CLEMSON FOOTBALL

This Week in ACC Football


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Standings:

                      Conference  Points          Overall   Points      

Team W L T For Opp Pct W L T For Opp Pct

Virginia............ 1 0 0 56 24 1.000 2 0 0 100 38 1.000

Georgia Tech........ 1 0 0 28 24 1.000 2 0 0 56 31 1.000

Miami............... 1 0 0 16 10 1.000 1 0 0 16 10 1.000

Clemson............. 1 1 0 61 58 .500 1 1 0 61 58 .500

Maryland............ 0 0 0 0 0 .000 2 0 0 68 42 1.000

NC State............ 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 0 0 42 0 1.000

Virginia Tech....... 0 0 0 0 0 .000 1 1 0 76 24 .500

North Carolina...... 0 1 0 24 56 .000 1 1 0 73 94 .500

Wake Forest......... 0 1 0 30 37 .000 1 1 0 61 54 .500

Duke................ 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0 2 0 32 49 .000

Florida State....... 0 1 0 10 16 .000 0 1 0 10 16 .000

Saturday, September 18 Series TV Time

Duke at Virginia Tech Duke (7-4-0) JP noon

Maryland at W. Virginia Maryland (21-19-2) ESPN2 noon

Louisiana Tech at Miami Miami (3-0-0) 1:00

Akron at Virginia Virginia (1-0-0) 3:00

Ohio State at NC State Ohio State (1-0-0) ABC 3:30

Georgia Tech at UNC Georgia Tech (20-16-3) 6:05

NC A&T at Wake Forest First meeting 6:30

UAB at Florida State Florida State (1-0-0) ESPN2 6:30

Clemson at Texas A&M Texas A&M (2-0-0) TBS 7:00

Week #4 Schedule:

Saturday, September 25

Maryland at Duke JP/Ray noon

NC State at Virginia Tech ESPN noon

Boston College at Wake Forest ESPN2 noon

Louisville at North Carolina 1:35

Clemson at Florida State ABC 3:30

Syracuse at Virginia 3:30

ACColades:

Nine games - involving all 11 ACC schools - comprise a full schedule for week three ... Virginia Tech hosts Duke in Hokies’ ACC debut Saturday ... four teams - Miami (4). Florida State (8), Virginia (12) and Maryland (21) - ranked in AP poll while eight ACC teams receive votes ... ACC teams are 8-3 (.727) versus non-conference opponents ... three of the first four ACC games of the season decided by four points or less or in overtime ... three ACC teams have win streaks of five or more games ... ACC teams draw 339,859 fans (102% capacity) over five home games in week two ... junior QB Cory Randolph became the first Wake Forest player, and the third ACC player ever, to total more than 300 yards passing (344) and 100 yards rushing (107) in Saturday’s 31-17 win at East Carolina ... Miami makes ACC debut with a 16-10 overtime win Friday over Florida State in only the second meeting between two top 5-ranked ACC teams in history ... Maryland’s Nick Novak (344) is the ACC’s all-time leading scorer while Florida State’s Xavier Beita (302) is ninth.

Team Notes:

Clemson


After opening the season with home games against Wake Forest and Georgia Tech, the Tigers play their next three games on the road at Texas A&M, Florida State and Virginia ... QBCharlie Whitehurst has thrown for 200 yards or more eight games in a row and in 17 of his 20 career starts and is 25th among ACC career passing leaders with 5,678 yards ... Airese Currie leads the ACC in receptions per game (7.5) and receiving yards (116.0) ... Reggie Merriweather ran for a career-high 90 yards on eight carries in Saturday’s loss to Georgia Tech ... ILB Leroy Hill had 14 tackles against the Yellow Jackets.

