This Week in ACC Football |
STANDINGS:
Conference Points Overall Points
AROUND THE ACC:
Three conference matchups and Virginia at Penn State comprise Week #12 schedule ... Three ACC teams - NC State, Florida State and Maryland - earning rankings in Coaches’ poll … Maryland’s Steve Suter ties NCAA single-season record with four punt returns for a touchdown ... three ACC quarterbacks - NC State’s Philip Rivers (3rd), Virginia’s Matt Schaub (8th) and Maryland’s Scott McBrien (10th) - among top 10 nationally in passing efficiency ... Schaub has thrown a TD pass in nine straight games ... Tech’s Luke Manget has made an ACC-record 153 consecutive PATs ... Manget moves into fourth on ACC career scoring list with 306 points ... NC State’s T.A. McLendon needs 138 more yards to become the fourth freshman in ACC history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season.
ACC NOTES:
UVa’s Lundy on pace to set frosh reception mark With 43 catches through his first eight games, Virginia tailback Wali Lundy is on pace to break the existing ACC mark for receptions by a freshman set by Maryland’s Frank Wycheck with 58 catches in 1990 ... if maintained, Lundy’s 4.7 per game reception average would give the Willingsboro, N.J., product 62 catches at the end of the season.
ACC Freshmen Season Receptions 1.Frank Wycheck, Md. 1990 58 2.Derrick Hamilton, Clem. 2001 49 3.Koren Robinson, NCS 1999 48 4.Robert Lavette, GaT 1981 45 5.Wali Lundy, UVa 2002 43 6.Tamarick Vanover, FSU 1992 42 7.Andrew Carter, Md. 1993 41 8.Kory Bailey, UNC 1998 38 9.Corey Thomas, Duke 1994 37 Randall Felton, UNC 1989 37
Maryland’s Steve Suter ties NCAA punt return record
Steve Suter’s 77-yard punt return for a touchdown in the Terrapins’ 59-7 win at North Carolina Saturday was his fourth of the season, setting an ACC record and tying an NCAA single-season record:
*With 92 yards on four returns against the Tar Heels, the Manchester, Md., sophomore also established a new ACC single season record for punt return yardage with 574 yards.
*With four games remaining in the 2002 season, Suter is already 23rd on the ACC career punt return yardage list with 577 yards.
*Suter leads the ACC and is 18th nationally in punt returns (14.7).
*With one more kickoff return, Suter would rank 13th nationally ... has averaged 26.3 yards on 10 returns ... the NCAA minimum is 1.2 returns per game.
ACC Single-Season Punt Return Yardage Rk. Player, School Year Yds. 1. Steve Suter, Md. 2002 574 2. Kelley Rhino, GaT 2001 515 3. Corey Sawyer, FSU 1992 488 4. Troy Slade, Duke 1973 440 5. Fred Coombs, NCS 1967 434
Streaking Terp
Junior quarterback Scott McBrien has played a key role in Maryland’s current six-game winning streak ... over the last six games the Rockville, Md., native has completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,242 yards and eight touchdowns for a 181.99 passing efficiency, raising his passing efficiency rating on the season from 92.1 to 148.56.
McBrien’s Last Six Games Opponent Cm. Att. Int. TD Yds E. Michigan 14 19 0 3 300 Wofford 11 19 0 1 128 W. Virginia 8 18 0 1 162 Georgia Tech 11 19 0 0 198 Duke 16 21 1 2 264 N Carolina 6 11 0 1 190
Comeback Cavs
Virginia leads all ACC teams with four second-half and three fourth-quarter comebacks in 2002 ... the Cavaliers have trailed in seven of Al Groh’s 11 victories at Virginia the last two seasons ... of Virginia’s last eight victories, six have come after they trailed at halftime.
Largest Comebacks to Win Game 21 by Virginia (0) vs. UNC (21) Halftime 17 by Virginia (10) vs. WF (27) Halftime 14 by Florida St. (0) vs. WF (14) 2:04, 1st Q 10 by Clemson (7) vs. Duke (17) Haftime 10 by NC State (7) vs. UNC (17) 10:04 3rd Q 9 by Clemson (7) vs. WF (16) 3:51 2nd Q
Halftime Comebacks Team No. Opponent & Points Trailed Clem. 2 WF-2, Duke-10 FSU 1 WF-4 GaT 1 BYU-3 UNC 1 Syr-1 NCS 1 UNC-3 UVa 4 USC-1, WF-17, CU-6, UNC-21 WF 1 GaT-4 Cavaliers by the Numbers Virginia 1st Half 2nd Half Points 8.6 21.3 Yards 147.6 222.5 Opponents 1st Half 2nd Half Points 19.1 8.4 Yards 249.5 187.1
GAME PREVIEWS:
Saturday, November 9
#13 NC State (9-1, 4-1 ACC)
at #25 Maryland (7-2, 3-1 ACC)
ABC; Noon
Byrd Stadium (48,055)
THE GAME: A full house is expected for this one as the Terps and Wolfpack meet for the 59th time in a series that has gone uninter-rupted since 1954 ... Maryland has won the last two meetings but the Wolfpack has won eight of the last 11 to take a 28-26-4 lead in a series that was first contested in 1909 ... the Terps own a 13-11-2 edge in games played in College Park.
LAST YEAR: Maryland clinched its first outright ACC title in 16 years when Shaun Hill teamed with Guilian Gary on a eight-yard scoring pass with 41 seconds left to play lifting the Terps to a 23-19 win before 51,500 in Raleigh.
THE COACHES: Chuck Amato is 24-10 in his third season at NC State ... Ralph Friedgen is 17-4 in his second season at Maryland.
