ACC Football

Clemson Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence is ready to return to the field after missing his team's last two games with COVID-19.

"I feel just as good as I did when I left a few weeks ago," Lawrence said, per Pete Iacobelli of the Associated Press. "Back to normal."

Clemson plays Florida State on Saturday and is coming off a bye week, which gave its star quarterback additional time to recover. It also doesn't have much room for error after struggling some without him.

The Tigers overcame an 18-point deficit to beat Boston College and lost to Notre Dame in double-overtime while Lawrence was sidelined. Another conference loss would put them further behind the Fighting Irish and behind the Miami Hurricanes in the ACC standings, putting a potential spot in the conference title game in jeopardy. 

That would also significantly hinder their chances of reaching the College Football Playoff.

Fortunately for Clemson—and NFL evaluators looking to watch him again before he potentially goes No. 1 in the 2021 draft—Lawrence is back to lead its national title push.

The remainder of the Miami Hurricanes' 2020 schedule looks a bit different following Monday's announcement from the ACC. 

The conference announced it rescheduled three of Miami's games because of positive COVID-19 tests within the program. The decision to do so also impacted the schedules for other teams in the conference.

Here is a look at the changes:

• Wake Forest at Louisville moved from Dec. 5 to Nov. 28
• Miami at Wake Forest moved from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5
• Western Carolina at North Carolina moved from Dec. 11 to Dec. 5
• Louisville at Boston College moved from Nov. 27 to Dec. 12
• North Carolina at Miami moved from Dec. 5 to Dec. 12
• Georgia Tech at Miami moved from Nov. 21 to Dec. 19 (only if Miami is not in the ACC Championship Game and if it will not impact who plays in that game)

"We are disappointed that we will not be able to play the next two weeks as scheduled but this decision was made in the best interests of the health and safety of all teams," athletic director Blake James said in a statement. "The health and safety of our student-athletes is always our top priority and we will continue to follow the conference’s protocols in order to safely and responsibly return to play."

Miami is No. 12 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll and still a darkhorse contender for the College Football Playoff at 7-1. Its last three wins against Virginia, North Carolina State and Virginia Tech came by a combined nine points, which, when coupled with a 25-point loss to Clemson, caused it to fall in the rankings.

The Hurricanes will need some help to reach the conference title game even with their impressive record.

Clemson has the head-to-head tiebreaker, and Notre Dame is undefeated at 8-0 overall and 7-0 in the conference. Miami does not play the Fighting Irish, meaning it doesn't have the opportunity to make up that ground in a head-to-head showdown.

As for the COVID-19 issues within the program, Andrea Adelson of ESPN noted 13 players were unavailable for Saturday's game against the Hokies for unidentified reasons.

However, head coach Manny Diaz said the game was "on the brink" of being postponed because of the number of COVID-19 cases and close contacts on the team.

Coming off a marquee win against the top-ranked team in the nation, No. 2 Notre Dame was able to avoid a letdown this week with a 45-31 victory over a feisty Boston College team on Saturday at Alumni Stadium.

The Fighting Irish moved up to second in the Associated Press Top 25 after defeating Clemson last Saturday. It's their highest ranking since the 2012 season when they advanced to the BCS Championship Game.

Clemson was also the only remaining ranked opponent on Notre Dame's regular-season schedule, though Boston College had all the makings of a trap game. The Eagles played Clemson tough two weeks ago before falling 34-28.

Ian Book led the way for Notre Dame's offense with 283 passing yards, 85 rushing yards and four total touchdowns.

After allowing an 80-yard touchdown drive on Boston College's first possession, the Irish defense only gave up 277 yards over the next 10 drives.

Notable Game Stats

• Ian Book, QB (ND): 20-27, 283 yards, 3 TDs; 10 carries, 85 yards, TD
• Chris Tyree, RB (ND): 17 carries, 74 yards
• Ben Skowronek, WR (ND): 5 receptions, 63 yards, 3 TDs
• Phil Jurkovec, QB (BC): 18-40, 272 yards, 2 TD, INT; 7 carries, 34 yards
• Travis Levy, RB (BC): 9 carries, 51 yards
• Jaelen Gill, WR (BC): 5 receptions, 105 yards

Ian Book's Improved Play Solidifies Irish as Title Favorites

If there were a scouting report opposing teams used to beat Notre Dame, it would focus on making Book beat them through the air.

The senior quarterback has been tasked to be a game manager because the Irish have a potent rushing attack and dominant defense. He only threw more than 25 passes three times in the first six games.

Last week's win against Clemson, which only allowed 109 points in its first seven games, looked like a potential turning point for Book. He went 22-of-39 for 310 yards and one touchdown in the 47-40 overtime win.

