2023 SCHEDULE – WEEK 6
SATURDAY, OCT. 7 TIME, TV SIRIUSXM APP/WEB
Boston College at Army Noon, CBSSN 99 or 194 956 or 964
Series: Boston College leads series, 25-13; Last meeting: Boston College, 48-27 (2013)
CBSSN: Chris Lewis (play-by-play), Ross Tucker (analyst), Tina Cervasio (sideline)
William & Mary at Virginia Noon, ACCN 136 or 193 955
Series: Virginia leads series, 31-6-1; Last meeting: Virginia, 43-0 (2021)
ACCN: Jorge Sedano (play-by-play), Orlando Franklin (analyst), Marilyn Payne (sideline)
Marshall at NC State 2 p.m., The CW 111 or 203 966
Series: NC State leads, 5-0; Last meeting: NC State, 37-20 (2018)
The CW Network: Evan Lepler (play-by-play), James Bates (analyst), Tabitha Turner (sideline)
Virginia Tech at No. 5 Florida State 3:30 p.m., ABC 81 or 383 81 or 973
Series: Florida State leads series, 23-13-1; Last meeting: Virginia Tech, 24-3 (2018)
ABC: Mark Jones (play-by-play), Louis Riddick (analyst), Quint Kessenich (sideline)
Syracuse at No. 14 North Carolina 3:30 p.m., ESPN 99, 108, 194 or 204 956 or 967
Series: Series is tied, 3-3; Last meeting: North Carolina, 31-6 (2020)
ABC: Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Dusty Dvoracek (analyst), Tom Luginbill (sideline)
Wake Forest at Clemson 3:30 p.m., ACCN 136, 193 or 384 955 or 974
Series: Clemson leads series, 70-17-1; Last meeting: Clemson, 51-45 (2OT) (2022)
ACCN: Chris Cotter (play-by-play), Mark Herzlich (analyst), Sherree Burruss (sideline)
No. 10 Notre Dame at No. 25 Louisville 7:30 p.m., ABC 83 or 129 83 or ND129
Series: Notre Dame leads series, 2-1; Last meeting: Notre Dame, 12-7 (2020)
ABC: Joe Tessitore (play-by-play), Jordan Rodgers (analyst), Katie George (sideline)
Georgia Tech at No. 17 Miami 8 p.m., ACCN 84, 136 or 193 955 or
Series: Miami leads series, 14-13; Last meeting: Miami, 35-14 (2022) CollegeSports
ACCN: Wes Durham (play-by-play), Tim Hasselbeck (analyst), Taylor Tannebaum (sideline)
Open: Duke, Pitt
ACC NOTES
ACC WELCOMES CAL, SMU AND STANFORD
The ACC Board of Directors voted on Sept. 1 to formally admit the University of California, Berkeley (Cal), Southern Methodist University (SMU) and Stanford University to the Atlantic Coast Conference. Cal, SMU and Stanford will join the ACC as full members with full voting participation effective July 1, 2024 (SMU) and Aug. 2, 2024 (Stanford and Cal). The decision followed the submission of letters of application from all three institutions.
The additions of Cal, SMU and Stanford enhance and strengthen the ACC academically, athletically and financially as well as create a true national conference that spans coast to coast. The incoming universities enrich the league’s competitiveness in all sports and further demonstrate the ACC’s commitment to broad-based programs for both women and men. More than 2,200 student-athletes from Cal, SMU and Stanford will join the nearly 10,000 current ACC student-athletes competing at the highest level of intercollegiate athletics.
GREATNESS IS WHAT WE DO
The ACC announced its new creative campaign, “ACCOMPLISH GREATNESS,” a multi-part brand campaign highlighting the vast success of the ACC’s athletics and academics alike. The campaign launched ahead of the ACC’s official college football season on Week 1. The series will continue with multi-sport spots highlighting the ACC’s incredible accomplishments in all sports throughout the academic year.
FIVE ACC TEAMS RANKED NATIONALLY IN WEEK 6
For the first time this season, the ACC had five teams ranked in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 poll in Florida State (No. 5), North Carolina (No. 14), Miami, (No. 17), Duke (No. 19), and Louisville (No. 25). Clemson is also receiving votes.
The same five teams were ranked in the USA Today AFCA Coaches Poll this week, nearly mirroring the AP Poll. Florida State came in at No. 5, while North Carolina (No. 13) and Miami (No. 17) were both in the top 20. Duke is No. 21 and Louisville broke in the poll this week at No. 25. Clemson is also receiving votes in the coaches poll.