Duke


Tailback Cedric Dargan, who rushed for 114 yards in the season opener against Navy, missed Saturday’s Connecticut game with a leg injury ... the Blue Devils became the first team in 26 games to not allow UConn’s Dan Orlovsky to throw a touchdown pass ... the Blue Devils open the season with three straight road games for just the sixth time in school history ... QB Chris Dapolito completed 12 of 21 passes for a career-high 129 yards against the Huskies ... true freshman Daniel Charbonnet had eight tackles against UConn in place of injured CB Kenneth Stanford.



Florida State


The Seminoles dropped their season opener 16-10, in overtime, at Miami Friday night ... FSU is ranked eighth in this week’s AP poll ... Bobby Bowden, with 342 wins in 38 years, is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division I-A history … senior PK Xavier Beitia is ninth among ACC scoring leaders with 302 points … QB Chris Rix leads all active ACC quarterbacks in total offense (8,429), passing yards (7,633), touchdown passes (60) and is second in rushing yardage (796) ... CB Antonio Cromartie had an interception and scored FSU’s only TD with a 61-yard return of fumble for a score.



Georgia Tech


Georgia Tech scored three touchdowns in the final five minutes, including the game-winner with just 11 seconds left, in a 28-24 win at 18th-ranked Clemson Saturday … QB Reggie Ball threw four TD passes, three of them to freshman WR Calvin Johnson, who scored twice in the final two minutes on receptions of eight and 11 yards ... in two games, Ball has completed nearly 60 percent of his passes (34-for-57) for 452 yards with six touchdowns ... P.J. Daniels leads the league with 272 yards rushing ... Daniels recorded his eighth 100-yard game with 103 yards against Clemson.



Maryland


Joel Statham completed 18-of-25 passes for 268 yards and two scores in Saturday’s 45-22 win over Temple ... Maryland is 2-0 for the first time since 2001 and ranked 21st in this week’s AP poll ... Nick Novak has made four of his five field goal attempts and is the ACC's all-time leading scorer (344) ... Josh Allen is 17th on the Terps’ all-time rushing list (1,429) ... Steve Suter is second among ACC career punt return leaders (1,156) ... FB Sam Maldonado ran for a career-high 106 yards and two touchdowns against Temple and is averaging 6.0 yards per carry in his career (495 yards on 83 attempts).



Miami


Frank Gore ran 18 yards for the game-winning touchdown as the Hurricanes made their ACC debut with a 16-10 overtime win over Florida State Friday night ... with the victory, Larry Coker is 36-3 (.923) in four seasons as the Hurricane head coach … Miami intercepted FSU quarterback Chris Rix twice and limited him to 12 completions in 28 attempts for 108 yards ... Miami is ranked fourth in this week’s AP poll ... senior QB Brock Berlin completed 20 of 36 passes for 255 yards and one TD against FSU ... WR Sinorice Moss had career highs with four receptions for 112 yards against FSU.



North Carolina


Three of the Tar Heels’ next four games are at home ... QB Darian Durant completed 11 of 15 passes for 128 yards against Virginia Saturday ... Durant is 15th on the ACC career passing list (6,879) and has thrown a TD pass in nine straight games and in 27 of his last 31 regular season games ... Durant is eighth among active NCAA quarterbacks in passing yardage (6,879) and ninth in total offense (7,596) ... UNC is second in the ACC and 18th nationally in total offense (504.5) ... reserve QB Matt Baker completed eight of nine passes for 171 yards and a TD against UVa in the fourth quarter.



NC State


The Wolfpack has scored in 105 consecutive games, the fifth-longest scoring streak in ACC history and a school record … starting QB Jay Davis completed 16 of 22 passes for 168 yards and two TDs in the season opener against Richmond while backup QB Marcus Stone completed eight of 10 passes for 61 yards ... T.A. McLendon, who missed the Richmond game with a strained hamstring, is ninth in career points scored (174), 11th in rushing (1,709) and 14th in all-purpose yardage (2,431) ... 44 of John Deraney’s 88 career kickoffs have resulted in a touchback.



