Thursday, 7:30 ESPN: Miami (3-0) at Cincinnati (2-2/0-2)
*The Canes must avoid overlooking the Bearcats on the road in a midweek game. There is no short week for The U because they had last weekend off. Cincy is coming off a Thursday night road loss at Memphis where they gave up 53 pts in a loss. Miami should have no problems scoring here. Cincy lost their starting QB, Gunner Kiel, but their backup QB, Hayden Moore, played admirably when inserted against the Tigers of Memphis. Memphis plays zero defense and is a scoring machine…they’d fit perfectly in the Big 12. The Canes are a relatively small price of 6 pts to cover here. I like The U to get to 4-0 and finish off a nice September before they kick off ACC play in Week 6 at Florida State (with extra rest).
12:00 RSN: Pittsburgh (2-1) at Virginia Tech (2-2)
*This is the ACC opener for each team. Pitt comes off an extra week to rest and prep. The Hokies were upset once again by the ECU Pirates. The Turkey Buzzards are a 4.5 pt home favorite. Bud Foster was supposed to have one of the best defenses in the ACC this year. So far, they’ve given up an average of 33.7 pts per game against D1A foes. Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi is sticking with Nate Peterman at QB. This is a critical division game. Once again, the Coastal appears wide open. Division favorite, Ga Tech, looks like crap and could quickly fade to black with a difficult schedule. It will be a theme every week in the Coastal, but you never know which winner of which game might be the difference in getting to Charlotte for the ACCCG – this one very well could be one of those.
12:30 ACC Network: Louisville (1-3/0-1) at NC State (4-0)
*The Pack has beaten up on the Sisters of the Poor, the Blind, Women’s College for the Totally F’d, and an elementary school all-star team so far I believe. Now, they finally get a legit opponent. Well, I think UofL is at least. In truth, NC State is playing really well and may have the best QB in the ACC. That’s right. I said it. Jacoby Brissett is terrific and he has a stable of running backs who are very fast and dangerous. The Pack are 4.5 pt favorites. This should be a fun game to watch. NC State finally gets a test. I expect the Cards to punch them in the mouth early, but the Pack to eventually take control and win by 7-10 pts.
3:30 ESPN-U: North Carolina (3-1) at Georgia Tech (2-2/0-1)
*The Tar Holes have beaten up on 2 D1AA teams and 1 pathetic D1A team in Illinois in the last 3 weeks after blowing what should have been a W in their opener against a weak South Carolina bunch. Ga Tech has looked awful against decent-to-good competition (I still don’t think Duke is all that good, by the way…which says a lot about GT). The Tar Holes haven’t won on Grant Field since 1997. They likely have their best shot this year to get over that hump. Then again, GT’s pride is on the line. Sometimes when you’ve been backed into a corner, you come out fighting. Well, if you have that pride and want to show it that is. Tech is a 7 pt favorite. Tech could bounce back here and cover that spread. I won’t touch it with a 622 foot pole because nobody knows what we’ll get.
3:30 RSN: Boston College (3-1/0-1) at Duke (3-1/1-0)
*The Eagles field one of the best defenses in the nation and certainly in the ACC. They’ve given up a total of 31 pts over 4 games on the season. Of course, 2 of those 4 games were against D1AA opponents and all 4 of their games have been played at home. As they venture to the road for the first time, they find a Blue Devils bunch who are giddy at their big win over division rival, Ga Tech. I wouldn’t get too giddy, Duke. Ga Tech simply isn’t all that good. Duke is a 6 pt favorite. Neither of these teams are all that great offensively, but each can play defense. Duke obviously can and does put points on the board via special teams and that ultimately may be the difference in this game. If the Over/Under is 40 pts or more, the under looks like a solid wager this week. (note, it opened at 39 pts)
3:30 ESPN: #11 Florida State (3-0/1-0) at Wake Forest (2-2/0-1)
*The Deacs probably lost their last shot at a win on the season at home this past weekend against Indiana. For some reason nobody can figure out, ESPN has chosen to broadcast this game. The Noles are a 19 pt favorite and I expect more money to come in on them and that spread to rise. FSU had this past week off. They must avoid looking ahead to Week 6 when they host the Canes. Wake may hang with them for the first half – then again, maybe they won’t – but I expect the Noles to take over and rip the Deacs by at least 4 TD’s.