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
The ACC is off to a great start to the 2023 season, going 29-13 (.690) overall in non-conference play over the first five weeks of the season. The ACC will play for nonconference games this week.
Eight of the ACC’s 29 non-conference wins have come against the Big Ten and the SEC, with the ACC recording four wins over each of the two conferences. The rest of FBS is 12-38 overall versus the two Power 5 conferences.
THEN THERE WERE FOUR
Entering Week 6 of play, the ACC still has four teams that remain unbeaten in Louisville (5-0), Florida State (4-0), Miami (4-0), and North Carolina (4-0).
The four undefeated teams are tied for the most among any FBS conference, matching the Big Ten and the Pac12.
ACC ON ABC/ESPN
During the first five weeks of the season, the ACC had three games on ABC’s “Saturday Night Football” as well as a total of 18 appearances on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2.
In addition to the games already played, the ACC will be featured in four ABC games over the next two weeks. This week (Oct. 7), Virginia Tech will play at No. 5 Florida State for a 3:30 p.m. matchup and No. 10 Notre Dame will travel to Louisville for ABC’s “Saturday Night Football” contest at 7:30 p.m. ET.
In Week 7 (Oct. 14), both the Syracuse at Florida State and the Miami at North Carolina games will be broadcast on ABC, with one at noon and the other at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Overall, during the first seven weeks of the season, the ACC will have five games on ABC’s “Saturday Night Football”, as well as a total of 24 appearances on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2. In total to date, 17 ACC contests are scheduled for national ABC broadcasts, with 12 different league programs featured.
TALKING OFFENSE
Entering Week 6 of the 2023 season, the ACC has five teams that rank in the top 25 in total offense this season – Miami (7th, 519.0 ypg), Louisville (11th, 494.8 ypg), Georgia Tech (19th, 467.4 ypg), North Carolina (24th, 464.0 ypg), and Syracuse (25th, 463.4 ypg).
The five teams in the top 25 are the second-most of any FBS conference behind only the Big 12 with six and more than the SEC and Big Ten combined.
DISCUSSING DEFENSE
On the other side of the ball, the ACC has five teams ranked in the top 25 in total defense – Clemson (9th, 267.4 ypg), Miami (12th, 273.0 ypg), Duke (19th, 297.2 ypg), Syracuse (19th, 297.2 ypg), and Pitt (23rd, 301.6 ypg).
The five teams in the top 25 are the second-most of any FBS conference behind only the SEC with six teams.
DOING IT ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL
A total of six teams rank in the top 25 in both total offense and total defense this season, with two of those teams coming from the ACC in Miami and Syracuse. The other four schools are Georgia, Oregon, Tennessee, and Texas.
NCAA ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS
Entering the sixth week of the season, the ACC has two standout student-athletes who are active career leaders in all of FBS football in Will Shipley of Clemson and Jared Verse of Florida State.
The Tigers’ Shipley leads all active players in the FBS in career all-purpose yards per game at 121.10. He has totaled 3,512 all-purpose yards in his career – 2,273 rushing, 454 receiving and 785 kick return yards – over 29 games played.
Florida State’s Verse leads all active players in FBS in career tackles-for-loss per game at 1.22 and is third in total sacks per game at 0.59. Wake Forest’s Jasheen Davis is fifth among all active FBS players with 0.91 tackles-for-loss per game over his career.
North Carolina defensive back Antavious Lane is tied for second among all active players with 11 interceptions and third in interceptions per game at 0.28 for his career, while quarterback Drake Maye is fifth among all active players in total offense per game at 294.4 yards per contest.
Virginia’s Kameron Butler is tied for third among active FBS players in sacks with 22.5 for his career, while Duke’s DeWayne Carter and Syracuse’s Marlowe Wax are tied for third with seven career forced fumbles among all active FBS players.
Miami’s Kamren Kitchens is also in the top five of active career leaders, as he is fifth in interceptions per game with an average of 0.27.
Miami kicker Andres Borregales ranks fifth among active players with a career average of 7.8 points per game, while Virginia Tech punt returner Jaylin Lane is fifth among all active players with an 11.7 career punt return average.
PREVIEWING WEEK 6
Week 6 of the 2023 season will feature four ACC matchups and four non-conference contests, headlined by a top-25 matchup between No. 10 Notre Dame and No. 25 Louisville.
The first of four non-conference games will see Boston College hit the road to take on Army on Saturday (Noon/CBSSN), as the Eagles are coming off a 27-24 come-from-behind win at home versus Virginia last weekend.