Fast Facts:
* Maryland has won six of its last seven home games against ACC opponents while the Wolfpack has won four-in-a-row against ACC foes on the road.
* The Terps are 2-4 all-time against AP-ranked NC State teams, including a 2-2 mark in Byrd Stadium.
* In the Terps’ six-game winning streak, QB Scott McBrien has completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,242 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception and has upped his passing effieciency rating from 92.7 to 148.6.
* The team with the most rushing yardage has won eight of the last nine meetings ... NC State has totaled 400 or more yards in four of the last 5 meetings, and in six of the last nine.
* NC State leads the ACC and is seventh nationally in scoring offense (38.5) while Maryland leads the ACC and is eighth in the nation in scoring defense (14.4).
Clemson (5-4, 3-3 ACC)
at North Carolina (2-7, 0-5 ACC)
JP Sports; Noon
Kenan Stadium (60,000)
THE GAME: The Tar Heels play their final home game of the 2002 season when they tangle with long-time rival Clemson for the 51st time in a series that started in 1897 ... Clemson leads the series 31-18-1, but North Carolina has won four of the last six meetings ... the Tigers are 13-9-1 in Kenan Stadium and have won five of the last eight games played in Chapel Hill.
LAST YEAR: Darian Durant completed 11 of 11 passes for 97 yards and one TD and Andre Williams ran for 91 yards and one score as UNC handed the 13th-ranked Tigers a 38-3 defeat in Death Valley.
THE COACHES: Tommy Bowden is 27-18 in four years at Clemson and 46-21 in six seasons overall ... John Bunting is 10-12 in two years at UNC and 48-26-2 in six seasons overall.
Fast Facts:
* Under Bowden, the Tigers are 9-6 in ACC road games.
* North Carolina has held Clemson under 275 yards in total offense in six of the last nine meetings and have allowed the Tigers only 252.2 yards per game over that span.
* The team with the most rushing yardage has won six in a row in the series, and nine of the last 10 meetings.
* Clemson leads the ACC and is 19th in Division I-A in pass defense (176.4) while UNC leads the ACC and is 16th nationally in passing offense, averaging 280.9 yards per game.
* North Carolina’s Tar Heels have thrown for 200 or more yards in 15 of their last 16 games ... Clemson is eighth in the nation with 15 interceptions and has picked off at one pass in 10 of its last 11 games.
#17 Florida State (6-3, 5-0 ACC)
at Georgia Tech (6-3, 3-3 ACC)
ABC; 3:30 p.m.
Bobby Dodd Stadium (42,000)
THE GAME: Florida State takes to the road for the second-straight week travelling to Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech in a regionally-televised affair on ABC ... the Seminoles have won all 10 meetings since joining the ACC in 1992 and lead the rivalry by a 10-7-1 margin ... the Seminoles have won five in a row in Bobby Dodd Stadium and have not lost in Atlanta since a 30-0 setback in 1975 ... overall, Georgia Tech owns a 7-5-1 advantage against FSU at home.
LAST YEAR: Chris Rix threw for 219 yards and two touchdowns and Greg Jones ran 23 times for 101 yards in a 28-17 Florida State win.
THE COACHES: Bobby Bowden is 256-62-4 in 27 years at FSU and 329-94-4 in 37 seasons overall ... Chan Gailey is 6-3 in his first year at Georgia Tech and 30-14 in four years overall.
Fast Facts:
* Florida State is the only ACC school with a winning record against the Yellow Jackets.
* Since 1992, the Seminoles have averaged 37.9 points and 459.4 yards in 10 games against Georgia Tech and have outgained Tech in nine of those 10 meetings.
* The two teams have combined for only three turnovers in the last three meetings ... FSU has only two turnovers in the last five meetings while Tech has only two miscues in the last three games against the Seminoles.
* Florida State leads the ACC and is 18th nationally in rushing offense (218.1) while Tech leads the ACC and is 28th in the nation in rushing defense (117.3)
* The Yellow Jackets have allowed only 110 yards rushing in the last two games and have held five of their nine opponents this season to under 100 yards rushing.
Virginia (6-3, 4-2 ACC)
at #19 Penn State (6-3 3-3 Big Ten)
ABC; 3:30 p.m.
Beaver Stadium (107,282)
THE GAME: Virginia’s Cavaliers take a break from conference play when they travel to University Park to take on 19th-ranked Penn State ... UVa has won the last two meetings but still trails in the series 4-2 ... the Nittany Lions won the first four meetings by an average margin of 20.0 points per contest ... the two teams split the first two games played in Beaver Stadium.
LAST YEAR: Tailback Antwoine Womack ran for 153 yards on 31 carries as Virginia defeated Penn State 20-14 in Charlottesville ... the Cavaliers came up with five turnovers, including a 92-yard return of a fumble recovery for a touchdown by cornerback Art Thomas.
THE COACHES: Al Groh is 11-10 in his second year at UVa and 37-50 in seven seasons overall ... Joe Paterno is 333-99-3 in his 37th season as head coach at Penn State and his 53rd year on the Nittany Lion staff.
Fast Facts:
* Penn State’s three losses have been by a total of 16 points, including two in overtime ... the Nittany Lions are 34-6 in non-conference play since joining the Big Ten in 1993.
* Virginia has outscored its opponents 192-to-76 in the second half while Penn State owns a 144-to-85 edge in second half scoring.
* Saturday’s game marks Virginia’s first visit to Beaver Stadium since a 14-6 Cavalier win in 1989.
* Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub is eighth nationally in passing efficiency and has throw a touchdown pass in nine straight games.
* Since Penn State’s Joe Paterno became head coach in 1966, there have been 710 head coaching changes in Division I-A.
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