AROUND THE ACC
Boston College: The Eagles bounced back from a 1-3 start to win five straight games, yet finished the regular season on a three-game losing streak to end the regular season at 6-6 overall. With a bowl game victory, the Eagles will record seven wins in a season for the first time since 2018.
Clemson: After a slow start to the season, the Clemson Tigers finished strong, rounding out the regular season with four consecutive wins. Clemson has now won eight games in a season for the 41st time in school history. Clemson has also recorded 13 consecutive eight-win seasons and the 14th overall in Dabo Swinney’s 15 full seasons as head coach.
Duke: Duke closed out the regular season last week with its program-record sixth home victory of the year following its 30-19 win over Pittsburgh at Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium. The Blue Devils finished 4-0 and undefeated at home in ACC play for the first time since 1989.
Florida State: FSU improved to 12-0 and completed its seventh undefeated regular season with a 24-15 win at Florida in the regular-season finale. FSU’s 18-game winning streak is the third-longest active streak in the country, the second-longest in program history, and the third-longest in ACC history. On top of its seventh undefeated regular season, FSU completed its 11th undefeated record on the road and is 12-0 for the fourth time in program history.
Georgia Tech: Georgia Tech scored at least 21 points in all 12 games this season. The Yellow Jackets’ streak of 12 straight games with 21 points or more is its longest since it scored 21 or more points in 17 straight games in 2014-15.
Louisville: First-year head coach Jeff Brohm finished his first regular season at 10-2 overall and 6-1 at home. He is the first coach to win 10 or more games in his first season at UofL and the first coach to take his team to a conference title game. The Cardinals have won 10 games for the seventh time in school history. They also won 10 or more games in 1991, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2012, and 2013.
Miami: Miami snapped a three-game losing streak in a big way with a road win at Boston College in the regular-season finale. The Hurricanes’ offense recorded 532 yards of total offense in the win over the Eagles. It was Miami’s highest offensive total against an ACC opponent this season and their highest offensive performance since they totaled 589 yards against Bethune-Cookman in September.
North Carolina: The Tar Heels have scored 30 points in all but three games this year, going 0-3 in those games. North Carolina has scored 50 times in 56 drives in the red zone this season, registering 35 touchdowns and 15 made field goals when advancing into the red zone.
NC State: Over the current five-game winning streak, the NC State offense has averaged 28.8 points per game and 344.8.0 total yards of offense per game, including 408 yards of offense at Virginia Tech (Nov. 19) and a season-high 504 yards of offense against North Carolina (Nov. 25). The Wolfpack defense has held their opponents to 20 points or less in five of their last six games and eight of their 12 games on the season.
Pitt: Pitt cornerback M.J. Devonshire was named to the 2023 All-ACC Second Team, as he led the Panthers with four interceptions and 10 pass breakups. His four interceptions are the most by a Pitt defender in a season since 2012. Among ACC players, Devonshire ranks second in interceptions and first with 115 interception return yards. The Panthers had four players receive 2023 All-ACC Honorable Mention honors as well: tight end Gavin Bartholomew, return specialist Kenny Johnson, safety Donovan McMillon, and wide receiver Bub Means.
Syracuse: On Tuesday, Nov. 28, Syracuse named Fran Brown its new head coach. However, in the regular-season finale, the Orange put up 35 points and piled up 468 yards of total offense in a win over Wake Forest to become bowl eligible for the second straight year. It marks the first time since 2012 and 2013 that Syracuse will head to a bowl in back-to-back seasons.
Virginia: With a career-high 14 receptions in the regular-season finale versus Virginia Tech, wide receiver Malik Washington finished the season with 110 receptions, 1,426 receiving yards, and nine touchdowns. Washington broke the ACC single-season records for receptions (110) and receptions per game (9.16) in a season, while his 1,426 receiving yards are the fifth-most in a single season in ACC history. Washington is the sixth player in ACC history with 100 receptions in a season.
Virginia Tech: The Hokies are going bowling for the first time under second-year head coach Brent Pry, earning their sixth win in dominant fashion. Virginia Tech’s 55 points scored against Virginia in the regular-season finale were the most points scored by either team in the 104-game series. The last time Tech scored 55 or more points was against William & Mary in 2018.
Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons had their bowl streak snapped at seven consecutive seasons this year, which was the second-longest in the ACC. However, the future looks bright for the Deacs, as they scored 31 points in the regular-season finale with three touchdown passes from redshirt junior Michael Kern, who was making just his second career start.
