Virginia Athletics

Football

Conference Clashes Take Center Stage on Saturday in Week 6

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – A jam-packed Week 6 of ACC Football is set for Saturday, October 4, with eight games on the schedule — including seven pivotal early-season conference matchups.
 
Headlining the 12+ hours of football is a top-20 primetime showdown between No. 3 Miami and No. 18 Florida State on ABC at 7:30 p.m. ET, along with key clashes of ACC unbeatens as No. 24 Virginia visits Louisville at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2 and Duke travels west to face California at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
 
Saturday’s ACC action will kick off at Noon ET with national championship-winning head coach Dabo Swinney going head-to-head with Super Bowl-winning head coach Bill Belichick for the first time, as North Carolina hosts Clemson in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in the Tar Heels’ ACC opener.
 
Fans can catch all the action across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ACC Network, and The CW.
 

Week 6 - ACC Football Schedule
(all times Eastern Time)
 
Saturday, October 4
Clemson at North Carolina | Noon | ESPN
Series: Clemson leads series, 40-19-1
Last meeting: Clemson, 31-20 (2023)

Boston College at Pitt | Noon | ACC Network
Series: Pitt leads series, 18-16-0
Last meeting: Boston College, 34-23 (2024)
 
Wake Forest at Virginia Tech | 1 p.m. | The CW
Series: Virginia Tech leads series, 26-13-1
Last meeting: Virginia Tech, 30-13 (2023)
 
Campbell at NC State | 2 p.m. | ACCNX
Series: First Meeting
 
#24 Virginia at Louisville | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN2
Series: Louisville leads series, 8-5-0
Last meeting: Louisville, 24-20 (2024)
 
Syracuse at SMU | 3:30 p.m. | ACC Network
Series: SMU leads series, 1-0-0
Last meeting: SMU, 16-6 (1932)
 
#3 Miami at #18 Florida State | 7:30 p.m. | ABC
Series: Miami leads series, 36-32-0
Last meeting: Miami, 36-14 (2024)

Duke at California | 10:30 p.m. | ESPN
Series: Duke leads series, 1-0-1
Last meeting: Tied, 22-22 (1963) 
 

ACC Football Notes
 
Future ACC Football Scheduling Model
  • The Athletic Directors of the 17 ACC football-playing institutions overwhelmingly supported a regular season schedule that includes nine conference games and a minimum of 10 games each year against Power 4 opponents.
  • This positions the ACC as one of only two leagues committed to having every team annually play a minimum of 10 games against Power 4 teams.
  • Most teams will begin playing nine conference games plus one P4 game in 2026; however, multiple teams will play eight conference games and two P4 non-conference opponents to accommodate for currently scheduled non-conference games as part of the transition to the new model.
  • The nine-game league schedule will be fully implemented in 2027, with 16 teams playing nine league games and one that will play eight conference games plus two P4 non-conference games.
  • Per the Conference constitution, the 9+1 scheduling model will be presented to the FAR for formal adoption.

ACC and ESPN/ACCN Enhanced Instant Replay Transparency
  • Week 6 of the ACC Football season will see the ACC’s enhanced instant replay transparency once again, this time during ABC’s Saturday Night Primetime Game between No. 3 Miami and No. 18 Florida State at 7:30 p.m. ET.
  • First-of-its-kind collaboration modernizing the fan experience.
  • Fans will hear real-time officiating deliberations on ESPN/ESPN2’s Friday night games and ACCN primetime Saturdays.
  • ACC was the only league providing this level of access in select games in 2024 and the start of 2025, setting a new standard for college football.

Two Undefeated ACC Teams with Multiple Power 4 Wins
  • Heading into Week 6, the ACC boasts two undefeated teams that have recorded multiple Power 4 wins on the season in Georgia Tech (5-0) and Miami (4-0).
  • The Yellow Jackets are one of only four teams nationally that are both undefeated and have three wins over Power 4 opponents.
 
ACC with Multiple Top-10 Wins
  • The ACC is one of three conferences with multiple top-10 victories so far this season: Florida State over No. 8 Alabama (August 30), Miami over No. 6 Notre Dame (August 31) and Virginia over No. 8 Florida State (September 26).
 
Tight Finishes Highlight Wild Start to ACC Play
  • ACC league play is off to a thrilling start, with close finishes, overtimes and last-possession drama.
  • Six conference games so far this season have been decided by one score (8 points or fewer) and on the final possession.
  • Last week alone, three different games in conference play were decided by four or fewer points on Saturday, September 27. That is tied for the most such games in ACC conference play on a single day since 2000. (Stats Perform)
  • In Week 5, there were two conference games in the ACC that went to overtime, marking the first time multiple ACC league games went past regulation in the same week since Week 8 of 2019. (Stats Perform)

ACC Games Come Down to the Wire
  • From 2021–24, 107 of 236 ACC conference games (45.3%) were decided by eight points or fewer.
  • In 2024 alone, 34 of 68 league games (50%) were one-possession outcomes.
  • Through the first five weeks of this season, six of the league’s 12 conference games (50%) have been decided by one score or less.
 