Virginia


Wali Lundy scored three touchdowns and Marquis Weeks returned a kickoff 100 yards in Saturday’s 56-24 win over North Carolina ... Lundy leads the team in rushing with 177 yards on 36 carries ... Lundy has scored six touchdowns in the first two games of the season and leads the NCAA in scoring (18.0) ... Virginia is fifth nationally in kickoff returns (39.4), 11th in punt returns (18.2) and sixth in scoring (50.0) ... in the first two games, junior quarterback Marques Hagans has completed 27 of 34 passes for 420 yards and one TD; Hagans leads the ACC, and is third nationally, in passing efficiency (192.9).



Virginia Tech


Senior quarterback Bryan Randall threw for 253 yards and two TDs in Saturday’s 63-0 win over Western Michigan in the first of four straight home games for the Hokies ... Randall has started 27 straight games and leads all active ACC quarterbacks with 993 career rushing yards … Randall is 15th among active IA quarterbacks in career total offense (5,529) ... Tech has blocked 103 kicks in 203 games under Frank Beamer and has won 21 of the last 25 games in which it has blocked a kick ... the Hokies make their ACC debut when they host Duke this Saturday.



Wake Forest


In Saturday’s 31-17 win over East Carolina, QB Cory Randolph became the first Wake Forest player ever, and only the third ACC player, to total more than 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in a single game ... Randolph threw for 344 yards and added 107 rushing against the Pirates; both of his yardage totals were career highs ... Randolph is second in the ACC and 22nd nationally in total offense (269.0) ... Chris Barclay is second in the ACC in rushing (122.5) and has run for 120 yards or more in six of his last nine games ... the Deacons lead the ACC with four interceptions.



By the Numbers:


3 - Touchdown receptions by Georgia Tech true freshman Calvin Johnson in Saturday’ 28-24 come-from-behind win at Clemson ... finished with eight catches for 127 yards against the Tigers.

5 - Five different freshmen - Eddie Royal (2), John Kinzer, Justin Harper, Brandon Flowers and Duane Brown - accounted for six of Virginia Tech’s nine touchdowns in Saturday’s 63-0 win over Western Michigan.

6 - Miami’s Hurricanes have held opponents to under 110 yards passing in six of their last eight games.

6.0 - Career rushing average of Maryland senior fullback Sam Maldonado ... ran for a career-high 106 yards and two touchdowns against Temple Saturday ... has 495 career rushing yards on 83 attempts.

18.7 - Career yards per reception average of Wake Forest wide receiver Jason Anderson ... Anderson has 1,929 yards and 15 touchdowns on 103 catches.

36 - Punt return yardage needed by Maryland’s Steve Suter to pass NC State’s Ledel George (1990-93) and become the ACC’s all-time leader ... Suter is currently second with 1,156 yards.

44.88 - Wake Forest’s Ryan Plackemeier is the ACC’s all-time punt leader with a 44.88 yards per punt average.

121 - Passing yards needed by North Carolina quarterback Darian Durant to become only the 15th player in ACC history to throw for 7,000 yards or more.

162.48 - Career passing efficiency rating of Virginia junior quarterback Marques Hagans ... has completed 68 percent of his passes for 781 yards and five touchdowns.

342 - Florida State’s Bobby Bowden, with 342 wins in 38 years, is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division I-A history.

451 - Total offense yards by Wake Forest junior quarterback Cory Randolph in Saturday’s 31-17 win at East Carolina ... became only the third player in ACC history (Charlie Ward, FSU and Woodrow Dantzler, Clemson) to total more than 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing ... Randolph completed 16-of-21 for 344 yards and two TDs and ran 16 times for an additional 107 yards and a third score.

Game Previews:

Saturday, September 18

Duke (0-2, 0-0 ACC)

at Virginia Tech (1-1, 0-0 ACC)

JP; 12:00 p.m.

