ACC & Big 12 Week 11 Preview: Clemson looks to clinch another division title

In the 11th week of the college football season, members of the Florida Citrus Sports Team Selection Committee are making visits throughout ACC and Big 12 country, meeting with fans across both conferences in advance of the Camping World Bowl on December 28.

Here’s a quick look at some of the top games on the schedule this weekend:

Miami (5-4, 2-3 ACC) at Georgia Tech (5-4, 3-3 ACC) – 7 p.m. on ESPN2

This weekend, Miami and Georgia Tech will face off for the 24th time in a series that dates back to 1955. Miami holds a slim 12-11 lead overall, including an active three-game win streak. Last season, Miami wide receiver Darrell Langham made a catch on fourth-and-10 with less than a minute to play, which led to a 25-24 victory for the Hurricanes in Miami Gardens.

After a 5-1 start, the Hurricanes have lost three-straight coming into Saturday’s matchup. In their most recent contest, the Hurricanes fell 20-12 to Duke. Miami’s defense still ranks second nationally, holding its opponents an average of just 264.7 yards per game. The defense is led by defensive lineman Gerald Willis III, who ranks fifth in the nation in tackles for loss with 1.8 per game.

Georgia Tech is riding a two-game win streak after its 38-28 defeat of North Carolina in Chapel Hill last week. Miami’s defense will be tested by a Yellow Jackets’ rushing attack that leads the nation with 377 yards on the ground per game. Quarterbacks TaQuon Marshall (9) and Tobias Oliver (12) are both ranked in the Top 25 nationally in rushing touchdowns, and Oliver has five games with multiple rushing touchdowns this season.

Baylor (5-4, 3-3 Big 12) at No. 22 Iowa State (5-3, 4-2 Big 12) – 3:30 p.m. on FS1

Baylor and Iowa State will face off for the 17th time in series history as the Bears travel to Ames this weekend. Last season, Iowa State snapped a four-game win streak that Baylor held over the Cyclones in a 23-13 win at McLane Stadium; the Bears still lead the overall tally 9-7.

Baylor is coming off of a 35-31 win over Oklahoma State last weekend. Quarterback Charlie Brewer didn’t enter the contest until the fourth quarter because of an injury, but completed a six-yard game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Denzel Mims with seven seconds left in the game. The Baylor offense also features wide receiver Jalen Hurd, who ranks 12th among active FBS players with 4,058 all-purpose yards in his career.

The Cyclones are also coming off a victory as they defeated Kansas 27-3 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium last weekend. The Iowa State defense is ranked 13th nationally, limiting its opponents an average of 104.9 rushing yards per game. Defensive end Jaquan Bailey leads the team in sacks (5.5) and tackles for loss (105), and also boasts the fourth-most career sacks in program history with 16.

No. 19 Texas (6-3, 4-2 Big 12) at Texas Tech (5-4, 3-3 Big 12) – 7:30 p.m. on FOX

Texas and Texas Tech are meeting for the 68th time on Saturday night and the 31st time in Lubbock, with the Longhorns leading the overall series 50-17. The last time these two programs met at Jones A&T Stadium, running back D’Onta Foreman ran for 341 yards and led Texas to a 45-37 victory over quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Texas Tech squad.

The Longhorns won their first four conference games of the season, but most recently lost back-to-back games by a combined total of four points (Oklahoma State, 38-35 and West Virginia 42-41). Wide receivers Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Devin Duvernay had career games against the Mountaineers, as Humphrey caught nine passes for a career-high 143 yards and a touchdown, while Duvernay caught six passes for a career-high 100 yards and a score.

The Red Raiders are also looking to rally from back-to-back losses after falling to Iowa State 40-31 and Oklahoma 51-46. Wide receiver Antoine Wesley had 12 receptions for 199 yards against the Sooners, his third game of the season with over 150 receiving yards. Wesley is among the nation’s best in several statistical categories including receiving yards (No 2; 1,176 yards), receiving yards per game (No. 2; 130.7 yards per game) and receptions per game (No. 3; 7.8).

No. 2 Clemson (9-0, 6-0 ACC) at No. 17 Boston College (7-2, 4-1 ACC) – 8 p.m. on ABC

Clemson is seeking its fourth-straight ACC Atlantic Division title on Saturday as its travels to Chestnut Hill to take on the Eagles. Clemson leads the overall series 16-9-2 and also holds a seven-game win streak over Boston College.

For the 11th time in the series, the two teams will be playing for the O’Rourke-McFadden Trophy. The trophy features a leather helmet replica of those used by Charlie O’Rourke of Boston College and Banks McFadden of Clemson when they competed against each other in the 1940 Cotton Bowl — the teams’ first meeting.

Clemson is entering Saturday’s contest unbeaten after a 77-16 routing of Louisville last week. Clemson ranks fourth nationally in both scoring offense (47.8 points per game) and defense (13.3 points per game). Quarterback Trevor Lawrence owns the 11th-highest passing efficiency among active FBS quarterbacks (163.0), and running back Travis Etienne is also among national leaders in scoring, as the sophomore averages 10.7 points per game.

This game will mark just the third time in program history that two teams ranked in the AP Top 20 will square off in Alumni Stadium. In the Eagles’ 31-21 defeat of Virginia Tech last week, running back AJ Dillon carried the ball 24 times for 96 yards and a touchdown. Overall, Dillon is averaging 128.1 rushing yards per game, which ranks No. 4 nationally.

Here are a few additional games our representatives will be taking in this week:

Wake Forest (4-5, 1-4 ACC) at No. 14 NC State (6-2, 3-2 ACC) – 7:30 p.m. (Thursday) on ESPN
Louisville (2-7, 0-6 ACC) at No. 13 Syracuse (7-2, 4-2 ACC) – 7 p.m. (Friday) on ESPN2
TCU (4-5, 2-3 Big 12) at No. 9 West Virginia (7-1, 5-1 Big 12) – 12 p.m. on FS1
Kansas (3-6, 1-5 Big 12) at Kansas State (3-6, 1-5 Big 12) – 12 p.m. on TBD
North Carolina (1-7, 1-5 ACC) at Duke (6-3, 2-3 ACC) – 12:20 p.m. on ACC Network
Liberty (4-4) at Virginia (6-3, 4-1 ACC) – 3 p.m. on ACC Network
Virginia Tech (4-4, 3-2 ACC) at Pittsburgh (5-4, 4-1 ACC) – 3:30 p.m. on ESPNU
Oklahoma State (5-4, 2-4 Big 12) at No. 6 Oklahoma (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) – 3:30 p.m. on ABC
Florida State (4-5, 2-4 ACC) at No. 3 Notre Dame (9-0) – 7:30 p.m. on NBC