WEEK 12 GAME SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16
TIME, TV SIRIUSXM APP/WEB
#20 Clemson at Pitt
Noon ET, ESPN 81, 138, or 193 81 or 955
Series: Pitt leads series, 3-2;
Last meeting: Pitt, 27-17 (2021)
ESPN: Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Greg McElroy (analyst), Molly McGrath (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Clemson: Dabo Swinney (177-45 in 17th season at CU; 177-45 in 17th season overall)
Pitt: Pat Narduzzi (72-52 in 10th season at Pitt; 72-52 in 10th season overall)
Notes
• Clemson and Pitt have not met since the 2021 season when the Panthers won 27-17 in Pittsburgh. The two squads have met five times, including the 2018 ACC Championship Game and the 1977 Gator Bowl. • Clemson is still among the ACC leaders at 6-1 in league play. After dropping back-to-back games, Pitt sits in sixth place in the ACC. • Clemson is 3-0 in true road games this season and 39-8 in true road games since 2015. The test at Pitt will be Clemson’s final road game of the regular season. • Clemson has averaged 480.1 yards of total offense in ACC games this season, ranking second. The Tigers also boast the ACC’s top defense in league play, allowing just 317.1 yards per game. • Pitt’s Eli Holstein leads all FBS freshmen quarterbacks in total offense, passing offense, passing yards, passing touchdowns and points responsible for.
Syracuse at California
3 p.m. ET, The CW 388 or 389 978 or 979
Series: Series tied, 1-1;
Last meeting: California, 43-0 (1968)
The CW: Thom Brennaman (play-by-play), Max Browne (analyst), Treavor Scales (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Syracuse: Fran Brown (6-3 in first season at SU; 6-3 in first season overall)
Cal: Justin Wilcox (41-47 in eighth season at Cal; 41-47 in eighth season overall)
Notes:
• Cal and Syracuse have only met twice, playing a home-and-home series in 1967 and 1968. Both teams won at their home stadiums. • Syracuse’s Kyle McCord leads the country in passing yards per game, averaging 350.3. • McCord is just the second player in Syracuse history to throw for 3,000 or more yards and the first since the Orange joined the ACC. Ryan Nassib holds the school’s single-season record with 3,749 passing yards in 2012. • McCord’s 23 passing touchdowns also rank second in Syracuse history for a single season, trailing Nassib’s 26 in 2016. • Cal is coming off of its first-ever win in ACC play. The Golden Bears beat Wake Forest, 46-36, to move within one win of bowl eligibility. • With a win, Cal would become bowl-eligible for the second straight season – a feat it has not accomplished since 2018-19. • Against Wake Forest, Cal extended its streak of consecutive games with a takeaway to 11 and now has at least one in 44 of its last 47 contests.
Boston College at #14 SMU
3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN 138, 193, or 380 955 or 970
Series: Series tied, 1-1;
Last meeting: Boston College, 23-14 (2023 Wasabi Fenway Bowl)
ESPN: Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Louis Riddick (analyst), Kris Budden (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Boston College: Bill O’Brien (5-4 in first season at BC; 20-13 in third season overall)
SMU: Rhett Lashlee (26-10 in third season at SMU; 26-10 in third season overall)
Notes:
• Saturday’s contest will be a rematch of the 2023 Wasabi Fenway Bowl, where Boston College beat SMU, 23-14, in the Mustangs’ final game as AAC members. • Boston College is one win away from becoming bowl-eligible for the second straight season. The Eagles have not been to bowl games in back-to-back seasons since 2016-17. • BC’s Donovan Ezeiruaku ranks fourth nationally in both sacks (1.22 per game) and tackles-for-loss (1.6 per game). He leads the ACC in tackles-for-loss while ranking second in sacks per game. • SMU remains firmly in the race for a trip to the ACC Championship Game in its first season in the league. The Mustangs are a perfect 5-0 in ACC play this season. • SMU is the only team to start 5-0 in conference play after moving from a Non-Power to a Power Conference since 1978. • The Mustangs boast the No. 5 scoring offense throughout college football, averaging 40.1 points per game, while also touting the No. 5 rushing defense, allowing just 90.0 rushing yards per game.
Virginia at #8 Notre Dame
3:30 p.m. ET, NBC 85, 129 or 381 85, 129, or 971
Series: Notre Dame leads series, 4-0;
Last meeting: Notre Dame, 28-3 (2021)
NBC: Dan Hicks (play-by-play), Jason Garrett (analyst), Zora Stephenson (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Virginia: Tony Elliott (11-20 in third season at UVA; 11-20 in third season overall)
Notre Dame: Marcus Freeman (27-9 in third full season at ND; 27-9 in third full season overall)
Notes:
• Virginia is looking to notch its first-ever win over Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish hold a 4-0 advantage in the series including a 2-0 record in South Bend, Indiana. • Virginia is looking to record its second straight Top 25 win after toppling No. 23 Pitt last week. The Cavaliers have not beaten two Top 25 opponents in the same season since 2011. • The Cavaliers are 3-1 on the road this season. The three road wins are the most by Virginia since 2011. • Virginia’s Malachi Field has caught at least one pass in 23 consecutive games. Fields also passed Heath Miller for 11th place on Virginia’s all-time receiving yards list with 1,706. • Notre Dame boasts an 8-1 record on the year, including four wins over ACC teams. The Fighting Irish rank No. 8 in the most recent College Football Playoff poll.