Virginia will look for its first win of the season as the Cavaliers host in-state foe William & Mary (Noon/ACCN), while NC State looks to get back in the wins column at home versus an undefeated Marshall team (2 p.m./The CW).
The final non-conference contest for the weekend will see No. 25 Louisville put its six-game win streak (dating back to last year) and seven-game home win streak on the line versus No. 10 Notre Dame (7:30 p.m./ABC) who is coming off a road win at previously unbeaten Duke last Saturday night.
In ACC play, Syracuse will look to rebound from its first loss of the season last week to Clemson with a challenging road test at No. 14 North Carolina (3:30 p.m./ESPN), while Virginia Tech is looking for its second straight ACC win as the Hokies travel to No. 5 Florida State (3:30 p.m./ESPN).
Fresh off an open week, Wake Forest will travel to Clemson (3:30 p.m./ACCN), while Miami, also off an open week, will host Georgia Tech (8 p.m./ACCN).
WEEK 5 RECAP
Three games were decided by one score or less, two unbeatens fell, and the road team won four of the six games to highlight ACC play over Week 5 of the season.
Louisville remained undefeated with a come-from-behind road win at NC State on Friday night, scoring 13 points in the second half and holding the Wolfpack off the scoreboard over the final two quarters of play in a 13-10 conference road win.
Syracuse and Duke both suffered their first losses of the season, both scoring just 14 points, which was well under their season average. Clemson picked up its first ACC win of the year with a 31-14 victory at Syracuse, while Notre Dame held off a late surge from the Blue Devils for a 21-14 road win in Durham, N.C.
Boston College and Virginia Tech each secured a conference home win, the first of the season for both teams, as BC fought back from a 14-point halftime deficit to beat Virginia 27-24, while the Hokies never trailed in a 38-21 win over Pitt.
DEACS SACKS DUO
Wake Forest has two players among the leaders in sacks in all of FBS football this season in Jacob Roberts and Jasheen Davis. Roberts is third nationally with an average of 1.25 sacks per game (5.0), while Davis is fourth at 1.12 sacks per contest (4.5).
The duo are joined among the ACC sack leaders by Ashton Gillotte of Louisville with 5.0 sacks and an average of 1.00 per outing.
BEST MONEY ON YOUR RETURN
The ACC has not only two of the top three kick returners in the country this season but also one of the top punt returners. Brashard Smith of Miami leads the nation in kickoff return yards with an average of 44.4 yards per return this season, just in front of Kenny Johnson of Pitt and his average of 35.5 yards per return which ranks third nationally. Virginia Tech’s Tucker Holloway is third in all of FBS in punt returns with an average of 18.6 yards per return this season.
CARDS’ JORDAN RULES
Louisville running back Jawhar Jordan has been a do-it-all weapon for the Cardinals’ offense this season. He ranks seventh nationally in all of FBS in all-purpose yards with an average of 146.4 per game. He has rushed for over 100 yards in three of the five games this season and has
recorded over 100 all-purpose yards in four of Louisville’s five games.
TYLER VAN DYMES
Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke has been on point all season long for the Hurricanes, as he ranks second nationally in passing efficiency (197.8), seventh in completion percentage (74.7 percent), eighth in yards per pass attempt (10.53), and 16th in passing touchdowns (11).
STREAKING
The ACC has four teams that are riding winning streaks of four games or more entering Week 6 of the season, highlighted by Florida State’s 10-game winning streak, which is tied for the fourth-longest current winning streak in all of FBS.
School ……………………………………..Winning Streak
Florida State………………………………………………….10
Louisville ………………………………………………………..6
Miami …………………………………………………………….4
North Carolina…………………………………………………4
Wake Forest has won 12 straight non-conference games, the second-longest streak behind only Georgia and the Bulldogs’ 20-straight non-conference wins.
Louisville puts its ACC-best seven-game home win streak on the line this weekend versus No. 10 Notre Dame.
North Carolina, who is at home this weekend versus Syracuse, has won seven straight road games, which is the second-longest streak to only Georgia’s 12-straight road wins.
THE CONFERENCE OF QUARTERBACKS
Eight of the 14 ACC teams returned a quarterback with at least 14 career FBS starts, led by Virginia Tech’s Grant Wells with 38 prior to the 2023 season. NC State’s Brennan Armstrong started 30 games at Virginia before transferring and joining the Wolfpack. A Second-Team All-ACC pick last season, Florida State’s Jordan Travis started 27 games coming into the 2023 season.
