1 |
|
Under the previous ACC schedule model, the Yellow Jackets faced one of the toughest schedules in the league each year, hosting Clemson as a cross-division rival in conference play, combined with the annual “clean, old-fashioned hate” matchup against Georgia. Now, Georgia Tech faces a schedule that doesn’t include the Tigers for the first time since 1983, but does include five of the top six teams in the league and a non-conference showdown with Notre Dame at Falcons Stadium. Plus, there are logistics to consider, with the season opener in Week 0 against Florida State in Dublin. |
2 |
|
Clemson has historically been a big participant in high-profile kickoff games against quality opponents, but this year, following its opening weekend win against Georgia, it faces a new challenge in welcoming Sun Belt championship favorite Appalachian State to Death Valley. Tough trips to Florida State and Virginia Tech later in the year, plus home games against ACC title contenders North Carolina State and Louisville, games the Tigers will need to win to get back to Charlotte after missing out on the 2023 title game. |
3 |
|
Stanford’s start to the ACC era will be brutal, facing five of the top seven teams in the league, according to ACC championship odds. There’s some benefit to the fact that Louisville, Virginia Tech and SMU have to travel to Palo Alto, but some of those games don’t really add up, as the Cardinal also travel from Eastern time. Having Notre Dame as a rival improves the schedule rating every year (as does Georgia Tech), but the tough conference matchup and the road trip make it the toughest in the ACC. |
Four |
|
Just because a team is expected to win the majority of its games doesn’t mean the schedule will be easy. Florida State is the favorite to win the ACC in the betting markets, but there are enough potential pitfalls on the schedule that a College Football Playoff berth is far from a sure thing. Annual rivals Clemson, Miami and Florida join the team on a late-season trip this year to face Notre Dame in South Bend. A trip to ACC newcomer SMU will be one of the most anticipated games of the year for the Mustangs. |
Five |
|
Five of the top seven teams in the ACC headline the schedule in Coach Tony Elliott’s third year, making it an uphill battle to get to a bowl game in 2024. Virginia also rotates in as one of Notre Dame’s ACC rivals (on the road), and a regional rivalry with Maryland is rekindled in a game that Maryland will be expected to win. The Wahoos won’t play Florida State, Miami or NC State in conference games, but they will play some non-conference teams, giving them one of the toughest schedules in the ACC. |
6 |
|
Louisville’s annual rivalry with Kentucky doesn’t have the same strength-of-schedule impact that Georgia Tech faces in its annual SEC showdown, but the game is on the road and combined with a visit to Notre Dame. This should be an opportunity for revenge for the Fighting Irish after Marcus Freeman’s team lost to the Cardinals in Louisville last year. The ACC portion of the schedule isn’t as packed. There’s a trip to Clemson, but both SMU and Miami have to visit Cardinals Stadium. Still, the non-conference challenge will be the tiebreaker to keep Louisville in the top six of this ranking. |
7 |
|
Head coach Bill O’Brien’s first four games as head coach at Boston College include three programs that have played in a New Year’s Six bowl game since 2021. The Eagles start the year against Florida State in Tallahassee on Monday night on Labor Day, then play Missouri and Michigan State at home before the end of September. Boston College can avoid matchups with Clemson, Miami and North Carolina State, but tough trips to Virginia Tech and SMU await in ACC play. |
8 |
|
Not only will the challenge be traveling across the country to take on powerhouses like Auburn and Florida State over the first four weeks of the season, but the impact will be felt with a home game in between against San Diego State, who is expected to step up their pace significantly under new coach Sean Lewis. After the first month, the inherent challenges of travel will be mitigated a bit thanks to off-weeks, but Miami, NC State and SMU will give UC some exposure to some of the top teams in the league. |
9 |
|
This schedule could include four preseason AP Top 25 teams depending on where NC State ranks in the consensus later this month. I think there’s some advantage to playing Ole Miss and Clemson in Winston-Salem, but the typical three-point or so home-field advantage probably won’t change who has the advantage in these matchups. The Demon Deacons have enough winnable games with this schedule to return to a bowl after a seven-year streak ends in 2023, but they’ll need to be road warriors against peer opponents to avoid struggling heading into the final weeks of the year. |