Turning the page to Boston College could have given head coach Brian Kelly a natural excuse to go back to relying mostly on the running game for production.

Instead, Book continued his strong play by completing a season-high 74.1 percent of his attempts and tying his season high with three touchdown passes.

Book remains a weapon in the running game, but now he's making defensive coordinators aware that they have to prepare for Notre Dame's aerial attack.

Notre Dame's defense has shown some cracks in the past two games, but it hasn't mattered because Book is lifting the team with his arm.

If this evolution holds for the rest of the season, Book will give the Irish a legitimate argument for the title of best team in the nation.

Eagles Offense in Steady Hands with Jurkovec

Phil Jurkovec's quest for revenge against Notre Dame came up short, but the sophomore quarterback continues to look like a great building block for Boston College.

After spending the previous two years as a backup at Notre Dame, Jurkovec transferred to Boston College for the opportunity to start. He told Mike White of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in September that he "was really not liking football" toward the end of his Irish tenure.

Jurkovec's results through nine games at Boston College seem to indicate he's found that passion for the sport again.

Notre Dame's defense has humbled many quarterbacks so far in 2020. Jurkovec completed fewer than 50 percent of his passes for the first time this season. There are still going to be growing pains, but the overall results have been very encouraging.

Jurkovec threw for at least 300 yards in four of the first five games this season and entered Saturday ranked among the best quarterbacks in then nation in several key categories:

First-year head coach Jeff Hafley is still building the Eagles program. He has a terrific resume after serving as Ohio State's secondary coach last season after three years as a defensive backs coach with the San Francisco 49ers.

Finding a quarterback is the easiest path to success for any program. Jurkovec isn't a finished product after nine starts, but his overall results have to be encouraging for what he can become in 2021 and beyond.

What's Next?

Notre Dame has 13 days off before traveling to Kenan Memorial Stadium on Nov. 27 for a showdown with North Carolina. Boston College will play its final home game of the season on Nov. 27 against Louisville.

Miami was able to avoid an upset against Virginia Tech on Saturday, but head coach Manny Diaz admitted afterward that the game came close to not happening at all.

Diaz told reporters following his team's 25-24 win that the Hurricanes were "were on the brink" of not playing and had to wait for the results of the final COVID-19 tests before deciding to go ahead with the game:

"(The players) wanted to play, and we were right on the brink at some position groups whether we could even function as a team. Some guys had to step up. We were really down on numbers at offensive line. It makes it hard to practice. It makes it hard to do anything, but no one cares right? You go play a game and there's no excuses. The players came here to win the game. I told them I thought they won the game on Fri with their mentality and their attitude with all the things we had to go through this week."

Miami has been announcing players as "unavailable" one hour before games without offering any specific reason.

Prior to the Hurricanes' game against Virginia on Oct. 24, eight players were scratched right before kickoff.

"It's just the reality of 2020," Diaz said two days later in an interview with 560-AM (h/t David Furones of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel).

Per Susan Miller Degnan and David Wilson of the Miami Herald, the Hurricanes didn't have 13 players available for Saturday's game against Virginia Tech for undisclosed reasons. Three of them—Jakai Clark, Jared Harrison-Hunte and Zach McCloud—are starters.

Miami's roster crunch comes as programs across the country continue to deal with COVID-19 outbreaks. There were 15 games this weekend either canceled or postponed.

The Hurricanes have played all eight of their games to this point in the season. They have three games remaining in the regular season.

Miami entered Saturday's game having to play without 13 players, including three starters, because of a COVID-19 outbreak.

For most of the day, it looked like those absences would prove too costly.

D'Eriq King had other ideas.

The Miami quarterback threw for 255 yards and had two total touchdowns, including a 36-yard toss to Mark Pope in the fourth quarter, to give the Hurricanes a 25-24 win over Virginia Tech on Saturday.

Miami scored the game's final two touchdowns after trailing 24-13 late in the third quarter, moving to 7-1 on the season. The Hurricanes' only loss came against then-top-ranked Clemson. 

Notable Stats

Miami

QB D'Eriq King: 24-of-38, 255 yards, 1 TD, 18 carries, 15 yards, 1 TD
RB Cam'Ron Harris: 14 carries, 63 yards, 1 TD
WR Dee Wiggins: 8 receptions, 106 yards

Virginia Tech

QB Hendon Hooker: 19-of-29, 202 yards, 1 INT, 21 carries, 59 yards, 1 TD
RB Jalen Holston: 4 carries, 36 yards, 2 TD
WR Tre Turner: 5 receptions, 86 yards

Miami's NY6 Bid Stays Alive

Even if the Hurricanes go undefeated the rest of the way, they have almost no chance at reaching the College Football Playoff. They're clearly locked in as the third-best team in the conference, behind a Clemson squad that destroyed them in Miami and a Notre Dame team that defeated the Tigers—albeit without Trevor Lawrence.

