My preview of every team in the ACC, who I think can win the conference, and my preseason all conference team:
The ACC is a one man band this year. Clemson is the top dog and it is not even close. They will be getting the ACC’s bid. There is only one scenario in which I could envison a team other than Clemson making the playoffs. If Miami beats one or both of Florida and Notre Dame, and finishes 11-2 or better, they could make it, and if either them or Louisville gets really lucky in an ACC Championship and beats Clemson off of a fluke. The ACC is a little deeper than usual, but they don’t have the top end teams to produce several at large contenders.
Boston College
Conference Rank: 11
Record Projection: 5-7 (3-5)
Impact Opponents: vs CLEM, at LOU, vs ND
Boston College was a pretty good last year, much thanks to QB Thomas Castellanos. Now they don’t have Castellanos anymore, and in comes former Alabama QB Dylan Lonergan. Lonergan definitelt showed some potential in the little time he had at Bama, and I think he could surprise in year 1 with Bill O’Brien. This team seems pretty solid across the board. I wouldn’t be surprised if they improved on last year’s record if it weren’t for their schedule. They must play on the road at Michigan State and get Notre Dame at home in the nonconference. They must play at Pitt and Louisville in conference play and then play SMU, Georgia Tech, and Clemson at home. While the team might actually be better, the record probably won’t improve.
California
Conference Rank: 12
Record Projection: 6-6 (3-5)
Impact Opponents: vs UNC, at LOU, vs SMU
I’ll start by saying that losing QB Fernando Mendoza will really hurt, and probably prevent them from being very good. Their offense will mainly be led by transfers this year, and I don’t think they’ll be anything special, but not terrible. The defense should be solid as always. Justin Wilcox is the only thing keeping Cal from being completely terrible, and they should be mediocre yet again.
Clemson
Conference Rank: 1
Record Projection: 12-1 (8-0)
Impact Opponents: vs LSU, at LOU, at SC
Many say that Clemson will be a legitamate championship contender for the first time in years, but I think that is a little far fetched. They went 0-3 vs SEC teams last year, two of those games weren’t even close. They are gonna need to beat some big boy SEC and Big Ten teams if they want to win the championship. They get plenty of chances to prove themselves this year. They start and end the year with SEC opponents in LSU and South Carolina, and in conference play they get Georgia Tech, SMU, Florida State, and Louisville. Their defense should be one of the country’s best, and the roster is leaps and bounds ahead of the rest of the ACC, which is why I think that winning the ACC will be a cakewalk. There are two big questions that keep me from considering them to be real contenders. QB and RB. Cade Klubnik was very good in the last few games last year, but that was the outlier. He has been very average otherwise. Clemson has struggled to consistently run the ball ever since Travis Etienne left, and they have very litte experience at RB this year. They are set up to make the playoffs, but just can’t see them winning it all.
Duke
Conference Rank: 10
Record Projection: 7-5 (4-4)
Impact Opponents: vs ILL, vs NCST, at CLEM
Manny Diaz surprised me in year 1. I thought they were sure to take a step back after losing Elko, but ended up improving their win total. The team seems marginally better across the board, but their schedule and their ACC piers are improving more rapidly. They got out of a lot of close games last year, and I don’t know if they can do that again. They have several swing games, and I don’t see them winning as many as they did last year. Illinois, Tulane, NCST, Syracuse, Cal, Georgia Tech, Clemson, and North Carolina are all very loseable, and another 9 win season is unlikely, but not impossible.
Florida State
Conference Rank: 6
Record Projection: 8-4 (6-2)
Impact Opponents: vs BAMA, at CLEM, at UF
Last year was embarassing. Plain and simple. This year will be better. How much better? I’m not sure. Thomas Castellanos is an immediate upgrade at QB, and should work very well in Gus Malzahn’s system with Roydell Williams as a solid back. The roster is one of the best in the ACC, they are just unproven all together. If this team can mesh, I could see them being a dark horse contender to make the ACC championship. If the team can’t mesh, they could miss a bowl game yet again for the 5th time in 8 years.
Georgia Tech
Conference Rank: 5
Record Projection: 9-3 (6-2)
Impact Opponents: vs CLEM, vs PITT, vs UGA
Georgia Tech has been on the rise, and I expect them to keep on that trajectory this year. Will that culimate in them beating Georgia and/or winning the ACC? Probably not, but they could very well finish in the Top 25 and get 8-10 wins. While unforrtunately they lose their top WR to Auburn, they still have Haynes King and Aaron Philo at QB, and Jamal Haynes at RB. While they lose some talent from last year, they have a lot coming back and the schedule is promising as I would probably have them favored in 9 or even 10 of their games this season. Look out for Georgia Tech.
