2021 SUBWAY ACC FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Saturday, Dec. 4 Time, TV
No. 17 Pitt (10-2) vs No. 18 Wake Forest (10-2) 8 p.m., ABC
Series: Pitt leads 1-0; Last meeting: Pitt 34, Wake Forest 13 in Winston-Salem, N.C., 2018
Broadcast Information
ABC: Mark Jones (play-by-play), Robert Griffin III (analyst), Quint Kessenich (sideline)
ESPN Radio: Marc Kestecher (play-by-play), Ben Hartsock (analyst), Kelsey Riggs (sideline)
SiriusXM Radio: Pitt 81, Wake Forest 85
ACC FOOTBALL QUICK HITS
SUBWAY ACC FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME FEATURES NO. 17 PITT VS. NO. 18 WAKE FOREST
• Two of the most prolific offenses in the country are set to meet in the 2021 Subway ACC Football Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 8 p.m. when No. 17 Pitt faces No. 18 Wake Forest. The game will be televised by ABC.
• Wake Forest ranks third in the country in scoring offense (42.9 ppg), while Pitt is fourth (42.8). Both teams also rank in the top 15 nationally in total offense, passing offense and passing touchdowns.
NCAA Category PITT WF
Scoring Offense 4th, 42.8 3rd, 42.9
Total Offense 9th, 512.8 4th, 483.6
Passing Offense 6th, 356.7 11th, 315.5
Passing TDs 3rd, 41 11th, 34
• This is the first ACC championship game to feature two teams averaging more than 40 points per game.
• Pitt won the ACC Coastal Division with a thrilling 48-38 victory over Virginia on Nov. 21. It is the Panthers’ second ACC Coastal Division title in the last four years (2018).
• Wake Forest won the ACC Atlantic Division with a 41-10 victory at Boston College on Nov. 27. It is the Demon Deacons’ second Atlantic Division title and first since 2006.
• Pitt, which joined the ACC in 2013, is seeking its first ACC title. The Panthers lost to Clemson, 42-10, in their only other appearance in the ACC Football Championship Game in 2018.
• Wake Forest has won two ACC titles in its history – 1970 & 2006. The Deacons defeated Georgia Tech, 9-6, in the second ACC Football Championship Game in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2006 behind three field goals from PK Sam Swank.
• Pitt and Wake Forest have met just once previously with the Panthers producing a 34-13 win in 2018 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The win secured the 2018 Coastal Division title for the Panthers. Pitt QB Kenny Pickett completed 23 of 30 pass attempts for 316 yards and three touchdowns.
• The ACC has been the conference of quarterbacks all season, so it is fitting that two of the most productive signal callers are set to battle for a conference crown. Pitt’s Kenny Pickett and Wake Forest’s Sam Hartman have had incredible regular seasons and rank among the nation’s best in several key statistics.
NCAA Category Pickett Hartman
Total Offense YPG 357.2 – 4th 337.8 – 6th
Passing YPG 338.8 – 6th 309.2 – 9th
Passing Yards 4,066 – 5th 3,711 – 9th
Passing TDs 40 – 2nd 34 – 9th
Total TDs 44 – T2nd 44 – T2nd
Points Responsible For 264 – 3rd 268 – 2nd
ACC NOTES
BOWL NOTES
• Ten ACC teams are bowl eligible following the conclusion of the 2021 regular season. Not including the Pandemic-affected 2020 season, the ACC has sent at least 10
teams to a bowl every year since 2016.
• Boston College (6-6), Clemson (9-3), Louisville (6-6), Miami (7-5), North Carolina (6-6), NC State (9-3), Pitt (10-2), Virginia (6-6), Virginia Tech (6-6) and Wake Forest (10-2) are bowl eligible.
QUICK HITS
• Twenty-five of the ACC’s 56 conference games this season were decided by one possession (8 points or fewer), which is the most of any conference.
IN THE RANKINGS
• Four ACC teams are ranked in the Nov. 23 CFP rankings – No. 18 Wake Forest, No. 17 Pitt, No. 20 NC State and No. 23 Clemson. The Panthers’ No. 17 ranking is their highest ever CFP ranking.
• Four ACC teams are ranked in the AP Top 25 – No. 17 Pitt, No. 18 Wake Forest, No. 21 NC State and No. 22 Clemson. The Demon Deacons have been ranked in 10 consecutive AP polls this season and earned the program’s first top 10 ranking Oct. 31. In the AFCA Coaches Poll, Pitt is No. 15, Wake Forest is No. 18, NC State is No. 20 and Clemson is No. 24.
2021 SUBWAY ACC FCG SET FOR 8 P.M.
• The 2021 Subway ACC Football Championship Game will kick off at 8 p.m. on ABC on Saturday, Dec. 4, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The game will feature the winner of the Atlantic Division (Wake Forest) vs. the winner of the Coastal Division (Pitt).
