Eddie George was pondering the next steps in his burgeoning career as a college football coach while driving back from the NFL scouting combine.

Syracuse has fired coach Dino Babers after eight years with the Orange that included just two bowl appearances.

The Hokies scored on their first six possessions for a 30-3 halftime lead, and finished off the Orange by a score of 38-10.

Will Shipley scored twice and freshman quarterback Cade Klubnik rallied No. 5 Clemson to a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns in a 27-21 victory over No. 14 Syracuse.

It was Book’s 30th victory as a starter, the most ever for a Notre Dame quarterback. “It’s a dream come true to be able to attend Notre Dame and have a good career,” Book said. Notre Dame started its run thanks to a roughing the passer by Syracuse that Book later turned into a 28-yard TD run. Book finished with 348 total yards, becoming only the second Irish player to move past 10,000 yards (10,008) in total offense. Notre Dame: The Irish have an extra week to rest up for Clemson after the conference adjusted the schedules earlier this week, canceling their last game.

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) throws a pass during an NCAA college football game against Syracuse in Clemson, S.C., on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020. 1 Clemson used a late boost to pull away to a 47-21 victory after Syracuse drew within a score at 27-21. Syracuse (1-5, 1-4), a 45-point underdog, rallied from 17-0 down to draw within a touchdown late in the third quarter before Clemson regained its footing. The Syracuse Orange couldn't finish this one off, however. There seemed no way Syracuse should be in position to scare the Tigers, yet it had its chances late.

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Syracuse Orange came to the Hill City and left the Flames a sour 24-0 loss in 2019′s season opener. “I actually think they’re better,” said Syracuse head coach Dino Babers. “I think we’re further along in year two than I thought we’d be,” said Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze. Liberty enters at 4-0 with a staunch defense but an offense that’s seeking consistency in the passing game. The Flames hope to be the ones standing on Saturday and in the process, gain their first ever win over an ACC team.

The college football schedule is still looking light, with the Southeastern Conference a week away from starting and the Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference still just warming up. And the American Athletic Conference gets its chance to grab some of that shine that went to the Sun Belts last week. 18 LouisvilleThe only game matching ranked teams on the schedule gets the prime-time treatment from ESPN. 16 — Number of major college football games that have been postponed or canceled since Aug. 26 after two more were wiped off Saturday's schedule because of COVID-19 issues. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25More AP college football: http://apnews.com/Collegefootball and http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25

North Carolina's Michael Carter breaks away from Syracuse's Geoff Cantin-Arku in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020 in Chapel Hill, N.C. (Robert Willett/The News & Observer via AP, Pool)

A similar scene played out in Morgantown, West Virginia, before West Virginia's game against Eastern Kentucky. Trice died of injuries sustained in a football game in 1923, and the Cyclones' stadium is named in his honor. Virginia and Virginia Tech announced they were postponing their Sept. 19 game because of COVID-19 issues at Virginia Tech. ____AP Sports Writers Aaron Beard and Hank Kurz Jr., AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo and AP freelance writer Andrew Logue contributed to this report. ___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

22 Syracuse outlasted his mistake-prone Flames, 24-0. An interception by Andre Cisco set Syracuse up at the Flames' 37 and Howard capped a five-play drive with a 1-yard run. He had five catches for 115 yards by halftime, including a 56-yarder he took to the Orange five. Gandy-Golden finished with six catches for 119 yards, exactly half of the 238 yards the Flames managed through the air. Liberty: The Flames go on the road for the first time, playing at Louisiana.