Lane Stadium (65,115)



THE GAME: Virginia Tech will play host to its first-ever conference game as a member of the ACC when the Hokies welcome the Duke Blue Devils to Blacksburg in the Jefferson Pilot, ACC Game of the Week. Duke is 7-4 all-time against Virginia Tech in a series dating back to 1937. The Blue Devils carried the early momentum in the series winning the first six meetings, outscoring the Hokies 207-19 including three shutouts. Virginia Tech though has won three straight and four of the last five against the Blue Devils. In 1984, the last meeting between both teams, the Hokies downed the Blue Devils, 27-0.



THE COACHES: Frank Beamer enters his 18th season at Virginia Tech and his 24th year overall ranked fourth among active Division 1-A coaches in victories with 168. With the Hokies, Beamer has posted a record of 126-75-4. Ted Roof enters his first full season as head coach of the Duke Blue Devils with an overall mark of 2-5. Roof owns a 2-2 mark in ACC play.



FAST FACTS



• Duke has lost nine consecutive conference openers with its last victory coming against Maryland, a 49-16 win in Durham back in 1994. The Blue Devils are 2-8 in their last ten league, road openers having lost four straight. Duke’s last ACC road win to open a season came in 1999, a 24-17 double overtime victory over Virginia. This game is the first league game for Virginia Tech as a member of the ACC.



• Duke’s John Talley registered his frst career defensive touchdown last week against Connecticut, scoring on a 62-yard interception return. The INT was Talley’s third of his career. The Hokies Brandon Flowers recorded his first collegiate interception and returned it 38-yards for a touchdown against Western Michigan. Talley and Flowers are the only players in the ACC thus far to have scored a TD off an interception.



• Virginia Tech’s Bryan Randall is fourth in the ACC in total offense averaging 244 yards through two games this season. Randall has thrown a TD in four straight games dating back to last season.



• In his first career start, junior TB Cedric Dargan established career highs in both rushing attempts (20) and yards (114) in Duke’s season-opening loss to Navy. He missed the UConn game due to injury.



#19 Maryland (2-0, 0-0 ACC)


at #7 West Virginia (2-0, 0-0 Big East)


ESPN2; 12:00 p.m.


Mountaineer Field (63,000)



THE GAME: Maryland travels to Morgantown, WVa. on Saturday in search of their fifth straight victory over the Mountaineers of West Virginia. The Terps lead the overall series 21-19-2. Last season, the Terps and Mountaineers squared off twice. In the first meeting, Maryland posted a 34-7 victory at home out-gaining West Virginia 498-156 in total yards. Sammy Maldonado and Josh Allen combined for 142 rushing yards while the defense recorded four sacks. Both teams met again in the Gator Bowl as Maryland once again dominated, 41-7. Steve Suter returned a punt 76 yards for a TD and Nick Novak collected a pair of field goals in the win.



THE COACHES: Ralph Friedgen is 33-8 in his fourth season at Maryland and is the first coach in ACC history to lead a team to three straight seasons of 10 wins or more. Friedgen is undefeated against the Mountaineers in four tries (4-0). Rich Rodriguez enters his fourth season with West Virginia posting an overall record of 22-17 and is looking for his first win against Maryland.



FAST FACTS



• In 2004, Maryland has outscored its opponents 38-2 in the first half, while West Virginia has maintained a 70-19 advantage in the first half of play in its two games this season.



• Maryland is 2-0 to start a season for the first time since 2001 when the Terrapins finished the year as the ACC Champions with a 10-2 record. West Virginia is 2-0 for the first time since 2000. That year the Mountaineers finished 7-5. The last time the Terps started 3-0 was back in 1999.



• West Virginia will host a ranked opponent for the first time since 1998. The last time Maryland traveled to Morgantown ranked in the top 25 dates back to 1976 when the Terps, ranked 10th-nationally, downed W.Va. 24-3.