#19 Louisville at Stanford
3:30 p.m. ET, ACCN 158, 194, or 371 371 or 956
Series: First-ever meeting;
Last meeting: N/A
ACCN: Jorge Sedano (play-by-play), Orlando Franklin (analyst), Morgan Uber (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Louisville: Jeff Brohm (16-7 in second season at UL; 82-51 in 11th season overall)
Stanford: Troy Taylor (5-16 in second season at STAN; 35-24 in fifth season overall)
Notes:
• Saturday’s contest will be the first-ever meeting between Louisville and Stanford. • Louisville defeated No. 11 Clemson for its first-ever win over the Tigers. The victory snapped Clemson’s 11-year winning streak in home night games. • Louisville’s victory over No. 11 Clemson marked the program’s highest-ranked road win ever, surpassing the previous mark of No. 13 Southern Miss in 2000. • Stanford Ashton Daniels tied the program record for rushing yards by a quarterback, logging 129 yards on 11 carries against NC State. Daniels led the Cardinal to rush for over 200 yards and three touchdowns as a team for the first time since 2022. • Stanford will not leave the state of California for the remainder of the regular season. After hosting Louisville, the Cardinal will travel to Berkeley to face Cal on Nov. 23 and San Jose to take on San Jose State on Nov. 30.
Wake Forest at North Carolina
8 p.m. ET, ACCN 138, 193, or 371 371 or 955
Series: North Carolina leads series, 72-36-2;
Last meeting: North Carolina, 36-34 (2022)
ACCN: Wes Durham (play-by-play), Tom Luginbill (analyst), Dana Boyle (sideline)
Head Coaches:
Wake Forest: Dave Clawson (67-66 in 11th season at WF; 157-146 in 25th season overall)
North Carolina: Mack Brown (112-77-1 in 16th season at UNC; 287-153-1 in 36th season overall)
Notes:
• North Carolina has dominated the all-time series against Wake Forest, leading the series 72-36-2. The Tar Heels have won three straight games in the series with all three games being decided by one score. • Wake Forest’s Nick Andersen ranks sixth nationally and first in the ACC while averaging 10.4 tackles per game. Andersen’s 94 tackles are 11 more than the next closest individual in the ACC. • The Demon Deacons are a perfect 3-0 away from home this season with wins over NC State, UConn and Stanford. All three wins have been by four points or less. • Wake Forest is one of just 12 FBS teams to remain undefeated on the road. • North Carolina boasts the ACC’s top rushing attack, averaging 201.7 yards per game. The Tar Heels are one of just eight Power 4 teams, including Notre Dame, to average more than 200.0 yards of rushing. • North Carolina is one win away from reaching bowl eligibility for the sixth consecutive season. The Tar Heels have not played in a bowl game for six or more consecutive years since 1992-1998.
AROUND THE ACC
Boston College: Having his best game of the season, running back Kye Robichaux ran for a career-high 198 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries in Boston College’s 37-31 win over Syracuse. He averaged 7.9 yards per carry and posted a long of 41 yards on the day. Robichaux opened the Eagles’ scoring with a 34-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. He later added a 14-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that erased the Orange’s only lead of the game.
California: Quarterback Fernando Mendoza is coming off a career game at Wake Forest, in which he completed 40-of-56 passes for 385 yards and two touchdowns. He also added a rushing score. Coming on as of late, Mendoza has completed 218-of-316 passes this season for 2,480 yards with 12 touchdowns and four interceptions. He has put his name among the nation’s top 20 quarterbacks in completions per game (24.22, 10th), completion percentage (69.0%, 12th), passing yards per game (15th, 275.6), passing yards (18th) and total offense (283.4 ypg, 20th).
Clemson: The Tigers’ freshman linebacker Sammy Brown had a breakout game in his first career start last week at Virginia Tech. Brown led Clemson’s defense with eight tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, and a sack, helping the Tigers hold Virginia Tech to a season-low 40 rushing yards and only 1.90 yards per carry. Overall, the Clemson defense limited Virginia Tech to a 14.2 percent third-down conversion rate, the lowest Clemson has allowed this season.
Duke: The Blue Devils’ win over NC State last week was monumental, in that Duke beat both North Carolina and NC State in the same season for the first time since 2013 and just the second time since 1990. The seven victories this season guarantee Duke a winning record. Duke has had winning seasons in eight of its last 12 campaigns. The Blue Devils have three consecutive seasons with seven or more wins for the first time since 2013-14-15 and just the third time since 1960 (1960-61-62).
Florida State: The Seminoles’ placekicker Ryan Fitzgerald made a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter in the contest at Notre Dame last week and improved to 11-for-11 on the season. It is the third time in school history an FSU placekicker has made at least 11 consecutive field goals to begin a campaign. Fitzgerald joins Roberto Aguayo, who did it twice, making his first 12 in 2013 and then 14 consecutive to begin 2014. Fitzgerald’s field goal was the 56th of his career, which moved him to No. 7 on FSU’s all-time list.