A Notre Dame-Clemson rematch looks like an exceedingly strong bet for the ACC Championship Game, assuming Lawrence is able to return for the Tigers' final three games. Without a conference title, Miami won't sniff a playoff berth, even if Manny Diaz's team finishes 9-1.

However, Saturday's victory does put the Hurricanes in position for their first New Year's Six selection since the advent of the CFP. 

The Hurricanes close their season with home games against Georgia Tech and North Carolina. Assuming they can keep up with the Tar Heels' high-octane offense, their biggest test may come on the road at Wake Forest—another team that can rack up the points quickly through the air.

Miami will be favored, likely pretty strongly, in each of those games. Win out, and Diaz and Co. are playing on New Year's.

Justin Fuente Era Continues Moving Forward in Mediocrity

This will almost certainly be the third straight season Virginia Tech fails to finish in the Top 25. After a promising first two seasons in Blacksburg, Justin Fuente's Hokies have descended back into the mediocrity that befell the program in the last few years of Frank Beamer's run.

Fuente was supposed to bring innovation and youth to a program that needed a jolt of life. Instead, Virginia Tech is...a very clear middle-of-the-pack program in arguably the worst top-to-bottom Power Five conference. 

It does not appear Fuente is on any type of hot seat; it's lukewarm at best, especially after he was lavished with a contract extension that extends through the 2023 season. Virginia Tech doesn't appear to be in the business of paying out massive contract buyouts.

That said, it'd be more than fair if Hokies alumni and fans started clamoring for a more noticeable improvement heading into 2021.

What's Next?

Virginia Tech travels to Pittsburgh. Miami hosts Georgia Tech.

Pitt and Georgia Tech were scheduled to play Saturday, but COVID-19 protocols have forced the Panthers and Yellow Jackets to postpone the contest to Sat., Dec. 12. 

An ACC press release announced the new date and provided more information about the reasoning for the move: "The rescheduling follows positive tests, subsequent quarantining, and contact tracing within the Georgia Tech and Pitt football teams. The teams are adhering to the minimum outlined protocols within [the] ACC Medical Advisory Group report, which is available on theACC.com (full report)."

Pitt announced Thursday that all football team activities have been paused because of COVID-19 protocols. The Panthers are still scheduled to play at home against Virginia Tech on Sat., Nov. 21 before visiting Clemson on Sat., Nov. 28.

The Panthers have gone 4-4 this season. Georgia Tech is 2-5.

College football games have been canceled or postponed en masse because of COVID-19 protocols. This week alone, four games featuring Top 25 teams have been postponed, and a matchup between No. 3 Ohio State and Maryland has been canceled outright.

High-profile players have also been forced to sit out because of COVID-19 while their teams' seasons continue forward. Of note, Clemson star quarterback Trevor Lawrence missed a pair of games against Boston College and Notre Dame after being diagnosed with COVID-19.

The vast majority of college football games are still ongoing, but schools should face significant challenges to play out their seasons amid a pandemic that led to a daily record of over 144,000 new cases on Wednesday in the United States, per the COVID Tracking Project.

Most teams' seasons will be done within a month, however, with regular seasons ending in early-to-mid December. 

As of now, the last round of conference championships are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 19. The College Football Playoff semifinals are set for Friday, Jan. 1, and the national championship is slated for Monday, January 11.

Florida State head coach Mike Norvell gave an update on defensive tackle Marvin Wilson, wide receiver Tamorrion Terry and quarterback James Blackman on Wednesday regarding their respective futures with the program. 

According to Brendan Sonnone of 247Sports, Norvell said Wilson will miss the remainder of the 2020 season with the leg injury that kept him out last week against Pittsburgh.

Sonnone also reported that Norvell said Terry is "no longer with the program" and Blackman has opted out of the remainder of the 2020 season with an eye toward transferring after he graduates.

Norvell also said graduate transfer offensive lineman Devontay Love-Taylor will miss the rest of the season after suffering an apparent knee injury against Pitt, per Sonnone. Norvell is optimistic that Love-Taylor will be granted an extra year of eligibility in 2021 by the NCAA, however.

Wilson was widely viewed as FSU's best player entering the 2020 season after he registered 44 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and five sacks as a junior last season.

The talented defensive lineman is expected to enter the NFL draft, and Bleacher Report draft expert Matt Miller projected him to be a second-round pick in a 2021 mock draft he posted in September.

After making 35 catches for 744 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman in 2018, Terry truly broke out last season with 60 grabs for 1,188 yards and nine scores.

Expectations were high entering the 2020 campaign, but Terry has been limited by a knee injury and has just 23 catches for 289 yards and one touchdown this season.