• Maryland’s Sammy Maldonado and Josh Allen have combined for 331 yards on the ground and five rushing touchdowns this season. The Terrapins are ranked fourth in the ACC averaging 200.5 rushing yards a game.



• In Maryland’s win over Northern Illinois to open the season, junior D’Qwell Jackson doubled his career interception total (2) when he picked off Huskie QB Phil Horvath on consecutive drives.



Louisiana Tech (2-0, 1-0 WAC)


at #4 Miami (1-0, 1-0 ACC)


1:00 p.m.


Orange Bowl (72,319)



THE GAME: Louisiana Tech, members of the Western Athletic Conference, makes their way to the Sunshine State to take on Miami in the Orange Bowl. The Hurricanes are 3-0 lifetime against Louisiana Tech. In 2003, QB Brock Berlin returned to his hometown for the first time since his high school playing days to lead the Hurricanes passed the Bulldogs, 48-9. Berlin completed 50 percent of his passes for 203 yards and two TDs. Frank Gore rushed for 118 yards on 21 carries and Ryan Moore led all wideouts with four catches for 67 yards and one TD. The Hurricane defense compiled three sacks and forced three turnovers in the win.



THE COACHES: Larry Coker is 36-3 in his fourth season with the Miami Hurricanes. Coker has won 18 of 19 games at the Orange Bowl while maintaining a 7-1 mark against non-conference opponents. Louisiana Tech’s Jack Bicknell is in his sixth season as the head coach of the Bulldog program posting a record of 29-32. Bicknell is 0-2 versus the University of Miami.



FAST FACTS



• Miami has led the nation in pass defense in each of the past two seasons and finished second in 2001. Over the past three seasons, the Hurricanes have allowed only 132.7 yards per game while intercepting 56 passes. To open the 2004 campaign, the Hurricanes held the Seminoles to 165 yards of total offense while forcing four turnovers (two fumbles and two INTs).



• Junior Sinorice Moss led the Hurricanes with 112 yards receiving against FSU including a 30-yard, game-tying touchdown with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter to send the game into OT. Brock Berlin has started at quarterback in three BCS Conferences, SEC-‘01, Big East-‘03, ACC-‘04.



• Miami’s Greg Threat and Roger McIntosh each compiled ten tackles in their first game as members of the ACC. Threat recorded a pair of pass breakups and one interception, while McIntosh was credited with half a quarterback sack.



• The Hurricanes have scored 40 touchdowns via non-offensive means (special teams or defense) over the last four seasons. Last year, Miami posted 10 TD’s and one safety. The Hurricanes led the nation in this category back in 2000 (11 TD’s and one safety) and 2001 (13 TD’s).



#7 Ohio State (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten)


at NC State (1-0, 0-0 ACC)


ABC; 3:30 p.m.


Carter-Finley Stadium (53,800)



THE GAME: After a triple overtime thriller in Columbus, Ohio a year ago, NC State and Ohio State will meet for only the second time with the Buckeyes winning the inaugural game 44-38 last season. The Wolfpack rallied from 17 points down in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime. Both teams combined for 653 yards of total offense as the Wolfpack held the overall advantage, 336-317. Offensively, Tramain Hall recorded a game-high nine receptions including a 17-yard TD strike in the first OT. NC State’s defense forced five Ohio State turnovers despite the loss.



THE COACHES: NC State head coach Chuck Amato is in his fifth year at the helm of the Wolfpack having compiled an overall record of 35-17. Amato is unbeaten at home against non-conference opponents (11-0) and is 18-2 overall. Now in his fourth year as head coach of Ohio State, Jim Tressel has compiled a 34-7 record and a 15-2 ledger outside Big Ten play.



FAST FACTS



• NC State will welcome its highest ranked opponent in Ohio State (No. 7) to Carter-Finley Stadium since 2000 when Florida State rolled into town ranked No. 6 in the nation. Amato and the Wolfpack are 3-7 against ranked competition since 2000.



