ACC PREVIEWS

Thursday, Sept. 22
West Virginia (1-2, 0-1 Big 12) at Virginia Tech (2-1, 1-0 ACC)
7:30 p.m.; ESPN
WV leads series, 29-23-1
Last meeting: WV, 27-21 (2021)
Head Coaches:
Virginia Tech – Brent Pry (2-1 in first season at Virginia Tech and overall)
West Virginia – Neal Brown (18-20 in fourth season at West Virginia; 53-36 in eighth season overall)

Notes: The programs have squared off 53 times since 1912, but this year’s game will mark the first time the teams have met in back-to-back seasons since they met every year from 1973 through 2005 • Last year’s game in Morgantown saw Virginia Tech come almost all the way back from a 20-point deficit, but a late goal-line stand by the Mountaineers preserved a 27-21 win for the home team • Saturday will mark West Virginia’s first trip to Blacksburg since Oct. 2, 2004 (a 19-13 Virginia Tech win) • Arguably the most memorable contest in the series was a 22-20 Tech victory in Morgantown on Nov. 6, 1999, when Michael Vick led a last-minute comeback that Shayne Graham capped with a 44-yard game-winning field goal as time expired • This weekend’s game will be the Mountaineers’ second of the still-young 2022 season against a rival team from the ACC • Pitt downed West Virginia 38-31 in the “Backyard Brawl” on Sept. 1.

Saturday, Sept. 24
Duke (3-0, 0-0 ACC) at Kansas (3-0, 1-0 Big 12)
Noon; FS1
Duke leads series, 2-1
Last meeting: Duke, 52-33 (2021)
Head Coaches:
Duke – Mike Elko (3-0 in first season at Duke and overall)
Kansas – Lance Leipold (5-10- in second season at Kansas; 150-49 in 16th season overall)

Notes: Duke and Kansas play the fourth game in a series in which the home teams is currently 3-0 • The teams first met at Kansas in 2009, where the 22nd-ranked Jayhawks bagged a 44-16 victory by breaking the game open with 27 unanswered points • Duke won 41-3 at Durham in 2014 as freshman running back Shaun Wilson broke the then-school single-game rushing record with 245 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead the Blue Devils • Last year’s game, also in Durham, saw the Blue Devils outscore the Jayhawks 52-33 as RB Gunnar Holmberg tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns and threw for a fifth • The Blue Devils struck for 21 points during a six-minute span of the third quarter • The Blue Devils enter Saturday’s game with an all-time record of 8-4 versus Big 12 opponents, including wins in each of the last four matchups.

Friday, Sept. 23
Virginia (2-1, 0-0 ACC) at Syracuse (3-0, 1-0 ACC)
7 p.m.; ESPN
Virginia leads series, 3-2
Last meeting: UVA, 44-38, 3ot (2015)
Head Coaches:
Virginia – Tony Elliott (1-1 in first season at UVA and overall)
Syracuse – Dino Babers (32-43 in seventh season at Syracuse; 69-59 in 11th season overall)

Notes: Virginia and Syracuse meet for the first time since October of 2015, when the Cavaliers outlasted the Orange for a 44-38 win in three overtimes in Charlottesville • PK Ian Frye’s tying 25-yard field goal as regulation time expired set Virginia up to prevail in triple-OT after the Cavaliers had maintained possession for the final 6:52 of the fourth quarter with a 19-play, 88-yard drive • It marked the first time the teams had met in ACC play and the first time since Virginia squeaked out a 27-24 win at the Carrier Dome in 2005 on PK Connor Hughes’ 19-yard field goal as time expired • The Cavaliers also won at home in 2004, giving them two straight wins in the series • The Orange took the first two meetings between the teams in 1975 at Charlottesville and in 1977 at Syracuse’s old Archbold Stadium • This Saturday’s contest is the second of a four-game homestand for the Orange, which seeks its first-ever 2-0 start in ACC play.

Saturday, Sept. 24
South Florida (1-2, 0-0 AAC) at Louisville (1-2, 0-2 ACC)
Noon; RSN
Louisville leads series, 6-5
Last meeting: UL, 34-3 (2013)
Head Coaches:
Louisville – Scott Satterfield (19-21 in fourth season at Louisville; 70-45 in 10th overall)
USF – Jeff Scott (4-20 in third season at USF and overall)

Notes: Louisville faces the Bulls on the football field for the 12th time and the first time since 2013, kicking off a three-game series • Louisville and USF first met on the gridiron in 2003 and then played each season through 2013 as Big East Conference members • The Cardinals have won the last three contests against the Bulls • USF is 9-13 all-time versus ACC teams, with the most recent win coming versus Georgia Tech in September of 2018 • Saturday’s game caps run of three consecutive games versus Florida teams for Louisville, which traveled to UCF on Sept. 9 and played host to Florida State last Friday • Saturday’s game will be the first non-night game for Louisville so far this season and will mark the Cardinals’ last appearance at home until they face Pitt, Wake Forest and James Madison in a three-week homestand Oct. 22, Oct. 29 and Nov. 5.