ACC Football Fridays
  • ACC Football is set to dominate Fridays this fall, with a league-record 12 games scheduled for Fridays in 2025, the most of any conference.
  • 12 of the ACC’s 17 football programs will participate in at least one primetime Friday night game.
  • ACC Football Fridays continues in Week 8 with a doubleheader, as Louisville will travel to Miami at 7 p.m. ET on either ESPN or ESPN2, while North Carolina will travel across the country to visit California at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Strongest Non-Conference Schedule
  • Through the first five weeks of the season, ACC teams have played 17 non-conference games against peer Power 4 opponents and Notre Dame – the most of any conference – ACC – 17; Big 12 – 14; SEC – 14; Big Ten – 11.
  • The ACC has nine games remaining against peer P4 and Notre Dame this season, four more than the other three conferences combined – SEC (4), Big Ten (1) and Big 12 (0).
  • ACC teams are scheduled to play 26 games against peer Power 4 conference opponents and Notre Dame in 2025, the most of any conference by at least eight games – ACC – 26; SEC – 18; Big 12 – 14; Big Ten – 12.
 
ACC is Again the Conference of Quarterbacks
  • The ACC has nine different quarterbacks across nine different teams that have thrown eight or more touchdown passes thus far this season, tied for the most among all FBS conferences.
  • The ACC has eight quarterbacks that rank among the nation's passing leaders this season with an average of 255.0 or more passing yards per game - the most of any conference.
  • Seven quarterbacks in the ACC rank in the top 30 in passing yards this season, the most of any conference.
  • Quarterbacks in the ACC have recorded a total of 19 300-yard passing games this season, the most of all FBS conferences.
  • The ACC has 12 different quarterbacks who have recorded at least one 300+ yard passing game this season, tied for the most of all FBS conferences.
  • The ACC features nine of the top 30 quarterback transfers heading into the 2025 season and has seen a strong influx of talent at the position.
  • The ACC had 13 quarterbacks named to the 2025 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List – no other conference had more.
  • The ACC also had seven quarterbacks named to the 2025 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award Watch List.
 
ACC is Loaded with Preeminent Players
  • The ACC has had 18 different players rush for 100+ yards in a game this season. Six have done it twice — Micah Ford (Stanford), Isaac Brown (Louisville), Adam Randall (Clemson), Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest), Kendrick Raphael (California) and Mark Fletcher Jr. (Miami), while Hollywood Smothers (NC State) and Haynes King (Georgia Tech) have done it three times.
  • The ACC has had 21 different players record at least one 100-yard receiving game, with four different players posting two 100-yard receiving games - Bryant Westco Jr. (Clemson), Duce Robinson (Florida State), Romello Brinson (SMU) and CJ Williams (Stanford).
  • The ACC has six players that rank in the top 30 in the NCAA in receiving yards per game, the most of any FBS conference.
  • The ACC has five players that rank in the top 30 in the NCAA in all-purpose yards per game.
  • The ACC has five players that rank in the top 30 in average yards per punt return, including three in the top 10.
  • Two of the top 20 NCAA leaders in sacks per game are from the ACC - Duke’s Vincent Anthony Jr. (1.00) and Louisville’s Clev Lubin (0.88).
  • California defensive back Hezekiah Masses leads the nation in passes defended (11) and passes defended per game (2.2), while also ranking in a tie for first in all of FBS with four interceptions.
  • NC State’s Hollywood Smothers ranks fourth nationally in rushing yards (570) and sixth in rushing yards per game (114.0).
  • Boston College’s Lewis Bond ranks second nationally in receptions per game (9.0) and sixth overall in total receptions (36).
  • Louisville’s Caullin Lacy is the only FBS player this season with two punt return touchdowns of at least 75 yards. It’s already tied for the second most any ACC player has had in a single season over the last 30 years, trailing only Maryland’s Steve Suter in 2002 (three).

ACC = Big Plays
  • ACC teams have combined to record 296 pass plays of 20 yards or more this season, the most of any conference.
  • In the ACC this season, there have been 36 touchdown runs of at least 25 yards, the most of any FBS conference.
 
ACC x NFL
  • No conference blends college football and NFL experience quite like the ACC in 2025, with three former NFL head coaches now leading programs: Bill O’Brien (Boston College), Bill Belichick (North Carolina) and Frank Reich (Stanford), the most of any conference.
  • Belichick (six Super Bowl wins) and Reich (one) are the only two college football head coaches who have also won a Super Bowl as either head coach or coordinator in the NFL.
  • Several ACC programs also feature General Managers with deep NFL ties, including Ron Rivera (Cal), John Garrett (Duke), Michael Lombardi (North Carolina) and Andrew Luck (Stanford), along with a growing number of former NFL stars contributing across coaching staffs and player development roles.