• Jay Davis made his first career start at quarterback for the Wolfpack in their season opener against Richmond, a 42-0 victory. Davis completed 73 percent of his passes (16 for 22) against the Spiders throwing for 168 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.



• Tramain Hall and Lamart Barrett each pulled down six receptions in their first game of the season against Richmond. Hall is the Wolfpack’s top returning receiver from a year ago posting 69 receptions and 799 yards with seven TD’s. Barrett’s six receptions for 59 yards against the Spiders surpassed his career totals as a freshman in those two categories (five catches for 30 yards).



• Wolfpack John Deraney leads the ACC in punting with an average of 50.3 yards a kick. Deraney is also 2 for 3 in field goal attempts this season. Ohio State’s Mike Nugent is 3 for 4 in field goal attempts in 2004 including last weekend’s game winning, 55-yarder against Marshall as time expired.



Akron (0-2, 0-0 MAC)


at #12 Virginia (2-0, 1-0 ACC)


3:00 p.m.


Scott Stadium (61,500)



THE GAME: The Virginia Cavaliers will host the Akron Zips of the Mid-American Conference at Scott Stadium Saturday afternoon. The Zips return to Charlottesville for the first time since 2002 as both squads meet up for only the second time overall. Last time out, the Cavaliers posted a 48-29 victory. Wali Lundy accumulated 203 total yards and one rushing TD. Lundy and Alvin Pearman led the UVa rushing attack against the Zips running for 103 and 82 yards, respectively.



THE COACHES: Virginia head coach Al Groh is 24-17 in his fourth year at Virginia, including back-to-back postseason victories in the Continental Tire Bowl. Groh is 50-57 in 10 years overall. J.D. Brookhart enters his first season as head coach at Arkon having spent the seven seasons prior as an assistant on the University of Pittsburgh football staff. Brookhart currently holds an 0-2 record.



FAST FACTS



• In Virginia’s first two games this season, the Cavaliers have accumulated 14 touchdowns, 11 of which have come on the ground. That number is six shy of last year’s 17 rushing touchdowns scored by the Cavaliers.



• Marquis Weeks tied an ACC record for the longest kickoff return for a TD when he returned a kickoff 100 yards in the second quarter against North Carolina. It was the second time that Weeks has matched this feat; the first coming against North Carolina in Charlottesville in 2002.



• After failing to score a touchdown via a punt or kickoff return last season, Virginia has registered two in consecutive games. Alvin Pearman returned a punt 70-yards against Temple, while Weeks scored on a 100-yard kickoff return against the Tar Heels.



• Virginia’s Marques Hagans is 27 for 34 this year good for a 79 percent completion rate. Akron’s Charlie Frye has been equally as good posting a 75 percent completion rate going 60 for 80 in two games. Frye has passed for 622 yards and two TD’s, while Hagans has thrown for 420 yards and one TD. The Cavs have not allowed a sack this season. The Zips have given up six.



Georgia Tech (2-0, 1-0 ACC)


at North Carolina (1-1, 0-1 ACC)


6:05 p.m.


Kenan Stadium (60,000)



THE GAME: Georgia Tech and North Carolina tangle for the 40th time in a series that started in 1915 ... Tech has won the last six meetings and leads the series 20-16-3. North Carolina is 9-7-3 in games played on their home turf. A year ago, Georgia Tech used a 24-point fourth quarter to overcome the Tar Heels, 41-24. Both teams tallied 446 yards of total offense. P.J. Daniels gained 240 yards on the ground to lead Georgia Tech, while the Tar Heels’ Darian Durant threw for 289 yards and two TDs in the loss.



THE COACHES: Chan Gailey is in his third year at the helm of Georgia Tech where he has posted a mark of 16-12 and an overall record of 40-23 in five plus seasons. Gailey is 9-8 in ACC play while posting a 2-0 ledger against the Tar Heels. John Bunting is 14-25 in his fourth year at North Carolina. He owns an overall record of 52-39-2 in nine season as head coach.



