Duke-UNC a big deal

Three to watch

Duke at North Carolina

3:30 p.m., ESPNU

North Carolina's offensive line has made progress the last two games, but it won't be easy keeping Duke linemen Vince Oghobaase and Ayanga Okpokowuruk in check. Quarterback T.J. Yates seems to be gaining confidence, though, and that's a troubling sign for the Blue Devils.

Wake Forest at No. 10 Georgia Tech

3:30 p.m., WTVD, WCTI

Paul Johnson is following the Jim Grobe/Wake Forest ACC championship script from 2006 to near perfection at Georgia Tech. If the Yellow Jackets win today, resurgent Duke will be the only team that can keep them from reaching the ACC championship game.

Riley Skinner's quick recovery from a concussion suffered last week (he was cleared Friday to play) gives the Deacons a lift.

Florida State at Clemson

7:45 p.m., ESPN

Quarterback Christian Ponder and Florida State have a prolific offense that averages 31.8 points per game. Clemson's defense is overshadowed by the brilliance of running back C.J. Spiller, but it's giving up just 16.5 points per game and provides a significant obstacle to Ponder and Florida State.

Observations

One-dimensional

offenses thrive

Sports writers despise clichés, so we're always happy to see them debunked.

So thank you, Paul Johnson and David Cutcliffe. There is an adage that says a defense will dominate a game if it makes the opposing offense one-dimensional. Johnson at Georgia Tech and Cutcliffe at Duke have disproved that myth and demonstrated that balance on offense is unimportant.

Georgia Tech leads the ACC in rushing offense and ranks last in passing offense, but it still leads the conference in scoring and leads the Coastal Division. Duke ranks first in the ACC in passing but last in rushing, and still is scoring 29.5 points per game after three straight ACC wins.

Hoo's next for Cavs?

Now that Virginia has lost to Duke for the second straight season and appears to be on its way to a losing record, it seems unlikely that Cavaliers coach Al Groh will be back next season.

Two coaches from the state of North Carolina seem to be logical targets for Virginia. Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe is a Virginia alumnus. East Carolina coach Skip Holtz has an athletic director in Terry Holland who probably would understand if Holtz wants to take on a BCS conference challenge in Virginia, where Holland coached basketball and served as athletic director.

More heartbreak

for Clemson?

There's no rational reason to expect Boston College to win the Atlantic Division.

The Eagles are tied with Clemson with a 3-2 conference record, but the Tigers own the tiebreaker by virtue of a head-to-head win and are the more talented team.

But Clemson always seems to find an agonizing way to torment its fans with an unexpected loss. Why should this year be any different?

Terps rested, ready

Maryland is struggling, but the Terrapins' defense gave up just 20 and 17 points, respectively, in the team's last two outings.

Coach Ralph Friedgen isn't a strong recruiter, but he is a master of X's and O's. After having extra time over its open date last week to prepare for N.C. State, the Terrapins might very well find a way to slow down Russell Wilson.

Numbers to know

1 National ranking of Clemson junior DeAndre McDaniel in interceptions. He is tied with UCLA's Rahim Moore atop the Football Bowl Subdivision with seven interceptions.

26.6Average yards per catch for N.C. State's Owen Spencer, who leads the ACC in that statistic.

11.6Average margin of victory in ACC games this season, the smallest for any conference in the nation.

What's at stake

The winner of the North Carolina-Duke game will be in good position to become bowl eligible. The loser won't easily secure the 7-5 record needed for a postseason invitation. As a result, this football rivalry game takes on more significance this season than perhaps any other time in the history of the series.

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