Week 12 ACC PREVIEWS
Thursday, Nov. 18
Louisville (5-5, 3-4 ACC) at Duke (3-7, 0-6 ACC)
7:30 p.m.; ESPN
UL leads series, 2-0
Last meeting: UL, 24-14 (2016)
Head Coaches:
Louisville – Scott Satterfield (17-17 in third season at Louisville; 68-41 in ninth season overall)
Duke – David Cutcliffe (77-95 in 14th season at Duke; 121-124 in 20th season overall)
Notes: Duke and Louisville meet on the football field for only the third time and the second time in ACC play • The only previous conference matchup came in 2016, when eventual Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson and the Cardinals turned back the Blue Devils for a 24-14 win at home • Jackson provided a cushion with a 2-yard touchdown run with 1:32 remaining for Louisville, which had entered averaging a nation-leading 58 points through five games • The only prior meeting between the programs came on Sept. 7, 2002, when QB Dave Ragone threw for 258 yards to lead Louisville to a 40-3 win at Duke’s Wallace Wade Stadium • TE Ronnie Ghent finished with 10 receptions for the Cardinals, and Brent Garber’s 48-yard field goal accounted for the Blue Devils’ only points of the game • Thursday night’s contest is the first of a two-game homestand to close the season for Duke, which will welcome Miami on Nov. 27.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Wofford (1-9, 0-8 SoCon) at North Carolina (5-5, 3-4 ACC)
Noon; RSN
First meeting
Head Coaches:
Wofford – Josh Conklin (19-22 in fourth season at Wofford and overall)
North Carolina – Mack Brown (89-61-1 in 13th season at North Carolina; 264-137-1 in 33rd season overall)
Notes: North Carolina plays its 2021 home finale when it welcomes Wofford to Kenan Stadium on Saturday • It will mark the third non-conference game in four weeks for the Tar Heels, who lost 44-34 at Notre Dame on Oct. 30 and defeated Wake Forest 58-55 in a designated non-conference game at Kenan on Nov. 6 • UNC is 5-1 at home this season, with all of its wins to date coming in Chapel Hill • A win Saturday would make the Tar Heels bowl eligible for the third consecutive season • The Tar Heels are slated to close their regular season at NC State on Friday, Nov. 26 • UNC was the only FBS opponent on the 2021 schedule for Wofford of the Southern Conference, which wraps up its season with Saturday’s game • The Terriers are coached by Josh Conklin, who came to Wofford prior to the start of the 2018 season following at three-year stint as defensive coordinator at Pitt.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Florida State (4-6, 3-4 ACC) at Boston College (6-4, 2-4 ACC)
Noon; ACCN
FSU leads series, 13-5
Last meeting: FSU, 38-31 (2019)
Head Coaches:
Florida State – Mike Norvell (7-12 in second season at FSU; 45-27 overall)
Boston College – Jeff Hafley (12-9 in second season at Boston College and overall)
Notes: Florida State has won nine of the last 10 meetings in this Atlantic Division matchup, including a 38-31 victory at Chestnut Hill two seasons ago • WR D.J. Matthews and QB Jordan Travis each scored touchdowns in the final 1:40 to lift the Seminoles, who triumphed under interim head coach Odell Haggins in their first outing after firing Willie Taggart • 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 11-4 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 7-3 in road games at Boston College • Saturday opens a two-game closing homestand for BC, which welcomes Wake Forest on Nov. 27 for its regular-season finale.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Georgia Tech (3-7, 2-6 ACC) at #7 Notre Dame (9-1)
2:30 p.m.; NBC
ND leads series, 29-6-1
Last meeting: ND, 31-13 (2020)
Head Coaches:
Georgia Tech – Geoff Collins (9-23 in third season at Georgia Tech; 24-33 in fifth season overall)
Notre Dame – Brian Kelly (90-40 in 12th season at Notre Dame; 261-97-2 in 32nd season overall)
Notes: After winning 31-13 in Atlanta last season, Notre Dame welcomes Georgia Tech to South Bend for the Yellow Jackets’ final road test of the season • Notre Dame, ranked No. 4 nationally and on its way to a 2020 CFP berth, defeated the Yellow Jackets last year behind two rushing touchdowns by RB Kyren Williams • Williams shook off a fumble that Georgia Tech returned 93 yards for a touchdown to score on two short runs • Notre Dame won the most recent meeting between the schools in South Bend in 2015 by a 30-22 score • RB C.J. Prosise led the way for the home team by scoring three touchdowns and rushing for 198 yards, including a 91-yard TD run that was the longest run in Notre Dame Stadium history • Notre Dame is 16-3 all-time in home games versus the Yellow Jackets and has won three of the most recent five games between the schools.