FAST FACTS



• Georgia Tech’s P.J. Daniels is the early ACC leader in rushing yards gaining 272 yards on 49 carries good for an average of 136.0 yards a game. UNC’s Ronnie McGill and Jacque Lewis sit third and seventh in the league in rushing, respectively. McGill leads the Tar Heels with 190 yards on the ground, while Lewis is the early ACC leader in average yards per carry at 7.4.



• The Yellow Jackets’ Chris Reis is the conference leader in tackles with 24 (11 solo, 13 assists). The Tar Heels’ Fred Sparkman has registered 19 total tackles to lead North Carolina this season.



• North Carolina has executed on nine of ten opportunities in the red zone this season, scoring eight TD’s and one FG. Georgia Tech is 5 for 8 with all five scores resulting in a touchdown.



• Georgia Tech has opened conference play with a 2-0 mark four times in 22 seasons with the ACC. The last time the Yellow Jackets went 2-0 was 1998, when Georgia Tech opened at 4-0 finishing in a tie for first. The last time North Carolina followed an ACC loss with a win to open a season was 2001 when UNC fell to Maryland and then beat Florida State, 41-9.



Alabama-Birmingham (1-0, 0-0 C-USA)


at #8 Florida State (0-1, 0-1 ACC)


ESPN2; 6:30 p.m.


Doak Campbell Stadium (82,300)



THE GAME: The ACC and Conference USA will clash for the second consecutive week as Florida State welcomes Alabama-Birmingham to Doak Campbell Stadium in a nationally televised game on ESPN2. The Seminoles and Blazers meet for just the second time with both encounters occuring in Tallahassee, Fla. Florida State registered a 29-7 win over UAB back in 2001. QB Chris Rix posted his first career 200-yard passing game and rushing touchdown against the Blazers, while leading the Seminoles in the backfield with 52 yards on the ground.



THE COACHES: Bobby Bowden is 269-68-4 in 28 years at FSU and 342-100-4 in 38 seasons overall. Bowden is the all-time winningest Division I-A head coach with his 342 career victories. Watson Brown is in his 10th season at UAB and his 20th overall as a head coach. Brown has posted a mark of 48-54 at UAB and is 80-131-1 overall.



FAST FACTS



• Florida State has not lost a home opener at Doak Campbell Stadium since 1989 (34-23 loss to Clemson), a streak of 14 straight games. This is the second time the Seminoles have faced UAB to open their home schedule, the last coming in 2001.



• The Seminoles forced three turnovers in their season opener against Miami, including a 61-yard fumble return for a touchdown by sophomore Antonio Cromartie. Cromartie also had one interception in the game against the Hurricanes.



• UAB downed Baylor 56-14 in its season opener reaching its highest point total since becoming a Division I-A team in 1996. The Blazers tallied 516 yards of total offense including 343 yards rushing. UAB did not have a single rusher over 100 yards but three backs posted more than 68 yards on the groud. QB Darrell Hackney was 8 of 16 for 168 yards and three TD’s. Hackney also scored a rushing touchdown as well.



• Florida State holds an all-time record of 62-31-4 against current members of Conference USA. The Seminoles have gone undefeated against UAB (1-0), Cincinnati (6-0), East Carolina (7-0) and Tulane (10-0). FSU has a winning record against seven of the 11 members of C-USA. The Noles have never faced Army and South Florida.



North Carolina A&T (1-1, 0-0 MEAC)


at Wake Forest (1-1, 0-1 ACC)


6:30 p.m.


Groves Stadium (31,500)



THE GAME: With Wake Forest and North Carolina A&T only 34 miles apart and a combined 185 seasons of college football between the two schools, this will be the first meeting on the football field as the Demon Deacons host the Aggies at Groves Stadium. This will also be the first time the Demon Deacons have taken on an opponent from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.



