Northwestern

Florida_St

South Florida 14
No. 9 Florida State 34

Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the 11 a.m. kickoff, but there were a lot of nervous folks Saturday in Tallahassee after a sluggish first half that saw the score tied at 7. The Seminoles got on track eventually behind the impressive running of sophomore Dalvin Cook who carried the ball 30 times for 266 yards and three touchdowns. The passing attack was a mess early gaining zero yards in the first quarter and finishing the first half with just seven yards through the air. Everett Golson recovered a bit in the second half to finish with 163 passing yards and a touchdown.

Up Next: Louisville

Georgia_Tech

Tulane 10
No. 14 Georgia Tech 65

The Georgia Tech juggernaut continued it’s rampage Saturday rushing for 439 yards in another dominant early-season outing. Quarterback Justin Thomas finished 7 of 9 for 97 yards and two touchdowns through the air and also rushed 10 times for 71 yards and a score. Patrick Skov added 50 yards and a touchdown and Matthew Jordan tacked on a 65-yard score late. It makes the second straight game in which the Yellow Jackets scored more than 60 points and Tech converted an impressive 6 of 9 third down opportunities and 2 of 2 fourth downs.

Up Next: @ No. 8 Notre Dame

Louisville_B

Houston 34
Louisville 31

Two weeks and two close losses leave the Cardinals sitting at 0-2 and looking for some answers. The much discussed quarterback battle may have become more complicated as freshman Lamar Jackson got the start, but struggled at times throwing two interceptions and leading Bobby Petrino to insert Kyle Bolin in the fourth quarter. Bolin led two touchdown drives while completing 10 of 18 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown. For his part, Jackson finished 17 of 27 for 168 yards but ran for just 16 yards on 10 carries, though he did score a 1-yard touchdown. Houston outgained the Cardinals 462-395 behind the strong play of quarterback Greg Ward Jr. It marks the first 0-2 start for Louisville since 1998.

Up Next: No. 11 Clemson

Miami_FL

Miami 44
Florida Atlantic 20

It was a highly charged atmosphere for the first ever sellout and biggest game on FAU’s campus to date. The Hurricanes relied on a strong ground game to earn a tough win, but the result was in doubt for much of the game. The Owls kept pace early trailing just 20-17 at halftime and outgaining Miami in the first half. Mark Walton ran for three touchdowns and Joe Yearby had 18 carries for 146 yards and two total touchdowns to lift Miami. Yearby also had three catches for 97 yards and a touchdown. Brad Kaaya pitched in 287 yards passing to help the Canes put up 526 total yards. Miami wasn’t the only team to have success rushing as FAU gained 233 yards on just 33 carries, exposing the Cane defense. Mistakes doomed the Owls though as they lost three fumbles and threw two interceptions after losing starting quarterback Jaquez Johnson to an injury shortly before a lightning delay.

Up Next: Nebraska

North_Carolina_F

North Carolina A&T 14
North Carolina 53

This one was never in doubt as the Tar Heels raced out to a 22-0 first quarter lead. Marquise Williams and the offense recovered from a rough opening game, with Williams passing for 211 yards, rushing for 53 and scoring once on the ground and once through the air. He split time with backup Mitch Trubisky who was inserted on the third drive of the game. Neither player was told ahead of time and it’s unclear if the trend will continue going forward. Trubisky completed 5 of 7 passes for 37 yards and a touchdown and also scored on a 35-yard run. Elijah Hood rushed 16 times for 56 yards and two touchdowns to help put the game away early. Most importantly, there were no turnovers for the group after the Heels were plagued by them in the opening loss to South Carolina.

Up Next: Illinois

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Eastern Kentucky 0
NC State 35

https://twitter.com/PackFootball/status/643071214383157248

After a scoreless first quarter, the Wolfpack put together a strong all-around effort to cruise to a win in the program’s “Pack in Black” day. Matthew Dayes continued his fast start to the season with three rushing touchdowns and 116 yards on 24 carries. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett continued his efficient play by completing 17 of 22 passes for 216 yards and a touchdown. The State defense held EKU to just 112 total yards and limited the Colonels’ time of possession to 19:56. Despite being outclassed in this game, Eastern Kentucky entered the contest ranked No. 19 nationally in the FCS polls.

Up Next: @ Old Dominion

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh 24
Akron 7

Like in the opener, Pitt used two quarterbacks to scratch out a win against a scrappy team from Ohio. Chad Voytik started but eventually gave way to backup Nate Peterman who may not be a backup anymore. Peterman completed 12 of 17 attempts for a career-high 148 yards and a touchdown while sparking a Pitt team that was trailing 7-3 approaching halftime. A major boost to the offense was the return of wideout Tyler Boyd who caught 11 passes for 95 yards coming off a one-game suspension for an offseason DUI. Akron upset the Panthers in 2014, but were held to just 110 total yards in a rain-soaked loss Saturday.

Up Next: @ Iowa

Syracuse_EWake_Forest

Wake Forest 17
Syracuse 30

The Orange prevailed at the Carrier Dome in the first ACC football game of the season after a tight first half ended with a 17-14 Wake Forest lead. Syracuse came out and scored 17 unanswered points to finish the game and improve to 2-0 on the year. Freshman quarterback Eric Dungey handled his first career start extremely well completing 8 of 13 passes for 221 yards and two touchdowns. He also chipped in 36 yards on the ground. His counterpart John Wolford passed for a career-high 373 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted three times and sacked four times in the loss. Syracuse honored former head coach Dick MacPherson who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009.

Up Next for Syracuse: Central Michigan

Up Next for Wake Forest: @ Army

Virginia_OLD5

No. 8 Notre Dame
Virginia

Notre Dame lost its starting running back in week one, and lost its starting quarterback in week two but escaped with another victory. Malik Zaire fractured his ankle and will miss the rest of the season, but backup Deshone Kizer came in and completed a 39-yard touchdown pass to Will Fuller with 12 seconds remaining to seal the win. Virginia got an excellent game from quarterback Matt Johns who completed 26 of 38 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns plus he added another score on the ground. Canaan Severin was the top target for the ‘Hoos catching 11 passes for 153 yards. The Cavalier defense got burned for 253 yards on the ground but held Notre Dame to an 0 for 10 mark on third down conversion attempts.

Up Next: Boise State

Virginia_Tech

Furman 3
Virginia Tech 42

The Hokie offense sputtered early under first-time starting quarterback Brenden Motley, but found its groove in the second half of an easy win. Motley completed 16 of 24 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns with another score on the ground. Backups Dwayne Lawson and Chris Durkin also saw time for Tech, with Lawson getting most of the reps completing 3 of 7 passes for 51 yards and rushing nine times for 51 yards and a touchdown. Durkin finished with 25 yards on four carries. Overall, the Hokies’ rushing attack churned up 299 yards highlighted by 98 yards from Travon McMillian.

Up Next: @ Purdue

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