ACC FOOTBALL ROUNDUP: Miami routs Florida Atlantic

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Junior quarterback Brad Kaaya threw two interceptions in a game for the first time since the first half of his freshman year but sophomore running back Mark Walton more than made up for those mistakes with a career night to lead host Miami to a 38-10 victory over Florida Atlantic on Saturday.

Walton rushed for 155 yards on 17 carries — both career highs — and scored four touchdowns as the 25th-ranked Hurricanes (2-0) overcame a lethargic first half to outscore the Owls (1-1) by a 24-7 margin in the second.

After going 9-of-20 passing for 191 yards with the two picks in the first two quarters, Kaaya finished the game completing 17 of 31 attempts for 191 yards. The two-interception game was his first since Oct. 14, 2014, against Georgia Tech and the fifth such contest of his career.

Miami’s running game and defense made up for Kaaya’s off night.

In addition to Walton, junior running back Joe Yearby rushed for 121 yards for the Hurricanes, who finished with 279 yards rushing as a team.

The defense, meanwhile, held the Owls to 218 yards of total offense with just 51 of that rushing.

The Owls got their only touchdown on running back Greg Howell’s 38-yard burst in the third quarter after Miami had pulled in front 24-3. The Hurricanes, however, got their lead back up to three touchdowns on Walton’s fourth touchdown, a 30-yard run around right end early in the fourth quarter.

Both teams had their struggles in the first half. They each had a kick blocked — Miami a field goal, FAU a punt — and combined for only 98 yards of total offense in the first quarter.

The Hurricanes finally broke the ice midway through the second period with Walton capping a five-play drive with a 7-yard run. He scored again on a 3-yard run later in the second quarter.

The Owls got their first points by picking off a Kaaya pass for the second time to set up Greg Joseph’s 38-yard field goal.

No. 2 Clemson 30, Troy 24

Quarterback Deshaun Watson threw three touchdown passes, including two in the final quarter, as Clemson plodded its way to a victory over Troy.

Clemson (2-0) clung to a 13-10 lead entering the final quarter against Troy (1-1), which battled the Tigers on even terms throughout.

Then Watson lobbed a 1-yard scoring pass to defensive end Christian Wilkins with 13:50 left in the game, then connected with wide receiver Deon Cain for a 23-yard touchdown four minutes later to give the Tigers some breathing room — at least temporarily.

But Troy scored twice in the game’s final five minutes to make it close, with the final touchdown coming with 44 seconds left. Clemson recovered an onside kick attempt with 43 seconds left and the Tigers kneeled once to run out the clock.

Boston College 26, Massachusetts 7

Graduate senior Patrick Towles hit converted quarterback Jeff Smith with two long touchdown passes in the second quarter and Boston College broke a nine-game losing streak with a victory over Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

Towles, a transfer from Kentucky, hit Smith with scores of 46 and 36 yards to erase a 7-0 deficit and the BC defense took over from there as the Eagles notched their first victory since last Sept. 26.

Pittsburgh 42, Penn State 39

Quadree Henderson returned a fourth-quarter kickoff 84 yards to set up James Conner’s second touchdown of the game and Pittsburgh held on to beat Penn State.

With Penn State nearing field goal range, Pittsburgh safety Ryan Lewis intercepted Trace McSorley’s pass in the end zone with 1:15 left to secure the win in the first meeting of the two rivals since 2000.

George Aston added two touchdowns for the Panthers (2-0) who stayed ahead with a punishing ground game.

East Carolina 33, North Carolina State 30

Running back Anthony Scott scored on a 5-yard touchdown run with 5:49 remaining and running back/receiver James Summers ran for two touchdowns as East Carolina defeated visiting North Carolina State at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in Greenville, N.C.

East Carolina (2-0) has won its last six meetings with teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference. This was the first meeting between these teams since 2013.

Wake Forest 24, Duke 14

Freshman running back Cade Carney scored on three touchdown runs and Wake Forest defeated Duke in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, N.C.

Carney gained 94 yards on 14 carries. His scoring runs were from 7, 1 and 55 yards, helping end Duke’s four-game winning streak in the series between in-state opponents.

North Carolina 48, Illinois 23

Quarterback Mitch Trubisky passed for two touchdowns and ran for two as North Carolina rebounded from a season-opening loss to Georgia with a victory over Illinois.

Trubisky was 19-of-24 passing for 265 yards and extended his string of attempts without an interception to 139 as the Tar Heels (1-1) improved to 4-0 against the Fighting Illini. Running back Elijah Hood’s 62-yard touchdown run with 6:49 remaining — his second score of the fourth quarter — gave North Carolina a 45-23 lead.

Quarterback Wes Lunt was 17 of 35 for 127 yards and two touchdowns for Illinois (1-1), which fell to 23-3 in August/September home games since 2007. Illini running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn totaled 116 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.