Nov 28, 2014 5 min read

Sometime in the first few minutes after kickoff Saturday night, Miami’s Duke Johnson will likely take a handoff from Brad Kaaya and run into the Hurricane record books.

And with that, he might be out of things to prove at the college level.

No. 1 in the nation, No. 1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, No. 1 in the Coastal Division, none of that is within reach of Johnson and the Hurricanes this season. But being No. 1 on the Miami all-time rushing list, that’s squarely in Johnson’s sights and he’ll try to get there when the Hurricanes play host to Pittsburgh in the regular-season finale for both teams.

Johnson is 34 yards away from passing Ottis Anderson for the record, which means that if his season average holds true to form, it should take him about five carries to assume the top spot on that list.

“I know it’ll mean a lot to my family,” said Johnson, who many expect to skip his senior season with the Hurricanes and pursue the NFL next year.

The game could be a matchup of the top two running backs in the ACC this season, assuming Pittsburgh’s James Conner – who leads the ACC with 1,600 yards but is questionable for Saturday’s game against the Hurricanes in Miami Gardens, Florida because of a hip injury – actually gets into the lineup.

Pitt could certainly use him. The Panthers (5-6, 3-4) need a win to become bowl-eligible for the seventh straight season.

“Playing Miami, it’s motivation enough,” Panthers coach Paul Chryst said. “Every game’s important. Every game’s crucial. At the end of the year, if you win enough games to earn the right for another game, you’re very appreciative of it. Obviously, our players know and truly want to earn that right.”

Miami (6-5, 3-4) needs a win to avoid finishing ACC play with a losing record, plus to send its seniors out of their last home game on a winning note.

“I’m sure it’s surreal,” Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya said. “I told some of the guys who I’ve talked to individually, let’s finish strong. It’s the seniors’ last game. You can’t take it for granted. We have to finish strong.”

Seniors at forefront for Nittany Lions: Mark Dantonio is calling Saturday’s game at Penn State a “program game” because No. 10 Michigan State has the opportunity to win at least 10 games for the fourth time in five years.

First-year coach James Franklin is bidding farewell to a Penn State senior class that helped hold the program together.

The Spartans (9-2, 6-1 Big Ten) face the Nittany Lions (6-5, 2-5) on Saturday. No titles are at stake but each program is bowl-eligible and each has its own motivation.

“I believe that winning 10 games around here right now is the benchmark,” Dantonio said. “It puts us in the hunt always to be relevant in terms of the national picture, and certainly to be relevant in the Big Ten picture.”

Franklin’s first senior class had to deal with NCAA sanctions from the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal in 2011. Some players transferred when the sanctions hit but many others opted to stay. Penn State’s departing seniors have won 30 games and lost 18.

“You want them to leave here on a really positive note,” Franklin said. “I think it’s magnified, obviously, knowing everything that they’ve been through.”

Franklin has been with the 17 seniors for just 11 months.

“You just go through so many different experiences,” he said. “You spend so much time together that there is a bond there. It’s weird to think that come our last game you’re not going to see these guys again.”

The game itself will feature Penn State’s top-ranked rushing defense against Michigan State’s powerfully balanced offense.

“All of our offensive records are falling,” Dantonio said. “So it’s been extremely productive.”

Mountaineers limping to the finish: The optimism surrounding West Virginia’s impressive start has long since faded, and a loss to Iowa State would be a terrible way to end to a once-promising regular season.

The Mountaineers (6-5, 4-4) limp into Saturday’s game against the Cyclones (2-8, 0-7) with a three-game losing streak and an unsettled quarterback situation.

Starter Clint Trickett, who has thrown for 3,285 yards and 18 touchdowns this season, had his helmet taken away during last week’s loss to Kansas State because of a concussion.

If Trickett can’t go on Saturday, the Mountaineers will likely start sophomore Skyler Howard.

“That’s for our doctors, for them to evaluate. They’ve got tests,” West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen said Tuesday. “If they say ‘thumbs up,’ that means thumbs up. I get to coach them. Up until this point right now, they have not given the thumbs up.”

Still, West Virginia should be expected to beat Iowa State no matter who plays behind center.

The Cyclones have lost four straight, including two in a row to Big 12 bottom feeders Kansas and Texas Tech.

Iowa State went back and forth with the Red Raiders at home last week before falling, 34-31. But coach Paul Rhoads said that his players haven’t checked out, despite having little to play for.

“I think that if that would have been the case, it would have shown in the past game,” Rhoads said. “I don’t have any sense that that’s going to be the case and I don’t think it’s been the case in the past six years. I believe we’ll finish strong.”

Here are some of the key points to ponder as Iowa State hosts West Virginia in its home finale.