ACC Rewind | U of L's division wide open
A week after dropping an Atlantic Coast Conference game at Virginia, the University of Louisville almost received a gift via Clemson, which took Florida State to overtime on Saturday night.
Almost.
The Seminoles, playing without quarterback Jameis Winston, held on to take over the Atlantic Division lead. And it's a division still wide open with U of L getting shots at both powers.
That and more in our weekly look around the league:
ATLANTIC DIVISION
1. Florida State (3-0, 1-0) — Winston, his repeat Heisman candidacy in doubt, watched from the sidelines as FSU went to overtime for the first time since losing to Penn State in the 2006 Orange Bowl. This one the Seminoles won, 23-17, over visiting Clemson. (http://on.tdo.com/1Dq0aEx)
2. Louisville (3-1, 1-1) — As a whole, U of L's 34-13 victory over FIU was less than impressive. individually, however, receiver James Quick and defensive back Gerod Holliman emerged as stars on Saturday. (http://cjky.it/1yl2Djt)
3. NC State (4-0, 0-0) — The Wolfpack are one of 25 undefeated teams left in the nation after Saturday's 42-0 win over Presbyterian, though Florida State is up next. (http://bit.ly/1seS0MC)
4. Syracuse (2-1, 0-0) — The Orange's offensive coordinator, George McDonald, compared Syracuse's 34-20 losing effort to Maryland to finishing second in the Olympics. His team's 589 yards of offense weren't enough. (http://bit.ly/1DqE3hc)
5. Wake Forest (2-2, 0-0) — The Deacons shut out Army's triple-option offense in the second half, rallying for a 24-21 victory ahead of their ACC opener against U of L. "We had balance. We ran the football. We protected well," said coach Dave Clawson. (http://bit.ly/1seUdHO)
6. Boston College (3-1, 0-1) — Following up on their upset of USC last weekend, the Eagles beat Maine 40-10 but had to first recover from a 7-0 deficit. "We were afraid coming into this game after that tremendous emotional high a week ago," said coach Steve Addazio. "You're just set up for that." (http://bit.ly/1tHWjhM)
7. Clemson (1-2, 0-1) — The Tigers missed a pair of field goals, blew a scoring chance at the goal line and fumbled in Florida State territory during the fourth quarter Saturday. In a position to win the game, coach Dabo Swinney said, "We just didn't do it." (http://grnol.co/1p7A5R0)
COASTAL DIVISION
1. Georgia Tech (4-0, 1-0) — Undefeated through four games for the first time since 2011, the Yellow Jackets got there by converting a 4th and 15 inside of three minutes to play before quarterback Justin Thomas delivered a game-winning, 31-yard touchdown pass in a 27-24 win over Virginia Tech. (http://on-ajc.com/1mvEz8y)
2. Pittsburgh (3-1, 1-0) — The Panthers have belonged to a conference for 24 years. With their 24-21 loss Saturday to Iowa, they continued a streak of never going unbeaten in the non-conference portion of their schedule. (http://bit.ly/1wVPYC1)
3. Virginia (2-2, 1-0) — U of L fans looking for some solace in last week's defeat — the Cavaliers had another shot at beating a Top 25 team — didn't get it as Virginia lost 41-33 at No. 21 BYU in a game where starting quarterback Greyson Lambert left with an injury. (http://bit.ly/1ubcOod)
4. Duke (4-0, 0-0) — Coaches usually reference a look at the film after losses. Duke's David Cutcliffe said Saturday he "can't wait" to re-watch his team's 47-13 win over Tulane, because "this tape is going to tell us a lot about our football team." (http://bit.ly/ZzkXpE)
5. North Carolina (2-1, 0-0) — Score six touchdowns and still lose by 29? UNC did that Saturday, falling 70-41 at East Carolina, which racked up 789 yards of total offense. The Pirates also broke the record for Tar Heels points allowed previously set by U of L in 2005 with 69. (http://bit.ly/XSIEbj)
6. Miami (2-2, 0-1) — The Hurricanes were no match for Nebraska on the road, and in particular the Cornhuskers' star running back. Ameer Abdullah rushed for 229 yards on 35 carries in a 41-31 Miami loss that included a second-half scuffle. (http://hrld.us/1wCNzsX)
7. Virginia Tech (2-2, 0-1) — Saying that "we're just not playing Virginia Tech football right now," coach Frank Beamer was left looking for answers in its second straight loss, this one the Hokies' ACC opener to Georgia Tech. (http://bit.ly/1scR4bx)
Jonathan Lintner can be reached at (502) 582-4199; follow him on Twitter @JonathanLintner .