Here's one last look back at the weekend that was in the ACC.
The good. Miami's 21-16 win over Florida was another strong statement for the ACC, as the league notched its second upset over a major SEC team in as many weeks. The win was the breakthrough that the Hurricanes needed after two seasons of progress under Al Golden. And, regardless of the less-than-pretty fashion it came in, the victory should provide a huge boost for the program moving forward.
The bad. Virginia suffered one of the conference's two nonconference defeats Saturday, falling at home to Oregon 59-10. Still, we probably learned more about the Cavaliers from their Week 1 upset of BYU, which then rushed for 550 yards Saturday against Texas in another (delay-filled) upset.
The ugly. Syracuse could barely blink before it found itself down by 20 at Northwestern, which ended up winning by a 48-27 margin. The Orange had four turnovers, surrendered 581 yards of offense and allowed Wildcats quarterbacks Kain Colter and Trevor Siemian to go a combined 30-of-37 for 375 yards with four touchdowns and no picks. (Colter added 87 yards and a touchdown on the ground, too.)
The unfortunate turn of events. Last week NC State signal-caller Brandon Mitchell went down with a broken foot. In Week 2, Duke's Anthony Boone sustained a broken collarbone in the second quarter of the Blue Devils' win over Memphis and is out indefinitely. Brandon Connette came in and played well, completing 14 of 21 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns while adding 31 rushing yards.
The rebounds. A week after falling to SEC squads, North Carolina and Virginia Tech recovered by taking care of business. The Tar Heels tallied 511 total yards of offense and forced four turnovers in a 40-20 win over Middle Tennessee, while the Hokies' defense thrived in a 45-3 win over Western Carolina before a less-than-full Lane Stadium, which snapped a 93-game sellout streak, the nation's third-longest active streak. You have to respect Frank Beamer's comments afterward, as he thanked those who showed up.
The workhorse. How about Boston College running back Andre Williams? The senior posted his second straight 100-yard game Friday in a 24-10 win over Wake Forest, tallying 204 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries.
The Heisman dark horse. Don't look now, but C.J. Brown has been downright brilliant so far for Maryland. He threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 30 yards and two more scores in the Terrapins' 47-10 win over Old Dominion. Brown became the ninth quarterback since 2004 to post a total QBR of 95 or higher in each of his team's first two games.
The quote. After Clemson's 52-13 win over South Carolina State, Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said: "How about that ACC? Spunky little old league." For good measure, he flashed "The U" sign before walking out of the room.