Georgia Tech: Platooning quarterbacks with the return of Haynes King to the starting lineup, the Yellow Jackets ran for 271 rushing yards in the home win over No. 4 Miami. Georgia Tech’s 271 rushing yards were nearly triple the 95.2 yards per game that Miami had allowed going into the game, which ranked eighth nationally. Eight different ball carriers contributed to the Jackets’ rushing attack, led by King, who ran 20 times for 93 yards.
Louisville: The Cardinals’ standout freshman Isaac Brown has been a difference maker this season, not just in the run game but also in the return game on special teams. Named a finalist for the Paul Hornung Award and a semifinalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year, Brown has totaled 1,133 all-purpose yards this season, including 800 rushing, 131 receiving, and 202 combined in kick and punt returns.
Miami: Cam Ward continues to put up video game numbers, having thrown for over 300 yards in nine games this season. He leads the nation in passing touchdowns (32), passing yards (3,494), points responsible for (222) and Total QBR (89.6). Miami’s offense ranks first nationally in total offense (544.8 ypg), scoring offense (45.0 ppg), passing offense (368.2 ypg), first downs made (275), and third-down conversion percentage (.565).
North Carolina: The Tar Heels rollercoaster season continues this week at home versus Wake Forest. North Carolina started the season at 3-0, lost four straight games to fall to 3-4 and have now won two consecutive games to move to 5-4 and one win away from bowl eligibility. The Tar Heels have qualified for a bowl game in each of the last five seasons during Mack Brown’s second stint as head coach and will be looking to make it six straight years with a win on Saturday.
NC State: Wolfpack placekicker Kanoah Vinesett made good on four field goals and scored 12 of NC State’s 19 points last time out versus Duke. He became the 11th kicker in NC State history to make four field goals in a game, following Brayden Narveson’s four kicks against North Carolina last year. Vinesett has made 15 field goals this season, which is tied for third in the ACC.
Pitt: The Panthers will look to snap their two-game losing streak at home this weekend versus nationally-ranked Clemson. Under head coach Pat Narduzzi, Pitt has defeated at least one Top 25 team in eight consecutive seasons (2016-23), with the most recent victory over a nationally ranked foe last year at home over No. 14 Louisville on October 14, 2023. Pitt is 0-1 this year versus Top 25 teams.
SMU: Named a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, Kevin Jennings has led SMU to an impressive 8-1 overall record and a perfect 5-0 mark in the ACC after taking over as the starting quarterback in Week 4. Since Jennings became the starting signal-caller, the Mustangs have won all six of their games, averaging 43.0 points and 458.5 yards per game during this stretch, both of which rank in the top 12 across all of FBS. Jennings currently ranks third nationally in yards per pass attempt (9.69), fifth in passing yards per completion (14.96), and 13th in passing efficiency (161.3).
Stanford: True freshman running back Cole Tabb made his collegiate debut at NC State last week, becoming the third freshman running back to debut in 2024 for the Cardinal. In his debut, Tabb carried the ball 11 times and ran for 72 yards. The 11 carries were the most by a Cardinal in a collegiate debut since Toby Gerhart in 2006. His 72 yards from scrimmage were the most since Christian McCaffrey had 122 against UC Davis in his first collegiate game in 2015.
Syracuse: Quarterback Kyle McCord continues to have a career year, as he threw for a career-high 392 yards at Boston College. McCord has thrown for 3,153 yards through nine games, which ranks second on the ‘Cuse single-season record list behind Ryan Nassib’s 3,749 yards in 2012. The senior is also on pace to set the single-season record for most passing yards per game. He is averaging 350.3, which would surpass the current record of 297.7 set by Eric Dungey in 2016.
Virginia: The Cavaliers’ defense was led by senior safety Jonas Sanker in the 24-19 win on the road at No. 18 Pitt. He finished with five tackles, 2.0 tackles-for-loss, an interception and a blocked field goal. Sanker leads the team in total tackles (69), solo tackles (47) and tackles-for-loss (7.0), while also adding a sack, an interception, three pass breakups and one fumble recovery this season.
Virginia Tech: A semifinalist for the 2024 Lombardi Award and the 2024 Bednarik Award, Antwaun Powell-Ryland has registered 13.0 sacks through 10 games this season to lead the ACC and is tied for first nationally. He is the first Virginia Tech player to record double-digit sacks in a season since 2005. The defensive lineman is also tied for fourth nationally with a league-leading 14.5 tackles-for-loss, an average of 1.5 per game. Powell-Ryland has also recorded 37 tackles, three fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles and nine quarterback hurries this season.
Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons’ next two games are on the road – at North Carolina and Miami – which might be a good thing. The Demon Deacons have started 3-0 on the road for the second time under Dave Clawson, with the only other time coming during the ACC Atlantic and Gator Bowl winning season in 2021. The last two times Wake Forest started a season 3-0 or better on the road came during the 2006 and 2021 seasons that ended in ACC Championship appearances.