Ten |
|
Play at your own risk outside of Florida. The Swamp is one of the loudest stadiums in the country, and the Gators will be preparing for their first in-state trip of the season on the first Saturday. But a win for Miami in Gainesville could be a big jump start for year three of the Mario Cristobal era. The Florida State and Virginia Tech games are both at home, and Clemson, NC State and SMU are not on the schedule. The one-two punch of Louisville (Oct. 19) and Florida State (Oct. 26) seems like where the Hurricanes’ ACC title hopes lie, because they’ve won enough elsewhere to imagine they can make a run at it. |
11 |
|
Non-conference schedules tend to be decided well in advance, but coach Manny Diaz will be happy to have a decent bracket in his first year on the job. The Blue Devils have a chance to rack up three or four wins before the ACC schedule begins against North Carolina on Sept. 28, allowing the new lineup to settle in and prepare for a tough conference schedule. Duke will face five of the top seven teams in the ACC and relatively evenly matched opponents on the road. |
12 |
|
Pittsburgh has the “honor” of being one of 10 ACC teams to play 10 powerhouse conference teams on the regular-season schedule, and for the Panthers, that comes in the form of another Backyard Brawl against West Virginia and a trip to Big East rival Cincinnati in Week 2. But beyond the non-conference schedule, they have a few days off, including an extended break for a trip to SMU, no matches against Florida State or Miami, and a home game against Clemson. |
13 |
|
The Wolfpack will play in the ACC’s two biggest games in September, in Charlotte to face Tennessee in the Duke-Mayo Kickoff Classic, before traveling to Death Valley to face Clemson (where coach Dave Doeren has won two of his last three games with Dabo Swinney). Beyond that, there are plenty of games in which the Wolfpack could benefit: Western Carolina, Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois round out the non-conference schedule, while the ACC schedule does not include Florida State, Miami, Louisville, Virginia Tech or SMU. |
14 |
|
SMU is in the dark horse conversation first because the Mustangs left the American Athletic Conference with 11 wins and a league title, but also because of a schedule that projects them to be in contention for the ACC title in Year 1. The Mustangs play Florida State in Dallas and must face Louisville the following week, but otherwise can avoid the likes of Clemson, Miami, North Carolina State and Virginia Tech. Non-conference games include two Big 12 teams (TCU, BYU), but both games are at home and there is an off week before a trip to the West Coast. |
15 |
|
North Carolina may not have the same excitement as it has recently, with no quarterbacks on the NFL Draft list, but the Tar Heels have a schedule that could help them make a name for themselves in the ACC race if they play well in the first half of the season. North Carolina avoids Clemson, Miami, Louisville, Virginia Tech and SMU, and its toughest games (Florida State and at home against NC State) all come in November. This will be an ideal time to break in a new starting quarterback and transition to a new defense, now led by Geoff Collins. |
16 |
|
The Hokies took a step forward in Year 2 under coach Brent Pry and are poised to make a leap in Year 3 thanks to returning players and a favorable schedule. Voices of “Enter the Sandman” will echo throughout the New River Valley as Virginia Tech avoids Florida State, NC State, Louisville and SMU to face Clemson, arguably the toughest opponent of the year, at Lane Stadium. There are two matchups against Vanderbilt and Rutgers, both of which should favor the Hokies. |
17 |
|
The majority of ACC teams play either Florida State or Clemson, and many of the teams at the top of this list play either Florida State or Clemson in a non-conference game, as well as Notre Dame. The majority of ACC teams play at least one strong conference opponent in a non-conference game, and over half of the league plays opponents from two strong conferences. Syracuse does neither, but this is honestly a great setup for Fran Brown to succeed in her first year as coach of the Orange. With no Florida State, Clemson, Notre Dame, or strong conference non-conference opponents, Syracuse has the easiest schedule in the ACC, and it gets even easier with the two toughest conference games at home (Virginia Tech and Miami). |