Saturday, Nov. 20
#13 Wake Forest (9-1, 6-0 ACC) at Clemson (7-3, 5-2 ACC)
Noon; ACCN
CU leads series, 68-17-1
Last meeting: CU, 37-13 (2020)
Head Coaches:
Wake Forest – Dave Clawson (49-46 in eighth season at Wake Forest; 139-126 in 22nd season overall)
Clemson – Dabo Swinney (147-36 in 14th season at Clemson and overall)
Notes: Wake Forest heads to Clemson seeking its first win in the series since 2008 and first win at Death Valley since 1998 • Wake could clinch the Atlantic Division title and a spot in the upcoming Subway ACC Football Championship Game, but a Clemson victory would keep things up in the air • The Tigers’ win at Winston-Salem in last year’s season opener improved their record against the Demon Deacons in ACC play to 58-9-1 • 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 12-0 against Wake in the games played since • Wake Forest’s high-powered offense seeks to reverse a trend that has seen the Tigers outscore the Deacons 152-19 over the previous three seasons while holding Wake to just one touchdown.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Virginia (6-4, 4-2 ACC) at #21 Pitt (8-2, 5-1)
3:30 p.m.; ESPN2
Pitt leads series, 8-4
Last meeting: UVA, 30-14 (2019)
Head Coaches:
Virginia – Bronco Mendenhall (36-36 in sixth season at Virginia; 135-79 in 17th season overall)
Pitt – Pat Narduzzi (49-36 in seventh season at Pitt and overall)
Notes: Pitt could clinch a spot in the Subway ACC Football Championship Game in Charlotte on Dec. 4 for the second time in four seasons with a win over Virginia • The Cavaliers, however, have a chance to keep themselves in the thick of the conversation with a win on Saturday • Due to forced alterations to the 2020 schedule during the pandemic, Pitt and UVA will be meeting for the first time since the Cavaliers’ 30-14 road win in the 2019 season opener • QB Bryce Perkins threw for 181 yards and two touchdowns to lead Virginia • Pitt has won five of seven meetings with the Cavaliers since joining the ACC • The programs first met in 1953 (a 26-0 Pitt win in Charlottesville) and played a total of five times prior to Pitt joining the ACC in 2013, including a 23-16 Virginia win in the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte, N.C., in December of 2003.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Syracuse (5-5, 2-4 ACC) at #21 NC State (7-3, 4-2 ACC)
4 p.m.; ACCN
NCSU leads series,12-2
Last meeting: NCSU, 36-29 (2020)
Head Coaches:
Syracuse – Dino Babers (28-41 in sixth season at Syracuse; 65-57 in 10th season overall)
NC State – Dave Doeren (62-49 in ninth season at NC State; 85-53 in 11th season overall)
Notes: NC State seeks its seventh win in nine ACC meetings versus the Orange as it prepares to end the regular season with a two-game homestand on Saturday • Overall, NC State has won 12 of 14 games in the series, which opened with four games in the 1970s and also featured a home-and home set in 1997-98 • The Wolfpack is 6-1 all-time in home games versus Syracuse, including a 16-10 victory on the Orange’s most recent trip to Raleigh in 2019 • The Wolfpack won 36-29 at the Carrier Dome late last season, as QB Bailey Hockman hit Emeka Emezie with a 26-yard go-ahead score early in the fourth quarter and connected with Thayer Thomas for three more scores through the air • Syracuse, needing one more win to become bowl eligible, closes the regular season versus Pitt on Saturday, Nov. 27, while NC State has Thanksgiving Friday date versus rival North Carolina.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Virginia Tech (5-5, 3-3 ACC) at Miami (5-5, 3-3 ACC)
7:30 p.m.; ACCN
Miami leads series, 23-15
Last meeting: UM, 25-24 (2020)
Head Coaches:
Virginia Tech – Justin Fuente (43-31 in sixth season at Virginia Tech; 69-54 in 10th season overall)
Miami – Manny Diaz (19-15 in third season at Miami and overall)
Notes: Miami has won three of the last four versus the Hokies, including last season’s 25-24 victory in Blacksburg • QB D’Eriq King threw for 255 yards and a go-ahead 36-yard touchdown pass to WR Mark Pope as the Hurricanes rallied to win after trailing most of the way • Miami has won 13 of its previous 20 home games versus Virginia Tech and holds a 4-3 edge in games played at Hard Rock Stadium • This will mark the 30th consecutive year the teams have met • The series opened in 1953 with a 26-0 Miami win at home. The teams met eight more times over the next 38 years, including the Hurricanes’ 14-7 victory in 1966 Liberty Bowl and 20-10 win in the 1980 Peach Bowl • Miami won the first 12 times the schools met before the Hokies broke through with a 13-7 win at Blacksburg in 1995 • Virginia Tech leads 9-8 in ACC games between the Coastal Division teams.