Saturday, Sept. 24

5 Clemson (3-0, 1-0 ACC) at #21 Wake Forest (3-0, 0-0 ACC)

Noon; ABC
Clemson leads series, 69-17-1
Last meeting: CU, 48-27 (2021)
Head Coaches:
Clemson – Dabo Swinney (153-36 in 15th season at Clemson overall)
Wake Forest – Dave Clawson (54-48 in ninth season at Wake Forest; 144-128 in 23rd season overall)

Notes: A pair of nationally-ranked ACC Atlantic Division teams are set to collide as Clemson heads to Winston-Salem to face the Demon Deacons • The Tigers’ win in Death Valley in the 2021 late-season matchup improved their record against the Demon Deacons in ACC play to 59-9-1 • Wake Forest’s last win versus Clemson came in October of 2008 by a 12-7 score in Winston-Salem • Dabo Swinney, who was named the Tigers’ interim head coach four days later and eventually elevated to the head coaching position, is 13-0 against Wake in the games played since • The Demon Deacons entered last year’s game at Clemson ranked 10th nationally and en route to their second Atlantic Division title, but the Tigers ruled the day with a strong ground game • Kobe Pace ran for a career-high 191 yards and two touchdowns, and fellow running back Will Shipley added 112 rushing yards with a pair of TDs.

Saturday, Sept. 24
Rhode Island (2-1, 1-1 CAA) at #23 Pitt (2-1, 0-0 ACC)
Noon.; ACCN
First meeting
Head Coaches:
Pitt – Pat Narduzzi (55-38 in eighth season at Pitt and overall)
Rhode Island – Jim Fleming (25-59 in ninth season at Rhode Island; 46-60 in 11th season overall)

Notes: Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi guides the Panthers against his alma mater in the first-ever meeting between the programs • Narduzzi starred as a linebacker for the Rams from 1987-89 after transferring from Youngstown State • He served as Rhode Island’s linebackers coach for five seasons from 1993-97 and then spent the next two seasons as defensive coordinator from 1998-99 • Narduzzi is 7-0 versus FCS teams in his eight years at Pitt • Rhode Island head coach Jim Fleming is in his ninth year at the school • Fleming’s resume includes a 21-1 record in two years as head coach at Sacred Heart, including an unbeaten season and the Mid-Major National Championship in 2001 • He followed with a 12-year stint as a coordinator and assistant coach at the FBS level, including two years in the ACC coaching defensive backs and special teams at North Carolina versus FBS opponents.

Saturday, Sept. 24
Middle Tennessee (2-1,0-0 C-USA) at #25 Miami (2-1, 0-0 ACC)
3:30 p.m.; ACCN
MTSU leads series, 2-0
Last meeting: MTSU,7-0 (1932)
Head Coaches:
Miami – Mario Cristobal (2-1 in first season at Miami; 64-61 in 12th season overall)
Middle Tennessee- Rick Stockstill (103-99 in 17th season at MTSU and overall)

Notes: The Hurricanes close out their non-conference schedule with their first game against Middle Tennessee State in 90 years • Miami trails 2-0 in the all-time series after dropping both ends of a home-and-home set in 1931-32 by scores of 25-0 at Murfreesboro and 7-0 • The Hurricanes are 2-0 so far this season at Hard Rock Stadium after limiting Bethune-Cookman and Southern Miss to a combined 10 points the first two weekends in September • Following Saturday’s game, Miami has an open date before plunging into ACC play on Oct. 8 versus visiting North Carolina • The Blue Raiders are led by 17th-year head coach Rick Stockstill, who has led Middle Tennessee State to nine bowl games (three wins) • The Blue Raiders defeated Toledo 31-24 in last year’s Bahamas Bowl • Stockstill, a former quarterback at Florida State, put in 14 seasons in the ACC as a Clemson assistant coach (1989-2002).