*The Canes must avoid overlooking the Bearcats on the road in a midweek game. There is no short week for The U because they had last weekend off. Cincy is coming off a Thursday night road loss at Memphis where they gave up 53 pts in a loss. Miami should have no problems scoring here. Cincy lost their starting QB, Gunner Kiel, but their backup QB, Hayden Moore, played admirably when inserted against the Tigers of Memphis. Memphis plays zero defense and is a scoring machine…they’d fit perfectly in the Big 12. The Canes are a relatively small price of 6 pts to cover here. I like The U to get to 4-0 and finish off a nice September before they kick off ACC play in Week 6 at Florida State (with extra rest).
12:00 RSN: Pittsburgh (2-1) at Virginia Tech (2-2)
*This is the ACC opener for each team. Pitt comes off an extra week to rest and prep. The Hokies were upset once again by the ECU Pirates. The Turkey Buzzards are a 4.5 pt home favorite. Bud Foster was supposed to have one of the best defenses in the ACC this year. So far, they’ve given up an average of 33.7 pts per game against D1A foes. Pitt HC Pat Narduzzi is sticking with Nate Peterman at QB. This is a critical division game. Once again, the Coastal appears wide open. Division favorite, Ga Tech, looks like crap and could quickly fade to black with a difficult schedule. It will be a theme every week in the Coastal, but you never know which winner of which game might be the difference in getting to Charlotte for the ACCCG – this one very well could be one of those.
12:30 ACC Network: Louisville (1-3/0-1) at NC State (4-0)
*The Pack has beaten up on the Sisters of the Poor, the Blind, Women’s College for the Totally F’d, and an elementary school all-star team so far I believe. Now, they finally get a legit opponent. Well, I think UofL is at least. In truth, NC State is playing really well and may have the best QB in the ACC. That’s right. I said it. Jacoby Brissett is terrific and he has a stable of running backs who are very fast and dangerous. The Pack are 4.5 pt favorites. This should be a fun game to watch. NC State finally gets a test. I expect the Cards to punch them in the mouth early, but the Pack to eventually take control and win by 7-10 pts.
3:30 ESPN-U: North Carolina (3-1) at Georgia Tech (2-2/0-1)
*The Tar Holes have beaten up on 2 D1AA teams and 1 pathetic D1A team in Illinois in the last 3 weeks after blowing what should have been a W in their opener against a weak South Carolina bunch. Ga Tech has looked awful against decent-to-good competition (I still don’t think Duke is all that good, by the way…which says a lot about GT). The Tar Holes haven’t won on Grant Field since 1997. They likely have their best shot this year to get over that hump. Then again, GT’s pride is on the line. Sometimes when you’ve been backed into a corner, you come out fighting. Well, if you have that pride and want to show it that is. Tech is a 7 pt favorite. Tech could bounce back here and cover that spread. I won’t touch it with a 622 foot pole because nobody knows what we’ll get.
3:30 RSN: Boston College (3-1/0-1) at Duke (3-1/1-0)
*The Eagles field one of the best defenses in the nation and certainly in the ACC. They’ve given up a total of 31 pts over 4 games on the season. Of course, 2 of those 4 games were against D1AA opponents and all 4 of their games have been played at home. As they venture to the road for the first time, they find a Blue Devils bunch who are giddy at their big win over division rival, Ga Tech. I wouldn’t get too giddy, Duke. Ga Tech simply isn’t all that good. Duke is a 6 pt favorite. Neither of these teams are all that great offensively, but each can play defense. Duke obviously can and does put points on the board via special teams and that ultimately may be the difference in this game. If the Over/Under is 40 pts or more, the under looks like a solid wager this week. (note, it opened at 39 pts)
3:30 ESPN: #11 Florida State (3-0/1-0) at Wake Forest (2-2/0-1)
*The Deacs probably lost their last shot at a win on the season at home this past weekend against Indiana. For some reason nobody can figure out, ESPN has chosen to broadcast this game. The Noles are a 19 pt favorite and I expect more money to come in on them and that spread to rise. FSU had this past week off. They must avoid looking ahead to Week 6 when they host the Canes. Wake may hang with them for the first half – then again, maybe they won’t – but I expect the Noles to take over and rip the Deacs by at least 4 TD’s.
