ACC Game Picks: Cal Among 6 Teams One Win Shy of Bowl Eligibility

The Bears are chasing a third straight victory and their sixth of the season at home vs. Syracuse

Cal running back Jaivian Thomas / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Atlantic Coast Conference already has eight teams that have achieved bowl eligibility with six victories. Six more have five wins, and four of those play on Saturday.

Among them, Cal (hosting Syracuse) and North Carolina (at home vs. Wake Forest) are favored to prevail and reach the six-win plateau.

*** Fernando Mendoza says in the video above he believes he can complete 80% of his passes

It will be much tougher for two other five-win squads. Boston College is a 16.5-point underdog on the road vs. ACC leader SMU, and Virginia is a 23-point dog at Notre Dame. 

Virginia Tech and North Carolina State both must wait until next week to pursue their sixth victories.

Also getting a bye Saturday is No. 9 Miami, currently the only ACC team on target for one of 12 berths in the College Football Playoff bracket.

Our picks: 

Last week: Jake 4-3, Jeff 2-5

Season: Jake 62-47, Jeff 60-49,

All picks against the spread 

Betting line from 

Rankings shown are the current College Football Playoff rankings

SATURDAY

— No. 20 Clemson (minus-9.5) at Pitt, 9 a.m., ESPN

Jake: I’m guessing that Pitt QB Eli Holstein will play, but he and the Panthers just have not been very good lately even with him in the lineup. Pick: Clemson

Jeff: Pitt QB Ei Holstein, dealing with an undisclosed injury, is listed as a “game-time decision” for Saturday. That doesn’t sound promising. Pick: Clemson

— Syracuse (plus-7.5) at Cal, noon, CW Network

Jake: Cal got its offense going in the past two games to complement its strong defense. The Orange has had good quarterback play from Kyle McCord, but Syracuse is too erratic. Pick: Cal

Jeff: I think the Bears win this one, but the Orange will score enough to cover the spread. Pick: Syracuse

— Virginia (plus-23) at No. 8 Notre Dame, 12:30 p.m., NBC

Jake: Notre Dame is on a roll, scoring more than 50 points each of its last two games, but Virginia and QB Anthony Colandrea have just enough offense to beat the spread. Pick: Virginia

Jeff: With the 12-team playoff looming as a big-time dropback, the Fighting Irish have something to fight for. Pick: Notre Dame

— Boston College (plus-16.5) at No. 14 SMU, 12:30 p.m., ESPN

Jake: Look for SMU QB Kevin Jennings to have a big day as the Mustangs take a step closer to a berth in the ACC championship game. BC is going with a different quarterback (Grayson James), and that may give the Eagles a lift, but . . . Pick: SMU

Jeff: BC is coming off a big win over Syracuse but lost its three previous games. SMU hasn’t lost a game since Sept. 6 and remains eager to impress the CPF committee. Pick: SMU

— No. 19 Louisville (minus-19.5) at Stanford, 12:30 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: Louisville is better than its 6-3 record suggests and Stanford, which has lost six in a row, may be worse than its 2-7 record implies. Pick: Louisville

Jeff: The Cardinal would love to create some momentum heading into the Big Game a week from now. Not gonna happen. Pick: Louisville

— Wake Forest (plus-10.5) at North Carolina, 5 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: Wake Forest’s defense is lousy, and North Carolina has been improving each week. Although the Tar Heels have been better on the road than at home this season, we expect UNC to score a lot this week. Pick: North Carolina

Jeff: After four straight defeats, the Tar Heels have won their past two by an average margin of more than 25 points. This seems doable. Pick: North Carolina