According to Sonnone, a source said Terry is weighing all of his options, including returning to Florida State in 2021, transferring elsewhere or entering the NFL draft.

In his 2021 NFL mock draft, Miller had Terry coming off the board early in the third round.

Blackman was Florida State's primary starter at quarterback in 2017 and 2019, and he backed up Deondre Francois in 2018.

He began 2020 as the Seminoles' starter as well, but after making two starts he was replaced by Tate Rodemaker and then Jordan Travis.

In four appearances this season, Blackman completed 56.6 percent of his passes for 366 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.

Blackman's best statistical season was in 2017 as a freshman when he completed 58.2 percent of his attempts for 2,230 yards, 19 touchdowns and 11 picks. He also threw for 2,339 yards, 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season.

Florida State is off to a difficult 2-5 start this season, but it will look to get back on track Saturday against NC State.

As expected, there is a new—though not unfamiliar—team atop college football's two major polls. After Clemson, which was missing star quarterback Trevor Lawrence, fell to No. 4 Notre Dame on Saturday, Alabama ascended to the top spot in both the Associated Press Top 25 and Coaches Poll, garnering 59 of 62 first-placed votes in former and 55 of 62 in the latter.

The Fighting Irish, meanwhile, moved up to No. 2 in both polls and leapfrogged 3-0 Ohio State, which dispatched Rutgers 49-27 on Saturday. Clemson fell to No. 4, though the Tigers still control their College Football Playoff destiny and will likely meet Notre Dame again in December's ACC Championship Game.

Elsewhere in the Top 25, there were no upsets, but Florida's domination of then-No. 5 Georgia moved the Gators into Playoff conversation at No. 5 in the Coaches Poll and No. 6 in the AP rankings. The Bulldogs have all but seen their hopes of winning the SEC East disappear, with Florida now having a full one-game lead—plus the head-to-head tiebreaker—over Georgia.

Upstart Group of Five schools Cincinnati and BYU both put together impressive wins in Week 10, but the Bearcats were jumped by Florida and Texas A&M, which dropped them to No. 7 in both polls. The Cougars are right behind them at No. 8. If neither can get into the CFP, only Cincinnati is eligible for an automatic New Year's Six bowl bid because BYU isn't affiliated with a conference.

AP Top 25

1. Alabama (59 first-place votes)
2. Notre Dame (2)
3. Ohio State (1)
4. Clemson
5. Texas A&M
6. Florida
7. Cincinnati
8. BYU
9. Miami
10. Indiana
11. Oregon
12. Georgia
13. Wisconsin
14. Oklahoma State
15. Coastal Carolina
16. Marshall
17. Iowa State
18. Oklahoma
19. SMU
20. USC
21. Texas
22. Liberty
23. Northwestern
24. Auburn
25. Louisiana-Lafayette

Coaches Poll

1. Alabama (55 first-place votes)
2. Notre Dame (4)
3. Ohio State (3)
4. Clemson
5. Florida 
6. Texas A&M
7. Cincinnati 
8. BYU
9. Miami
10. Indiana
11. Georgia
12. Oregon
13. Oklahoma State 
14. Wisconsin
15. Marshall
16. Iowa State
17. Coastal Carolina
18. Oklahoma 
19. SMU
20. USC
21. Auburn
22. Liberty 
23. Northwestern
24. Texas 
25. Army

Analysis

The more things change, the more they stay the same—at least when it comes to the elite teams in college football. As they have been at numerous points over the past few years, Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State are in the middle of the College Football Playoff conversation. Each school controls its destiny too.

Even with Clemson's loss to Notre Dame, the Tigers simply have to win out—a doable task—and beat the Irish in the ACC title game. And for that game, they should have Trevor Lawrence.

For the rest of the top 10, sneaking into the CFP won't be easy. Florida will almost certainly need to win out and then beat Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Texas A&M already lost to the Crimson Tide—quite handily, to boot—and still has an early-December showdown with No. 24 Auburn on the schedule. The Aggies beat Florida earlier this season, but without a path to the SEC Championship Game, it's hard to see how they could get into the top four.

For the Group of Five schools, it's going to take a lot of luck if either one is going to end up with a berth in the CFP. Neither has played a particularly daunting schedule, in large part because Power Five schools went to conference-only schedules this season.

If BYU wins out, it would likely get an at-large bid to a New Year's Six bowl, and Cincinnati would get the G5's auto bid. But if either slips up, Coastal Carolina, Marshall, and Liberty are all still undefeated. Even then, it seems BYU and Cincinnati are a cut above those teams, and the College Football Playoff selection committee is likely to agree.

Follow Keegan on Twitter, @ByKeeganPope.