Opponents of Notre Dame: How likely is the second round against Clemson? – Inside the Irish

by



[ad_1]

Had Notre Dame lost to Clemson late on Saturday night, research into the CCA’s tiebreaking policies for 2020 would have led to a rabbit hole focusing on a metric called the team’s scoring score created. by an entity known as SportSource Analytics.

Who knows. Notre Dame won.

As a result, any question of whether the Irish No.2 will face the No.4 Tigers again on December 19 in Charlotte comes down to the very first line of these tiebreakers:

1. Head-to-head competition between the two tied teams.

As long as Clemson and Notre Dame win, then yes, in five weeks the second round will be presented, simply because the Tigers beat Miami, 42-17, a month ago. Junior quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns, adding another rushing. Running back Travis Etienne had 149 yards and two touchdowns. The supposed tilt was more of a blowout.

Its lasting effects are twofold:
– The Hurricanes’ inability to compete with Clemson underscores the shock value of Saturday’s Irish victory; It had been so long since an ACC opponent had truly challenged the five-time defending conference champions.
– The Tigers hold this tiebreaker one-on-one.

Other concerns are simple: If Clemson loses in the next few weeks, the viability of the rematch will depend on losing Miami. The same is true if Notre Dame loses, but that would also include the aforementioned rabbit hole and the intention is to stay above ground the week after Ireland’s biggest win in 27 years.

Clemson’s remaining schedule: Inactive, at Florida State, vs. Pittsburgh, at Virginia Tech.
Miami’s remaining schedule: at Virginia Tech, against Georgia Tech, at Wake Forest, against North Carolina.

Obviously, the Tigers should be sailing through this slate. You’d think the Hurricanes would be too, but they’re actually 2-point underdogs this weekend against the Hokies (12 ET; ESPN2). A Virginia Tech victory, fresh out of a debacle of a loss to Liberty that will linger for a while on head coach Justin Fuente’s tenure, would give some leeway at the top of the ACC and some reassurance for anyone who enjoyed Saturday night’s drama, hoping for more.

Frankly count this scribe as one of those hoping the second round will come true.

Boston College (5-3, 4-3): The Eagles have their defense to thank for not falling in their face this weekend, holding Syracuse 240 total yards in a 16-13 victory. Boston College gained 399 yards, quarterback Phil Jurkovec amassing 208 yards and a touchdown. Losing the 2-0 turnover battle complicated matters in a game in which the Eagles held the ball for nearly 39 minutes.

That one-match control will be much more difficult against the Irish (3:30 ET; ABC), who have held the ball for 34:02 per game this season, No. 7 in the country of teams having played a minimum of three games. However, these two complicated offenses create a situation for a combined over / under point total of 49 on an afternoon where Notre Dame is favored by 13.5. A 31-18 result may seem disappointing after beating the nation’s best team, 47-40, in double overtime, but perhaps a stress-free weekend would be good for the Irish starters.

North Carolina (5-2, 5-2): When Sam Howell cooks, little can stop the Tar Heels sophomore quarterback, and he cooked against Duke, counting for four TDs in a 56-24 win. Consider this advance notice that North Carolina will be at the top of all the non-Clemson, ACC hype in 2021.

That will be true, that the Tar Heels have beaten Wake Forest (12 ET; ACC Network) as a 13.5 point favorite with an over / under 66. The Demon Deacons’ defense has improved recently, a bit more that most analyzes have carried out …

Syracuse (1-7, 1-6): Even when a chance was at hand, the Orange lost. From now on, one should not doubt the discipline of 18-22 years old, but one must wonder how much the discipline will persist for a team in the middle of a spiraling season when they reach a week of inactivity.

When Syracuse returns from that hiatus, she faces Louisville. If there is an outbreak after the week, the timeline would point to it starting just before facing the Cardinals, and its second wave would impact the Orange in its season finale at Notre Dame.

Wake Forest (4-2, 3-2): Speaking of the 2021 CCA’s black horses, demon deacons won’t inherently join the conversation, but quarterback Sam Hartman will get some attention. Moreover, with Jurkovec, Howell and Hartman ahead of the Irish again this season, Notre-Dame smugglers should take advantage of their chances to ruin the Saturdays of some returning passers-by.

Duke (2-6, 1-6 ACC): The Blue Devils aren’t much better off than Syracuse, so as not to sound too cynical.

South Florida (1-6): But think about your thought process if you were a top class man in one of your last football seasons as the proverbial Big Man On Campus, and instead of enjoying the perks that usually come with that status, you were losing out. 34-33 against Memphis, blowing a 33-20 lead with less than four minutes remaining. Would you like to stay vigilant? Would you like to avoid the pitfalls of university life? Or would you risk practicality and thus endanger yourself, your changing rooms and your season?

Either way, South Florida is heading to Houston (3 ET; ESPN +) as two touchdown losers.

Florida State (2-5, 1-5): This thinking applies at least a little less to subclasses, even if they come out of a 41-17 in Pittsburgh. Junior quarterback Jordan Travis, for example, has reason to keep playing as hard as he can and gain the confidence of his coaches and teammates, throwing 106 yards and rushing for 80 more against the Panthers as announced rookie Chubba Purdy has seen some action, as well. If Travis wants to delay Purdy next year, that task begins this season.

Purdy will likely see work at North Carolina State (7:30 am ET; ACC Network), with him or Travis having the chance to pull off a Wolfpack Disruption. The Seminoles are just touchdown underdogs, an over / under 60 points suggesting a result of 34-27.

Louisville (2-5, 1-5): The Cardinals have another week to take control of their outbreak, a week of scheduled inactivity after canceling a game in Virginia last week.

Pittsburgh (4-4, 3-4): Veteran Panthers quarterback Kenny Pickett went from limited action in training during the week to a convincing win at Florida State, running for a touchdown and throwing 210 yards on 21 of 27 passes The breakthrough should see Pittsburgh move past Georgia Tech (7 ET), albeit only 6.5 point favorites. A 50.5 point over / under argues for a 28-22 conclusion, but it looks closer than reality with Pickett back in the mix.

Georgia Tech (2-5, 2-4): See the previous paragraph.

Clemson (7-1, 6-1): Trevor Lawrence is coming back behind the center… next week. The Tigers have the week off, necessary for them to be healthy throughout the defense.

CURRENT ACC RANKING:
Notre Dame: 7-0, 6-0 ACC
Clemson: 7-1, 6-1
Miami: 6-1, 5-1
North Carolina: 5-2, 5-2
Virginia Tech: 4-3, 4-2
Awakening forest: 4-2, 3-2
Boston College: 5-3, 4-3
North Carolina State: 4-3, 4-3
Pittsburgh: 4-4, 3-4
Virginia: 2-4, 2-4
Georgia Tech: 2-5, 2-4
Florida State, Louisville: 2-5, 1-5
Duke: 2-6, 1-6
Syracuse: 1-7, 1-6

12 ET – Wake Forest in North Carolina, ACC Network.
3 ET – South Florida in Houston, ESPN +.
3:30 ET – Notre Dame at Boston College, ABC.
7 ET – Pittsburgh at Georgia Tech.
7:30 a.m. ET – Florida State to North Carolina St.; ACC network.

PointsBet is our official sports betting partner, and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking on our links.



[ad_2]

Source link