Name, School …………………………….. Career Starts
Grant Wells, Virginia Tech……………………………..36 Brennan Armstrong, NC State……………………….35 Jordan Travis, Florida State…………………………….31 Garrett Shrader, Syracuse ………………………………30 Phil Jurkovec, Pitt ………………………………………23
Tyler Van Dyke, Miami……………………………………22
Riley Leonard, Duke ………………………………………19
Drake Maye, North Carolina…………………………….18
*23 starts at Marshall before transferring to VT
**30 starts at Virginia before transferring to NC State
***18 starts at Boston College before transferring to Pitt
Six ACC quarterbacks have thrown 10 touchdown passes or more thus far this season, led by Georgia Tech’s Haynes King with 15 touchdown tosses, which ranks fourth nationally.
Name, School ………………………………….TD Passes
Haynes King, Georgia Tech…………………………….15
Cade Klubnik, Clemson ………………………………….11
Jack Plummer, Louisville ………………………………..11
Tyler Van Dyke, Miami……………………………………11
Thomas Castellanos, Boston College……………….10
Jordan Travis, Florida State…………………………….10
A total of six quarterbacks in the ACC are averaging 250.0 passing yards or more per game this season.
Name, School …………………………….. Passing YPG
Drake Maye, North Carolina………………………..296.8
Haynes King, Georgia Tech………………………..296.0
Jack Plummer, Louisville ……………………………281.2
Tyler Van Dyke, Miami……………………………….260.5
Jordan Travis, Florida State………………………..257.0
Mich Griffis, Wake Forest……………………………249.8
ALL EYES ON THE ACC
In Week 1 of the 2023 season, the ACC captivated the national audience, averaging an astounding 5.1 million viewers over their 12 contests, per ESPN.
The 5.1 million average viewers were more than double all other conferences in the highest average per game viewership for the week of college football games.
Overall, the ACC was part of three of the top seven most-watched games for Week 1.
Through Week 2, the ACC had three home broadcasts with 4M+ viewers – no other conference had more than one.
Week 4 of the 2023 season saw Florida State and Clemson average 6.7 million viewers (Sept. 23), making it the most watched ACC Noon kickoff game since 2014. It was also the most watched regular-season ABC Noon kickoff game since 2019.
ACC football led the Power 5 in windows and average viewership on ABC through the first four weeks, as the ACC had five of the top 10 most watched games on ABC over that span.
ESPN’S BEST LABOR DAY SUNDAY
ESPN’s Labor Day Showdown Between No. 5 LSU and No. 8 FSU registered 9.5 million viewers on ABC during the Seminoles win.
The game was the most-watched Labor Day Sunday game since Notre Dame and Texas in 2016 and the second-most watched on record, having peaked at 10.3 million viewers.
ACC COACHING NOTES
Two new football coaches were hired in the ACC for the 2023 season: Georgia Tech’s Brent Key and Louisville’s Jeff Brohm. Key was hired after going 4-4 as the Yellow Jackets’ interim head coach in 2022. Brohm returned to his alma mater after a six-year stint at Purdue.
Among active head coaches, the ACC’s Dabo Swinney (Clemson), Mack Brown (North Carolina), Mike Norvell (Florida State) and Dave Doeren (NC State) rank among the top 30 in the nation in career winning percentage. Brown is second among all active coaches with 278 wins.
Clemson’s Swinney owns 164 career wins, the 10thmost among active coaches. Swinney joins Bobby Bowden (173) as the only head coach ever to lead an ACC program to 150 wins.
Two of the five active coaches to win a national title reside in the ACC. Dabo Swinney led Clemson to national titles in 2016 and 2018. North Carolina’s Mack Brown won a national title at Texas in 2005.
Four current league coaches have won ACC Coach of the Year honors – North Carolina’s Mack Brown (1996), Clemson’s Dabo Swinney (2015 & 2018), Wake Forest’s Dave Clawson (2021) and Duke’s Mike Elko (2022).
CLIMBING TO THE TOP
The Tigers’ Dabo Swinney has 164 wins in his 16 seasons at Clemson, which is one behind Frank Howard and his 165 victories. Swinney is just two wins away from becoming the winningest head coach in Clemson football history.
NC State’s Dave Doeren has 75 wins in now his 11th season at the helm of the Wolfpack program. His 75 wins are the second-most in NC State history behind Earle Edwards (77) and puts him just three wins away from becoming the all-time winningest coach in Pack history
ELITE COMPANY
Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm has the Cardinals at 5-0 to start the season, his first at his alma mater. With the 5-0 start, Brohm is just the sixth head coach to start 5-0 in his first season with a team in the ACC over the last 45 years.
