Jackets look to forge Coastal tie

CLEMSON -- After momentarily blowing a 24-point lead against Clemson and then following with a loss at Miami, some wrote off Georgia Tech.

The No. 19 Yellow Jackets (5-1, 3-1 ACC) responded with three straight wins and host No. 4 Virginia Tech at 6 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2) for a chance to move into a tie with the Hokies (5-1, 3-0) and No. 9 Miami (4-1, 2-1) in the Coastal Division.

While the Hokies present a difficult matchup with the No. 1-ranked ACC scoring offense and No. 2 scoring defense, the Yellow Jackets might be able to compete in a high-scoring game.

Georgia Tech's trio of running back Jonathan Dwyer, receiver Demaryius Thomas and quarterback Josh Nesbitt, might be the best in the conference.

Three up

ACC offenses (sans Clemson)

For the first time in conference history, each victorious ACC team scored 42 or more points last week.

Boston College coach Frank Spaziani said most responsible for the offensive surge is experienced quarterbacks, and there is something to that as ACC quarterbacks have 16 300-yard games this season, more than last season's total.

Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner (5th), Virginia Tech's Tyrod Taylor (10th), Miami's Jacory Harris (17th), FSU's Christian Ponder (21st) and N.C. State's Russell Wilson (25th) all rank in the top 25 of passing efficiency.

Television ratings

Under the category of good timing, Miami's 21-20 win over Oklahoma drew a 4.84 television rating. It was ABC's top-rated prime-time game this season. Earlier in the year, Miami's win over Florida State drew a 5.89 rating, the most viewed regular season college game in ESPN's history.

For comparison, Florida's win at LSU Saturday drew a 3.4 rating on CBS.

Remember, the ACC's television contracts are up in 2011, and the conference will be negotiating for dollars to stay in the ballpark with the SEC's new lucrative TV deals.

Duke

The Blue Devils equaled their ACC win total of the previous four years Saturday -- Duke was 1-31 in the ACC from 2005-08 -- with a decisive 49-28 win at N.C. State. Duke quarterback Thaddeus Lewis threw for a career-high 459 yards, earning national offensive player of the week honors.

So is this the beginning of an unlikely rebirth for the Blue Devils under David Cutcliffe? Cutcliffe, who became the only coach at Mississippi to begin with five straight seven-plus win seasons, says he believes he can win at Duke. And if he can't, he has another candidate in mind -- Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.

"Anyone who can coach defense in basketball can coach football," Cutcliffe said. "He loves football. … He's a strict disciplinarian."

Three down

Miami's health

While the Miami offense has been great, it will have to do even more heavy lifting as the Hurricanes' defense lost three more players to season-ending injuries this week, including starting corner Ryan Hill.

Miami also lost reserve linebacker and special teams ace Jordan Futch to a season-ending injury along with reserve end Dyron Dye. They join reserve end Gavin Hardin and linebacker Shayon Green who are out with season-ending injuries.

The Atlantic Division

Might Georgia Tech and North Carolina -- hey, even Virginia (1-0) is undefeated in the Coastal -- begin calling for realignment?

The Atlantic's top three preseason teams -- Florida State, Clemson and N.C. State -- are a combined 1-7 in ACC play. The Atlantic does not have a single ranked team and is the only division in a power conference that does not possess a top-25 team.

Weather

Apparently autumn has been canceled.

What was once a cool, dry season, weather has interrupted ACC games three times with lightning delays. The Florida State-Georgia Tech game was delayed more than an hour Saturday, pushing the conclusion into early Sunday morning. The other two delays occurred at Clemson.

By the numbers

67.6 -- Wake quarterback Riley Skinner's career completion percentage, the best in ACC history. Former Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub is second at 67 percent.

180.58 -- Skinner's pass efficiency rating over the last four games, completing 94 of 133 passes for 1,364 yards and 12 touchdowns and four interceptions.

8,395 -- Skinner's career total yardage; he's the active leader in the ACC. While Skinner won't be able to catch the ACC's career leader, former N.C. State star Philip Rivers (13,582 yards), his current pace would vault him into the top 10.

Quote of the week

"You hear about a great quarterback being recruited, the savior of the program, and then somebody else plays and wins a bunch of games. It happens more than people really notice," Clemson defensive coordinator Kevin Steele on the production of Skinner, who was a little sought-after recruit out of Bolles High in Jacksonville, Fla.

Trav's take

--While much of the blame for Clemson's offensive woes has been directed at the staff, perhaps this number is most responsible: 5.

That's the number of college starts for Kyle Parker.

All the ACC's top-rated quarterbacks are in at least their second years starting, and Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe noted it's especially difficult for young quarterbacks if they are not surrounded by an excellent supporting cast.

Clemson offensive coordinator Billy Napier believes Parker can make a leap in production in the season's second half -- Clemson Nation hopes he's right.

--Prior to the season, Clemson's home date against Wake appeared to be a likely win. Now it looks like a pivotal game.

A loss puts Clemson two games under .500 in the ACC, with a trip to Miami looming, followed by ACC games against Florida State and at N.C. State. If the Tigers want to contend in the Atlantic and for a bowl, it might be a must-win. A Wake Forest victory gives the Demon Deacons a 3-1 ACC record and at least a two-game lead over the preseason Atlantic favorites.

--As Virginia Tech creeps back into the top five, Tyrod Taylor is creeping into Heisman race.

In wins at Duke and Boston College, he posted back-to-back quarterback ratings of more than 230 points. He's also a threat to run for 100 yards on the ground, challenging C.J. Spiller's as the ACC's most dynamic weapon.

HIGH FIVE

Ranking the ACC's most experienced quarterbacks via career starts

1 - Thaddeus Lewis, Duke, 40

2 - Riley Skinner, Wake, 37

3 - Jameel Sewell, Virginia, 27

3 - Chris Turner, Maryland, 26

4 - T.J. Yates, North Carolina, 24