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ACC Football Conference Play Kicks Off in Week 3

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The stage is set for an action-packed Week 3 of ACC Football, with three straight days of games and the first conference clashes of the season.
 
The weekend opens Thursday night, September 11, with NC State visiting Wake Forest (7:30 p.m. ET) on ESPN, followed by a Friday night home game for Syracuse (7 p.m. ET) on ACC Network. Saturday delivers a full slate of 10 matchups across five national networks.
 
Highlighting the schedule are three key conference showdowns: No. 12 Clemson at Georgia Tech (Saturday, Noon ET), NC State at Wake Forest (Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET) and Boston College at Stanford (Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET).
 
Non-conference action adds plenty of intrigue with rivalry and Power 4 matchups: Pitt travels to West Virginia, California hosts Minnesota, and No. 5 Miami welcomes No. 18 South Florida in a top-20 showdown under the lights in Miami Gardens.
 
Week 3 - ACC Football Schedule
(all times Eastern Time)
 
Thursday, September 11
NC State at Wake Forest | 7:30 p.m. | ESPN
Series: NC State leads series, 69-43-6
Last meeting: Wake Forest, 34-30 (2024)
 
Friday, September 12
Colgate at Syracuse | 7 p.m. | ACCN
Series: Syracuse leads series, 32-31-5
Last meeting: Syracuse, 65-0 (2023)

Saturday, September 13
#12 Clemson at Georgia Tech | Noon | ESPN
Series: Georgia Tech leads series, 50-36-2
Last meeting: Clemson, 42-21 (2023)
 
William & Mary at Virginia | Noon | ACCN
Series: Virginia leads series, 32-6-1
Last meeting: Virginia, 27-13 (2023)
 
Pitt at West Virginia | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN
Series: Pitt leads series, 63-41-3
Last meeting: Pitt, 38-34 (2024)
 
Richmond at North Carolina | 3:30 p.m. | ACCN
Series: North Carolina leads series, 12-2-0
Last meeting: Richmond, 27-18 (1978)
 
SMU at Missouri State | 3:30 p.m. | ACCN
Series: First Meeting
 
#18 South Florida at #5 Miami | 4:30 p.m. | The CW
Series: Miami leads series, 6-1-0
Last meeting: Miami, 50-15 (2024)
 
Old Dominion at Virginia Tech | 7 p.m. | ACCN
Series: Virginia Tech leads series, 4-2-0
Last meeting: Virginia Tech, 37-17 (2024)
 
Duke at Tulane | 8 p.m. | ESPN2
Series: Duke leads series, 3-2-0
Last meeting: Duke, 37-7 (2015)
 
Minnesota at California | 10:30 p.m. | ESPN
Series: California leads series, 4-2-0
Last meeting: California, 35-21 (2009)
 
Boston College at Stanford | 10:30 p.m. | ACCN
Series: Series tied, 2-2-0
Last meeting: Boston College, 34-27 (2002)
 
 
ACC Football Notes
 
ACC Conference Play Begins
  • The ACC slate kicks off this week with three league matchups, beginning Thursday, September 11, with NC State at Wake Forest on Thursday on ESPN.
  • 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.
     
Miami, Top-25 Matchup on The CW
  • No. 5 Miami will host No. 18 South Florida on Saturday, September 13, at 4:30 p.m. ET on The CW.
  • ACC and The CW announced a partnership in July 2023 to air 50 football and men’s and women’s basketball games each year through 2026-27.
  • The CW Network is one of America’s major broadcast networks, reaching 100% of U.S. TV households.
    • Delivers 14 hours of primetime programming weekly, plus sports and other entertainment.
    • Exclusive broadcast home of LIV Golf and sports coverage of Inside the NFL, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, WWE NXT, Professional Bull Riders (PBR) and Pac-12 Football.
  • Nexstar Media Group, which controls the CW, owns America’s largest local broadcasting group comprised of top network affiliates, with more than 200 owned or partner stations in 116 U.S. markets reaching 220 million people.
 
ACC and ESPN/ACCN Enhanced Instant Replay Transparency
  • Week 3 of the ACC Football season will see the enhanced instant replay across three games – Thursday night's ACC opener with NC State at Wake Forest (7:30 p.m. ET; ESPN), Saturday's conference contest between No. 12 Clemson and Georgia Tech (Noon ET; ESPN) and Saturday night’s ACCN Primetime Game on Boston College at Stanford (10:30 p.m. ET; ACCN).
  • 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 is the only league providing this level of access, setting a new standard for college football

ACC Offenses
  • Through Weeks 0–2, the ACC has five teams averaging 484.0+ yards of total offense per game – tied for the most among all conferences.
    • Florida State (9th), Georgia Tech (10th), Boston College (21st), Duke (23rd), Virginia (26th)
  • ACC teams have combined for 86 offensive plays that have gone for 30 yards or more this season, the most of any FBS conference.
  • ACC has three of the 11 teams that are averaging 50+ points per game this season nationally – tied for the most of any conference.
 
ACC Continues Partnership with College Football Playoff Foundation
  • The ACC will again partner with the College Football Playoff Foundation for Extra Yard for Teachers Week - September 13-20.
  • Includes “Big Day for Teachers” on September 16 and the distribution of grant funds to support teachers in Charlotte.
  • For the third straight year, the ACC will work with a Charlotte-Mecklenburg school on a space remodel. Last year’s $50,000 makeover benefited Statesville Road Elementary School.
  • Since the partnership began, over $1.2M has been provided to support teachers in the ACC footprint.
 
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 on Friday nights continues in Week 3, Colgate at Syracuse – 7 p.m. ET on ACCN.
 
Strongest Non-Conference Schedule
  • 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.
  • Over the first three weeks of the season – Weeks 0-2 – the ACC has played 12 non-conference games versus peer Power 4 and Notre Dame, the most of all Power 4 conferences.
  • ACC teams have played six games versus top-25 ranked opponents through Week 2, which is tied for the most of any conference.
  • The ACC has the highest strength of schedule among all conferences (46.29). (Sport Source Analytics)
 
ACC is Again the Conference of Quarterbacks
  • Five ACC quarterbacks were ranked in ESPN’s Top 15 QBs in College Football in 2025 – Cade Klubnik of Clemson, Carson Beck of Miami, Haynes King of Georgia Tech, Kevin Jennings of SMU and Darian Mensah of Duke.
  • 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.
  • The ACC has seven quarterbacks that rank among the nation's passing leaders this season, with an average of 259.0 or more passing yards per game - the most of any conference.
  • Quarterbacks in the ACC have combined to record seven 300-yard passing games to start the 2025 season, the most of all conferences.
  • Last week, in Week 2 of the 2025 season, the ACC had five different quarterbacks throw for 300 or more yards, the most of any conference.
 
ACC is Loaded with Preeminent Players
  • The ACC is stacked with preeminent players again heading into the 2025 season, including:
    • Five ACC players are ranked on ESPN’s list of 25 non-QB playmakers to watch.
    • ACC has 10 of the top 50 best players in college football (PFF College 50).
    • ACC has 1 of the 3 top returning players across six different positions (Pro Football Focus).
    • ACC has 3 of the top 10 teams in the 247Sports 2025 Transfer Football Team Rankings.
    • ACC has 22 of the top 100 transfers in the 247Sports 2025 College Football Transfer Portal Top Prospects.
 
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.