• This is the 12th time in the last 13 years that the game has been held in primetime. Twelve different teams have competed in the game, including a different Coastal Division team every year from 2013-19. Last season, No. 3 Clemson defeated No. 2 Notre Dame – which played in the ACC in 2020 as a full football member due to the COVID-19 pandemic – by a score of 34-10 in the most-viewed ACC Championship Game of all time.
ACC – THE CONFERENCE OF QUARTERBACKS
• Six of the 14 starting quarterbacks in the ACC rank among the top 25 in FBS in Quarterback Rating (QBR).
ACC QB in Top 25 of QBR
6. Malik Cunningham, Louisville 82.7
7. Sam Hartman, Wake Forest 82.6
8. Kenny Pickett, Pitt 81.8
12. Tyler Van Dyke, Miami 80.4
19. Sam Howell, North Carolina 77.4
22. Brennan Armstrong, Virginia 76.1
• Four ACC quarterbacks were named semifinalists for the 2021 Davey O’Brien Award, which is presented annually to the nations’ top QB. The players named semifinalists were North Carolina’s Sam Howell, Pitt’s Kenny Pickett, Virginia’s Brennan Armstrong and Wake Forest’s Sam Hartman. Pickett is one of three finalists for the award.
• Four ACC quarterbacks – the most of any conference – were named finalists for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award presented annually to the top upperclassmen quarterback. The ACC had four of the 10 finalists and no other conference had more than one. The ACC’s honorees are NC State’s Devin Leary, Pitt’s Kenny Pickett, Virginia’s Brennan Armstrong and Wake Forest’s Sam Hartman.
• Nine different quarterbacks from ACC schools have started at least one game in the NFL this season – most of any conference. Those players come from seven different schools, including BC’s Matt Ryan (Falcons), Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence (Jaguars), Duke’s Daniel Jones (Giants), Florida State’s Jameis Winston (Saints), Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater (Broncos) and Lamar Jackson (Ravens), NC State’s Jacoby Brissett (Dolphins) and Russell Wilson (Seahawks) and Virginia Tech’s Tyrod Taylor (Texans).
AROUND THE ACC
• Boston College: Sophomore RB Pat Garwo now has 1,045 rushing yards on the season. He is the 19th player in BC history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season.
• Clemson: Clemson has recorded seven consecutive wins against South Carolina for the first time since a seven-game streak from 1934-40, matching the longest winning streak in the series by either team all-time.
• Duke: Senior RB Mataeo Durant set the single-season school record with 1,241 rushing yards after finishing with 68 yards in the season finale vs. Miami. He
broke Steve Jones’ record of 1,236 rushing yards set in 1972. Durant also finished the year third in rushing attempts in a single season with 255.
• Florida State: DE Jermaine Johnson II ranks sixth in the country in both sacks (12.0) and tackles for loss (18.0).
• Georgia Tech: RB Jahmyr Gibbs finished the season with 1,805 all-purpose yards, good for second in Georgia Tech single-season history and just 74 yards shy of
Eddie Lee Ivery’s record of 1,879 set in 1978.
• Louisville: Malik Cunningham leads the ACC and ranks fourth in the country with 19 rushing touchdowns. He is just two shy of Lamar Jackson’s ACC record for a QB.
• Miami: Six-time ACC Rookie of the Week Tyler Van Dyke (QB) has thrown for 300 yards and three touchdowns or more in six straight games. In nine starts, Van Dyke has thrown for 2,931 yards, 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions.
• North Carolina: QB Sam Howell has thrown a touchdown pass in all 36 of his games as a Tar Heel, the longest active streak in the country. He has been responsible for 110 touchdowns in his career, which ranks fifth in ACC history.
• NC State: NC State QB Devin Leary has thrown 34 touchdown passes with 27 coming in ACC play. That is a record for most touchdown passes in ACC games.
• Pitt: WR Jordan Addison leads the nation with 17 touchdown catches on the year – four more than the next highest receiver. Addison is one TD catch shy of the ACC season record of 18, set by Clemson’s DeAndre Hopkins in 2012.
• Syracuse: RB Sean Tucker set a Syracuse single-season record with 1,496 rushing yards this season. The previous record set by Joe Morris in 1979 (1,372) had stood for 42 years.
• Virginia: Virginia eclipsed the 400-point mark for the season in the loss to Virginia Tech, only the fourth time in school history UVA has scored 400 points in a
season. The 420 total points this season are the third-most in program history.
• Virginia Tech: Virginia Tech knocked off rival Virginia to earn its sixth win of the season and become bowl eligible. Last year, the Hokies’ bowl streak ended at 27 consecutive seasons.
• Wake Forest: Wake Forest is one of the top teams in the country in turnover margin. The Deacons lead the ACC and rank fifth in the country in turnover margin. Wake has gained 27 turnovers, which is third best in the nation.
