ACC Game Picks: While Cal Takes a Breath This Week, Pitt Duels SMU

Two of the four teams still unbeaten in conference play will square off in Dallas

SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Cal takes the week off before returning to Atlantic Coast Conference play for its final four games. But there are intriguing matchups across the board in the ACC on Saturday, including one that will trim the ranks of teams unbeaten in league play to no more than three.

No. 18 Pittsburgh (7-0, 3-0 ACC) visits ACC newcomer and 20th-ranked SMU (7-1, 4-0) in what realistically shapes up as a duel for third place in the conference.

The game is one of two across the country this week pitting two Top-25 teams against each other. No. 3 Penn State hosts No. 4 Ohio State in the other one.

No. 5 Miami (8-0, 4-0) is a big home favorite against Duke (6-2, 2-2), which began 5-0 but has dropped two of its past three.

Louisville (5-3, 3-2) gets its fourth shot at a team currently ranked in the Top-25 when it ventures to No. 11 Clemson (6-1, 5-0), which was steamrolled 34-3 by Georgia in its opener but has averaged 48.5 points in six wins since.

Week 10: 

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

Season: Jeff 55-41, Jake 55-41

All picks against the spread 

Betting line from vegas insider website

Saturday

-- Duke (plus-20) at No. 5 Miami, 9 a.m., ABC

Jake: Miami has not defeated any of its four ACC opponents by more than 18 points, and Duke does enough good things under Manny Diaz to stay close every week. Miami QB Cam Ward is outstanding, but he makes questionable decisions sometimes. Pick: Duke

Jeff: The Hurricanes lead the nation in scoring at nearly 47 points per game. If they merely hit their average, Duke must scored 27 points to cover. Don’t see that happening here. Pick: Miami

-- Virginia Tech (minus-4) at Syracuse, 9 a.m., CW Network 

Jake: Road teams have a winning record in ACC games this season, and the Hokies have performed well each of the past four weeks. Pick: Virginia Tech

Jeff: The Hokies have won three in a row; Syracuse is coming off a 41-13 defeat. Pick: Virginia Tech

-- Stanford (plus-9.5) at North Carolina State, 9 a.m., ACC Network

Jake: North Carolina State is coming off a bye and Stanford is coming off five straight losses, only one of which was close. Pick: North Carolina State

Jeff: Stanford lost just 27-24 at home to Wake Forest last week but the four straight defeats before that were by a combined margin of 122 points. Pick: North Carolina State

-- North Carolina (minus-2.5) at Florida State, 12:30 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: North Carolina suddenly seems to have found an offensive rhythm. Florida State has not found anything and still has quarterback woes. UNC’s Omarion Hampton may run wild. Pick: North Carolina

Jeff: Did anyone imagine these two teams would be a combined 2-9 in the ACC? It’s been five weeks since FSU beat Cal . . . UNC crushed Virginia just last week. Recency bias . . . Pick: North Carolina

-- Louisville (plus-10.5) at No. 11 Clemson, 4:30 p.m., ESPN

Jake: Louisville has lost to three teams currently ranked in the top-25, each by seven-point margins, so the Cardinals are close. But Clemson is 69-3 at home in the College Football Playoff era, and the Tigers are rolling. Pick: Clemson

Jeff: Louisville can score and its three defeats each came by exactly seven points. Clemson has won six in a row, all of them by at least 16 points. Pick: Clemson

-- No 18 Pittsburgh (plus-7.5) at No. 20 SMU, 5 p.m., ACC Network

Jake: I expect Pitt QB Eli Holstein to play – he’s questionable – but that may not be enough against SMU, whose only loss was to No. 9 BYU, by three points. SMU QB Kevin Jennings won’t throw three picks like he did last week. Pick: SMU.

Jeff: SMU went the entire month of October without playing a home game. Yeah, strange, right? Vegas is pretty smart setting lines on these games but I’m not comfortable giving 7.5 points to an unbeaten team, even on the road. Pick: Pittsburgh