MILESTONE WINS IN 2023
North Carolina head coach Mack Brown recorded his 100th career win as the head coach for the Tar Heels with the 31-17 win over South Carolina on Sept. 2.
With his 100th win at UNC, Brown etched his name in the college football record books as the only coach to have won 100 games or more at two different FBS schools. He totaled 158 wins at Texas in 16 seasons from 1998-2014.
Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson picked up his 150th career win as a collegiate head coach with the Demon Deacons’ 37-17 win over Elon on Aug. 31. The season-opening victory was Clawson’s 60th at Wake.
Louisville first-year head coach and alumnus Jeff Brohm recorded his first career win as the head coach of his alma mater with a 39-34 victory over Georgia Tech at the Aflac Kickoff Game on Sept. 1. The win also marked Brohm’s first conference win in the ACC.
Clemson’s Dabo Swinney recorded his 100th ACC regular-season conference win with the Tigers’ 31-14 road win at Syracuse on Sept. 30. He joined Bobby Bowden (117) as the only two head coaches to have 100 or more conference regular-season wins in the ACC.
HISTORICAL TOP-10 WINS
In the Labor Day primetime game on Sept. 4, the Duke Blue Devils upended No. 9 Clemson 28-7 in Wallace Wade Stadium in the two teams’ season opener. The win was the first time the Blue Devils had beaten a top-10 team since defeating then-No. 7 Clemson in 1989, snapping a losing streak of 28 straight games to top-10 teams.
On Sept. 3, the No. 8 Florida State Seminoles defeated No. 5 LSU 45-24 in the Camping World Kickoff in Orlando, Fla. FSU’s 45 points were tied for the most in a season opener against an AP top-5 teams in the Poll era (since 1936). As the lower-ranked team, the Seminoles also recorded the first 20+ point win over an AP top-5 team since 1988 with the season-opening victory.
ACC WITH THREE NAMED TO 2023 GOOD WORKS TEAM
n The ACC had three student-athletes from three different
institutions named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team
this week. Will Shipley of Clemson, Ja’Mion Franklin of
Duke and Gavin Bartholomew of Pitt were three of the 11
student-athletes chosen for the FBS Good Works Team.
AROUND THE ACC
Boston College: Quarterback Thomas Castellanos passed for 305 yards and ran for 95 more in BC’s week three game against then-No. 3 FSU. He became just the 22nd quarterback since 1996 to have gone over 300 passing yards and 95 rushing yards in a game against an AP-ranked top-25 opponent. Castellanos’ 1,092 yards passing through five games are the fourth most at BC since 1981. He is one of two BC quarterbacks, joining Phil Jurkovec (2020) in that span with 1,000-plus passing yards and 10-or-more touchdown passes in his first five games. Castellanos’ 358 rushing yards lead the team and are fourth all-time by a BC quarterback in a season.
Clemson: Freshman wide receiver Tyler Brown recorded career highs in receptions (nine) and receiving yards (153) in the win last week at Syracuse. Brown recorded his first career 100-yard receiving performance in his fifth career game. He became only the seventh player in Clemson history with a 100-yard receiving game within the first five games of a career. Brown’s 153 receiving yards were the most by a Clemson true freshman since Justyn Ross’ 153 yards against Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game to conclude the 2018 season and the most by a Clemson player of any grade classification since Cornell Powell’s 176 yards against Pitt in 2020. Brown recorded his first career rushing attempt on a reverse in the second quarter, gaining 23 yards.
Duke: Duke outrushed Notre Dame by 30 yards at 189 to 159, led by a game-high 88 rushing yards from quarterback Riley Leonard. Duke running back Jordan Waters had 13 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown in the loss to the Irish. With the touchdown run, Waters has recorded a rushing touchdown in five consecutive games, marking the first Blue Devil to do so since Leonard from Oct. 15-Nov. 19, 2022. This season, Waters has rushed 52 times for 303 yards and eight touchdowns.
Florida State: Quarterback Jordan Travis broke FSU’s career touchdown responsibility record (82), passing 2000 Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke, with the record-breaking touchdown being the game-winning pass in overtime at Clemson. Travis has thrown at least one touchdown pass in 16 consecutive games, FSU’s longest stretch since 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston’s 27-game streak in 2013-14, which includes a
career-high four passing touchdowns in the 45-24 win versus then-No. 5 LSU in the season opener.