Louisville
Conference Rank: 3
Record Projection: 10-2 (6-2)
Impact Opponents: at MIA, vs CLEM, at SMU
Louisville was one of the most underrated teams in the country last year. Other than their choke job against Stanford, they were really good. They dominated Clemson and was able to keep it within one possession against Notre Dame, SMU, and Miami! Jeff Brohm is one of the best coaches in the conference, and he has a lot to work with on his roster, including star RB Isaac Brown and transfer QB Miller Moss. Despite a tough schedule, Louisville is very much in contention to make the ACC championship. Winning it will be tough, but I think they have a shot. Not a good one, but a shot nonetheless, and if they can beat Clemson when it matters, they could crash the playoffs.
Miami
Conference Rank: 2
Record Projection: 9-4 (7-1)
Impact Opponents: vs ND, vs UF, vs LOU
Miami is once again probably the most talented team in the ACC, but I still don’t think they’ll win the conference. Why? Two reasons. Mario Cristobal and Carson Beck. Cristobal consistently loses games that he shouldn’t. The guy is great at acuiring talent, but he underperforms almost every year. He was lucky to be in the playoff conversation for so long last year, much thanks to Cam Ward’s heroics. Without Cam Ward, they probably would have lost to Virginia Tech, Cal, and Louisville. Carson Beck is a good QB. He was even great at times at Georgia, but he never performs against the top defenses. He SUCKED last year against Alabama, Ole Miss, Florida, and Texas, and he probably would have sucked against Notre Dame too. Lucky for him, he doesn’t have to play against very many great defenses in conference play. I expect the defense to be better this year, and they should do very well in conference play, but he must play Notre Dame and Florida in the non conference, and Clemson should be awaiting them in the ACC Championship. I also think they will inneveitably lose a game they shouldn’t and will go 9-4 losing to the top 3 teams I just mentioned as well as the slip up.
North Carolina
Conference Rank: 9
Record Projection: 8-4 (4-4)
Impact Opponents: vs CLEM, vs DUKE, at NCST
Even with the change to Bill Belichick, I expect UNC to be mediocre as usual. The defense should be better under Belichik’s control, but they really don’t have a difference maker on offense. Maybe Gio Lopez could be that guy at QB, but I’m sceptical. Their schedule is insanely easy, hence the 8-4 record, but they won’t be contending for anything.
North Carolina State
Conference Rank: 8
Record Projection: 7-5 (4-4)
Impact Opponents: at ND, vs GT, at MIA
Dave Doeren is a good coach, and I trust him to bring out a quality squad every year, with this being no exception. They are more experienced than they were last year, and the schedule is decent. 6-8 wins is probably what the range would look like, so don’t expect them to contend for a championship berth, but they will be better this year.
Pittsburgh
Conference Rank: 7
Record Projection: 8-4 (4-4)
Impact Opponents: vs LOU, vs ND, vs MIA
After winning 7 straight to start last season, they lost 6 in row to end it. However, this losing streak came after star QB Eli Holsteain got injured. He is back now as one of the best in the conference, and he pairs with a top RB as well. Pat Narduzzi should have the rest of the squad solid, and the result will fall on the shoulders of Eli Holstein’s health. The schedule is tough, so I don’t see them doing much better than 8 maybe 9 wins, but they should make some noise this season.
SMU
Conference Rank: 4
Record Projection: 9-3 (5-3)
Impact Opponents: at CLEM, vs MIA, vs LOU
I’m about to say some pretty negative things about the Ponies, but I would like the preface this by saying they were very good (not great) last year, and will probably about just as good this year with the return of QB Ken Jennings. Their schedule was PUNY last year. BYU, Clemson, and Penn State were by far the best teams they played last year, and they lost to all of them. They were able to goof around and win every other game because the competition was doo doo. This year the schedule is much harder. Non conference is still tough with Baylor and TCU, and they must play Clemson, Miami, and Louisville in conference play. They will be in for a rude awakening, and I would be shocked if they made the playoffs again.
Stanford
Conference Rank: 17
Record Projection: 2-10 (0-8)
Impact Opponents: at SMU, at MIA, ND
Stanford will be the worst team in the P4 this year. They were already really bad last year, and after pressing the reset button again this offseason, they have a long rebuild ahead of them.
Syracuse
Conference Rank: 13
Record Projection: 4-8 (2-6)
Impact Opponents: vs TEN, at CLEM, at ND
Syracuse was a pleasant surprise last year, but they lose two of the main factors that made that happen last year. QB Kyle McCord and an easy schedule. Steve Angeli has potential, but I doubt he will be nearly as effective as McCord. The schedule almost as hard as it could be. In non conference they play Tennessee and Notre Dame. In conference they play Clemson, Duke, SMU, Pitt, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Miami, and Boston College. That is 8 of my top 11 teams in the league. Ouch. They’ll probably be decent, but the record won’t reflect that as they I would only favor them in 3 games.
