Gene Sapakoff: Week 8 – ACC football Best and Worst includes Clemson defense, Daniel Rodriguez, hot seat for Frank Spaziani and Paul Johnson

Top 5

Schedule aid. This is how Clemson gets away with having the No. 99 rushing defense for a while: lack of firepower from upcoming foes. Rushing offense rankings include Virginia Tech at No. 78, Wake Forest 97, Duke 104, Maryland 118 and N.C. State 82.

Wake-up call. Virginia Tech scored 41 unanswered points to drub Duke. And turn its season around?

Giovanni Bernard. Tar Heels RB has 439 yards over the last two weeks.

Duke, relatively speaking. Still 5-2 (2-1 in ACC) despite the loss at Virginia Tech. David Cutcliffe has led the Blue Devils to 20 wins in four-plus seasons, one more win than Duke had in the 12 previous seasons.

Daniel Rodriguez. Clemson special teams contributor and decorated Army vet will get a Military Appreciation Day salute Saturday at the Virginia Tech game.

Bottom 5

Hot Seat Bowl. Frank Spaziani or Paul Johnson (or both) under pressure in the Boston College-Georgia Tech game.

Miami Pound Machine. The Hurricanes are in first place in the Coastal Division with a 3-1 ACC record but have been outscored over six games (226-195) thanks to lopsided losses to Kansas State and Notre Dame.

Bowl slots. The ACC has eight bowl tie-ins (not including the BCS Championship Game) but filling those spots will be challenging. Florida State is the only ACC team with six wins. Which could put that Military Bowl bid up for grabs.

Russell Wilson. The better the Seattle Seahawks’ rookie QB plays, the more it haunts N.C. State.

Boston College. The Eagles (1-5, 0-3) have crash-landed, managing to get worse for four games in a row since a 34-3 victory over the Maine Black Bears.

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