Georgia Tech: True freshman wide receiver Eric Singleton Jr. caught a 53-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game in the loss to Bowling Green to give him a touchdown reception in each of the first five games of his collegiate career. Singleton is the first Yellow Jacket with a touchdown reception in five consecutive games since Kelly Campbell caught touchdown passes in six straight games in 2000 (Sept. 30 vs. North Carolina-Nov. 18 vs. Maryland). Singleton Jr. is second on the team with 18 catches for 335 yards on the season.
Louisville: Placekicker Brock Travelstead sent the Cardinals to their sixth-straight win dating back to last season with a school record 53-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to put the Cards ahead 13-10 with 5:32 to play. The field goal breaks the old mark of 52 yards set by Wilbur Summers, Ron Bell, Klaus Wilsmeyer, Nate Smith, and Chris Philpott. Travelstead kicked two field goals in the game to improve to 6-of-8 on the season. He booted four field goals in the opener versus Georgia Tech and two in Friday night’s win over NC State.
Miami: Miami has scored at least 38 points in each of its first four games of the season, the first time since 2002. The Hurricanes opened the year with a 38-3 win over Miami (OH) and followed that with a 48-33 win over Texas A&M, a 48-7 win over Bethune-Cookman, and a 41-7 win over
Temple. Miami’s average of 43.8 points per game ranks eighth among FBS programs.
North Carolina: Through four games, North Carolina is averaging 296.8 passing yards per game, which ranks third in the ACC and 20th in the FBS. Quarterback Drake Maye has tallied 1,187 passing yards through four games this season and is the only Tar Heel quarterback to start a season completing 20 or more passes in four straight games.
NC State: Linebacker Payton Wilson tallied 10 tackles over 68 snaps to lead the Wolfpack defense in the loss at Louisville last week. With the 10 stops, Wilson has 18 double-figure tackle outputs for his career, including four in 2023. He has led the team in tackles in all five games of the season – with 10 stops at UConn, 14 versus Notre Dame, nine (while playing just 39 snaps) against VMI, 13 versus Virginia, and 10 at home against Louisville. He has 26 more tackles than any other Wolfpack player with 56 total tackles, which leads the ACC and ranks eighth in FBS in tackles per game at 11.2 per contest. He also led the league in tackles in 2020.
Pitt: The Panthers are averaging 23.4 points per game this season but are allowing 26.0 points per contest. While they have outgained their opponents 1,541 to 1,508 total yards of offense this season, turnovers have hampered the Panthers, who have committed eight and forced just four on the year.
Syracuse: Syracuse’s defense ranks ninth in the nation and leads the ACC in tackles-for-loss, averaging 8.2 per game. The Orange recorded a season-high 13 tackles-for-loss against Clemson, which ranks tied for eighth for an FBS team this season. The Orange are averaging 3.2 sacks per game, which is tied for 18th nationally and second in the ACC. Syracuse also ranks ninth nationally and first in the ACC in turnovers gained with 11. The five fumble recoveries are good for first in the ACC and seventh in the nation.
Virginia: Quarterback Tony Muskett, who returned from an injury in the season opener versus Tennessee, was 22-of-34 passing for 247 yards and three touchdowns in the road loss to Boston College last week. He is the first UVA quarterback with three touchdown passes in a game since Brennan Armstrong had three at Pitt in 2021. A UVA quarterback has thrown for 200 or more yards in three straight games. It was Muskett’s 18th 200-yard passing game of his career and first at UVA.
Virginia Tech: In his third start of the season, quarterback Kyron Drones completed 12-of-19 pass attempts for 228 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Pittsburgh. He also rushed for 41 yards and two touchdowns, accounting for five touchdowns on the night. Drones is the first Virginia Tech player to account for five touchdowns in a game since Josh Jackson did it in 2017 against East Carolina. He is just the sixth Virginia Tech player to accomplish the feat of accounting for at least five touchdowns in a game.
Wake Forest: The Deacs’ defense had a historic performance with a program record 10.0 sacks in the win over Old Dominion in Week 3. The 10.0 sacks included 3.0 sacks each from Jacob Roberts and Jasheen Davis, which tied them for the second-most sacks in a single game in school history. Roberts (5.0) is tied for first in the ACC in sacks going into Week 6, while Davis is third (4.5) overall. Additionally, Wake Forest ranks third in the nation in sacks per game (4.0). The Deacs are tied for the lead in the ACC with 16.0 total sacks through five weeks despite playing one less game than Syracuse and Pitt.
