After three weeks, the ACC’s cleanest headline might be this: SMU and Louisville put on one of the weekend’s best games, and somehow the conference still came out of it with NC State’s collapse as the thing everyone remembers.
That’s the kind of league this is right now. The top end has enough noise to keep things interesting, the middle is crowded with teams you’re not quite sure how to read, and the bottom keeps finding new ways to make a mess.
Miami sits at the top for now, but the Hurricanes are already looking thin enough to raise questions about how they’ll handle the next stretch. Injuries are piling up, and the joke in the room is that Mario Cristobal may need to get active at the trade deadline. Of course, there’s no trade deadline in college football, which only makes the whole thing more absurd.
Louisville’s rise keeps getting harder to ignore. The Cardinals took down SMU, and the simplest explanation might be the one staring everyone in the face: maybe the secret is to get a former Ohio State quarterback.
SMU, for its part, didn’t get punished too harshly for the loss. Dropping a game at Louisville doesn’t exactly sink the Mustangs, especially when the performance itself was strong enough to keep them near the top tier.
Pitt has quietly become one of the more entertaining teams in the league, at least from the perspective of fans who appreciate chaos with their Saturdays. A number of Pitt supporters were quick to say they can’t wait to finish 7-5, and honestly, that confidence had a certain appeal.
Duke keeps stacking wins, but the big question remains the same: are the Blue Devils actually good? The results are there. The certainty is not.
Virginia Tech added another ACC road win over a Big Ten opponent, though it didn’t come with the usual national applause. ESPN, predictably, wasn’t in a hurry to make a scene about it.
Virginia took a loss to WVU, and that’s enough to keep the Cavaliers from climbing any higher.
Wake Forest deserves credit for a solid showing against Miami, and Gio Lopez’s renaissance continues to be part of that story.
California feels like the kind of team nobody wants to draw later in the season. Not flashy, maybe, but dangerous enough to make people uneasy.
Clemson survived North Carolina, though not without some eyebrow-raising decisions. Dabo twice opted to kick field goals from inside the 5, which led to the obvious question: what happened to bringing your own guts?
Florida State nearly had a much bigger win on its hands after leading Alabama 21-13 with 2:30 left in the first half. Instead, the Seminoles went into the break trailing 26-21. Yikes.
North Carolina’s situation has taken on a strange life of its own, with the joke now running toward Belichick being the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by November.
Georgia Tech finally got its first win of the season, and now the real test is seeing what comes next.
Syracuse catches a bye week at a useful time, because this is a program that’s in some danger.
Boston College held on to beat Maine by six points, and yes, that’s six points, not six goals.
Stanford remains part of the mix, even if the rest of the league is doing plenty to steal the spotlight.
In Other News...
Syracuse's Quarterback Situation Just Got A Lot More Uncomfortable
Syracuses quarterback conversation took a sharp turn in the loss to Pittsburgh, when Steve Angeli was pulled late after a rough second half changed the tone of the game. Angeli had looked steady early, completing 11 of 18 passes for 155 yards in the first half, but the offense stalled after halftime and the momentum shifted with it.
Fran Brown turned to Amari Odom after Angeli threw two fourth-quarter interceptions, and the late change added another layer of uncertainty to a position that already carries plenty of attention. For Syracuse, the issue is no longer just about one bad stretch in one game, but how Brown handles the spot moving forward if the inconsistency carries over. [Read more 🡒]
Fran Brown Is Facing A Syracuse Problem Fans Know Too Well
After Syracuses recent loss, Fran Brown spent part of his latest public comments trying to steer the conversation toward the bigger picture, leaning on the off-field traits he values and the development he believes his program is building. He also took questions about the teams DART concept and the penalties that have become part of the frustration surrounding the Orange, a reminder that the on-field issues are still difficult to separate from the message Brown is trying to sell.
For fans, the larger concern is familiar: they can appreciate a coachs culture talk and still want a direct accounting for what happened in the game. Brown now has to manage both sides of that equation, keeping faith in his program philosophy while showing enough accountability to satisfy a base that has seen too many disappointing outcomes already. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Just Got Two Early National Tests That Will Frame Both Seasons
The early nonconference calendar for Syracuses basketball programs is starting to take shape, and it brings a clear measuring-stick week in December. ESPN has unveiled the schedule and TV assignments for the fourth annual SEC/ACC Challenge, giving both the mens and womens teams a high-profile matchup with Oklahoma that should draw plenty of attention well before league play begins.
For the women, the Sooners will come to Syracuse on Dec. 3, while the men head to Oklahoma two days earlier on Dec. 1. The full slate of games and broadcast details is now set, and for both Orange teams, these are the kinds of early tests that can sharpen a seasons identity and offer an immediate read on where each roster stands. [Read more 🡒]