THE COACHES: Jim Grobe is 19-19 in three seasons at Wake Forest and 52-52-1 in nine years overall. Grobe’s 18 wins through his first three seasons are the most by a Wake Forest coach since 1923-25 when Hank Garrity won 19. George Small is 11-4 in his second season with North Carolina A&T after leading the Aggies to double-digit victories for only the second time in school history and a MEAC Championship a year ago.



FAST FACTS



• QB Cory Randolph had a career game against East Carolina establishing career highs in passing (344) and rushing yards (104) for Wake Forest in the win. Randolph became the first quarterback in the ACC since Woodrow Dantzler back in 2001 to throw for 300 yards and rush for 100.



• Demon Deacon wideout Nate Morton also had a career-best day at East Carolina, eclipsing the 100-yard receiving mark for the first time and scoring his first collegiate touchdown. Morton came into the game with 160 career receiving yards in 12 games last season.



• Junior placekicker Matt Wisnosky has connected on four of five field goal attempts (39, 43, 38, 31) this season. Wisnosky’s four field goals this season already surpasses his total from a season ago of three. Wisnosky currently sits second in the ACC in kick scoring with 19 points (4 FGs, 7 PATs).



• With 66 yards rushing against the Pirates last weekend, Chris Barclay has now accumulated 2140 yards on the ground for his career. Barclay has rushed for 245 yards this season and needs only 64 yards to pass Anthony Williams for eighth place on the all-time rushing charts.



• North Carolina A&T could not hold a 13-3 fourth quarter lead against Alcorn State last weekend giving up a pair of touchdowns including a 2-yard run with 36 seconds left to give the Braves the 15-13 win.



#25 Clemson (1-1, 1-1 ACC)


at Texas A&M (1-1, 0-0 Big 12)


TBS; 7:00 p.m.


Kyle Stadium (82,600)



THE GAME: Clemson and Texas A&M will meet for the first time since 1974 and for only the third time overall. The Aggies have won both encounters holding the Tigers scoreless the last time out in a 24-0 win in Clemson’s only visit to College Station. This will be the first time that Texas A&M has faced a ranked Clemson team. This will be Clemson’s second appearance on TBS and first since a 48-0 win at Virginia in 1982. The Tigers have never faced a Dennis Franchione led team.



THE COACHES: Tommy Bowden is 39-25 in his sixth season at Clemson and 57-29 in eight years overall. While at Clemson, Bowden is 1-1 against the Big 12 beating Missouri in 2000 and falling to Texas Tech in 2002. Texas A&M head coach Dennis Franchione has posted a 5-9 ledger in his second season with the Aggies. Franchione is 160-82-2 in 22 seasons as a head coach.



FAST FACTS



• Leroy Hill garnered two sacks in last week’s game against Georgia Tech increasing his conference leading total to three on the season. Hill also leads the league in tackles for loss (5 for 39 yards) and is second in total tackles with 22. Clemson as a team has compiled ten sacks in two games to lead all schools in the ACC.



• After playing two straight contests at Memorial Stadium to open the season, the Tigers will travel to College Station for their first road trip of the season. This trip to Texas will be the beginning of what is the third longest average road trip in Clemson history. The Tigers will travel 2,857 miles for its five road games this year, an average of 571 miles.



• Over the past ten seasons, Clemson has posted a 5-5 record in its first road game of the season. Since 1989, the Tigers are 1-3 when their first road opponent is a non-conference foe with their last win coming in 1989 against Florida State.



• For the second consecutive week, Clemson’s Charlie Whitehurst completed 20 passes and stands just ten completions short of Woodrow Dantzler’s career record of 460.



• Texas A&M shutout Wyoming last week, 31-0 for the Aggies first win in 2004. Texas A&M gave up 582 yards of total offense in its season opening lost to Utah as opposed to 181 yards in a win over the Cowboys.



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