Virginia
Conference Rank: 15
Record Projection: 5-7 (2-6)
Impact Opponents: at NCST, at LOU, at UNC
Tony Elliot is done after this season. They made some progress last year, but they didn’t really beat anyone respectable (Pitt was hobbled). QB Chandlet Morris was good last year at North Texas, but can he get it done at the P4 level? He wasn’t all that great at TCU. They don’t have any great skill players and their defenses haven’t been great under Elliot. I just don’t see anything great happening with this team.
Virginia Tech
Conference Rank: 14
Record Projection: 4-8 (2-6)
Impact Opponents: vs SC, vs LOU, vs MIA
This is one of the most consistently overrated teams every year. People will sing Brent Pry’s praises, but theu really just hasn’t been any positive results with this team in a long time. They haven’t beaten a ranked team since 2021! I have heard it once, I’ve heard it a million times, Kyrone Drones isn’t happening. He isn’t a star. Virginia Tech will be pretty average, and unfortunately for them, a tough schedule will make it difficult for them to make a bowl game.
Wake Forest
Conference Rank: 16
Record Projection: 4-8 (1-7)
Impact Opponents: vs GT, vs SMU, at FSU
They lost Sam Hartman and they fell off hard. Now they don’t have Dave Clawson, and I don’t expect things to get much better in year 1 under Jake Dickert. They dude is a decent coach, and I think could get WF back on their feet in a few years, but it will take time. Lucky for them, they have a an easy schedule this year, so they will have something to build on. Their toughest non conference game is against Oregon State, 3 of their games are against teams in either in the FCS, or were in the FCS within the last 3 years. They also avoid Clemson, Miami, and Louisville. A bowl is still probably out of reach, but they could rack up a few wins.
ACC Championship Preview
Clemson is lock to make it, and pretty much a lock to win it. Louisville, Miami, and SMU have a round robin, and whoever comes out of that on top will probably be Clemson’s opponent, and in the case of MIA and LOU, have a small chance at getting the win to sneak into the playoffs. Georgia Tech and Florida State could be darkhorse contenders if things went terribly wrong for a few teams ahead of them, but it would require some luck.
Clemson will beat Miami in the ACC Championship.
All ACC Team
Offense
QB: Cade Klubnik (Clemson)
RB: Desmond Reid (Pittsburgh)
RB: Jamal Haynes (Georgia Tech)
WR: Caullin Lacy (Louisville)
WR: Eric Rivers (Georgia Tech)
WR: Antonio Williams (Clemson)
TE: RJ Maryland (SMU)
OT: Blake Miller (Clemson)
OT: Francis Mauigoa (Miami)
OG: Keylan Rutledge (Georgia Tech)
OG: Anez Cooper (Miami)
C: Pete Nygra (Louisville)
Defense
DT: Peter Woods (Clemson)
DT: Jordan van der Berg (Georgia Tech)
EDGE: Reuben Bain (Miami)
EDGE: TJ Parker (Clemson)
LB: Wade Woodaz (Clemson)
LB: Kyle Louis (Pittsburgh)
LB: Sammy Brown (Clemson)
CB: Avieon Terrell (Clemson)
CB: Chandler Rivers (Duke)
S: Terry Moore (Duke)
S: Isaiah Nwokobia (SMU)
Special Teams
K: Collin Rogers (SMU)
P: Jack Stonehouse (Clemson)
KR: Keelan Marion (Miami)
PR: Jacob De Jesus (California)
Conference Rankings
- Clemson Tigers 12-1 (8-0)
- Miami Hurricanes 9-4 (7-1)
- Louisville Cardinals 10-2 (6-2)
- SMU 9-3 (5-3)
- Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 9-3 (6-2)
- Florida State Seminoles 8-4 (6-2)
- Pittsburgh Panthers 8-4 (4-4)
- NCST Wolfpack 7-5 (4-4)
- North Carolina Tar Heels 8-4 (4-4)
- Duke Blue Devils 7-5 (4-4)
- Boston College Eagles 5-7 (3-5)
- California Golden Bears 6-6 (3-5)
- Syracuse Orange 4-8 (2-6)
- Virginia Tech Hokies 4-8 (2-6)
- Virginia Cavaliers 5-7 (2-6)
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons 4-8 (1-7)
- Stanford Cardinal 2-10 (0-8)
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