Saturday, Sept. 24
UConn (1-3) at #12 NC State (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
7:30 p.m.; RSN
NC State leads series, 2-0
Last meeting: NCSU, 10-7 (2012)
Head Coaches:
NC State – Dave Doeren (67-49 in 10th season at NC State; 90-53 in 12th season overall)
UConn – Jim Mora (1-3 in first season at UConn; 47-33 in seventh season overall)

Notes: Third all-time meeting between the Wolfpack and Huskies, who first played in 2003 • NC State won by seven points at Raleigh in 2003 and posted a 10-7 victory at East Hartford in the most recent meeting in 2012 • The Wolfpack downed the Huskies in dramatic fashion in the first meeting at Carter-Finley nearly 19 years ago as LB Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay intercepted a pass and raced 56 yards for the winning touchdown with five seconds left in a 31-24 win • Aughtry-Lindsay had earlier scored on 48-yard interception return • NC State built a 10-0 lead in the 2012 game and held off the Huskies following a fourth-quarter touchdown by the home team • UConn will face its second ACC opponent in three weeks after falling 48-14 at Syracuse on Sept. 10 • Fourth consecutive non-conference test for NC State, which will close out the regular
season with eight straight conference games.

Saturday, Sept. 24
Notre Dame (1-2) at North Carolina (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
3:30 p.m.; ABC
Notre Dame leads series, 20-2
Last meeting: ND, 44-34 (2021)
Head Coaches:
UNC – Mack Brown (93-63-1 in 14th season at UNC; 268-139-1 in 34th season overall)
Notre Dame – Marcus Freeman (1-3 in first full season at Notre Dame and overall)

Notes: North Carolina and Notre Dame meet for the 23rd time and for the third consecutive year for the first time since 1958-60 • The Fighting Irish have won 20 of the previous 22 head-to-head meetings, including a 31-17 victory two years ago in Chapel Hill that helped secure a spot in the 2020 ACC Football Championship Game in Notre Dame’s lone year of conference membership • RB Kyren Williams rushed for a career-high 199 yards on 22 carries to lead the Fighting Irish has they held off UNC and QB Sam Howell for a 44-34 win last October in South Bend • The programs first met in 1949 at Yankee Stadium, with Notre Dame winning 42-6 en route to a national championship • Notre Dame is 6-2 all-time versus the Tar Heels in South Bend, with UNC’s two wins at Kenan Stadium coming in 1960 and 2008 • Saturday’s game will mark just the seventh time the programs have met in the past 47 years (all since 2006).

Saturday, Sept. 24
Boston College (1-2, 0-1 ACC) at Florida State (3-0, 1-0 ACC)
8 p.m.; ACCN
FSU leads series, 14-5
Last meeting: FSU, 26-23 (2021)
Head Coaches:
Boston College – Jeff Hafley (13-13 in third season at Boston College and overall)
Florida State – Florida State – Mike Norvell (11-13 in third season at FSU; 49-28 in seventh season overall)

Notes: Florida State has won 10 of the last 11 meetings in this Atlantic Division matchup, including a 26-23 victory at Chestnut Hill late last season • QB Jordan Travis threw for three touchdowns and 251 yards, and FSU sealed the win with a late defensive stand• The Eagles’ most recent win versus FSU came at home in 2017, when they rolled to a 35-3 victory, marking BC’s largest margin of victory against the Seminoles and snapping a seven-game series losing streak • The Seminoles lead 12-4 in ACC games in the series, which began in 1957 and also featured non-conference games in 1976 and 1980 before both schools became ACC members • Florida State is 6-2 in home games versus the Eagles, with Boston College’s wins coming in each of its first two road trips to Tallahassee as an ACC member during the 2006 and 2008 seasons.

Saturday, Sept. 24
Georgia Tech (1-2, 0-1 ACC) at UCF (2-1, 0-0 AAC)
4 p.m..; ESPNU
Georgia Tech leads series, 3-1
Last meeting: UCF, 49-21 (2020)
Head Coaches:
Georgia Tech – Geoff Collins (10-27 in fourth season at Georgia Tech; 25-37 in sixth season overall)
UCF – Gus Malzahn (12-5 in second season at UCF; 89-43 in 11th season overall)

Notes: Georgia Tech faces UCF for the fifth time on the football field and the first time outside the city of Atlanta • The Yellow Jackets will be the second ACC opponent of the 2022 season for the Knights, who dropped a 20-14 decision to Louisville in Orlando on Sept. 9 • QB Dillon Gabriel threw for a career-best 417 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 14 UCF to its first series win over the Yellow Jackets in the most recent meeting between the teams in Atlanta in 2020 • Georgia Tech had won each of the previous three meetings in the series, which was first played in 1996 • The teams were scheduled to meet in Orlando in 2017, but the game was canceled due to Hurricane Irma • This will be the final non-conference test for the Yellow Jackets until Nov. 26, when they are scheduled to travel to Athens, Georgia, for the traditional regular season finale versus the Bulldogs • Tech has another road game set for Oct. 1 at Pitt.