The ACC is showcasing a premier game between two teams that are ranked within the top 10 in the country. It’s beginning to feel natural to watch the Miami Hurricanes in primetime games as they’ll appear in their third versus Clemson. On the other side, Clemson enters as the top team in the nation riding a 23 game home winning streak. The Tigers have scored over 40 points in every game this season and will look to continue its dominance over the Hurricanes from their last two matchups. Now, we look at the biggest ACC matchup of the season.
Potential Heisman Matchup
All eyes will be on the offense and the quarterbacks on Saturday. Trevor Lawrence has been long regarded as the Heisman favorite and the future top pick in the next NFL draft. Although it’s early he is completing a career-high 73% passing and has yet to throw an interception this season. On the contrary, D’Eriq King is also playing at a high level coming into the game with seven total touchdowns.
While the quarterbacks get the glory, both teams are committed to running the ball. Many would argue that Travis Etienne is currently the best running back in college football and his resume definitely backs that. He comes into the game against Miami only two rushing touchdowns away from his 60th career rushing touchdown. The Hurricanes running back isn’t a slouch either as Cam’Ron Harris enters the game averaging 8.2 yards per carry. Harris is also the only running back this season with two runs over 60 yards. His toughness on the goal line has catapulted him as the ACC leader in rushing touchdowns, a mark he’ll be looking to build off of.
Playcalling Matchup
Saturday’s ACC matchup will also be pitting two of the most creative coordinators against each other. The battle of Rhett Lashlee against Brent Venables will be an interesting storyline to watch throughout the matchup. One of the biggest reasons why the Hurricanes are ranked so high is because of the rebuild that Lashlee has brought to Miami on the offensive side. Miami went from being the only team during the bowl season that failed to score a point to being ranked top 15 in the nation in total offense. Venables has noticed the transition and has had previous battles against Lashlee while he was at Auburn. The face behind the Clemson defense has been Venables with the multiple looks that he can present an offense. His defense presents a number of problems especially at home behind a ruckus crowd.
Final Word
This matchup could very well be a shootout with the number of high caliber athletes on both sides. Clemson should always feel good about any matchup with the duo of Lawrence and Etienne, a challenge Miami will have to answer. Venables’ defense will have to show up better than they did against Virginia as they struggled to contain the quarterback. That task gets even harder as King has 29 career rushing touchdowns. Many have said this game will prove how good Miami actually is and a win on the road against Clemson would send a statement to college football.
