ACC Football Heads into Week 4 With Four Conference Matchups

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – Atlantic Coast Conference football moves into Week 4 with 11 games across Friday, September 25, and Saturday, September 26, highlighted by four conference matchups and three nationally ranked teams in action. The weekend begins Friday night when Clemson travels west to face California at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Saturday’s slate opens with a pair of conference matchups at noon ET, as No. 16 Louisville hosts Wake Forest on ESPN, while undefeated Virginia Tech visits Boston College on ACC Network. Conference play bookends the day, with Georgia Tech traveling to Stanford for a 10:30 p.m. ET kickoff on ESPN.

Three ACC teams ranked in this week’s AP Top 25 will take the field Saturday. In addition to No. 16 Louisville, No. 6 Miami hosts Central Michigan at 6:30 p.m. ET on The CW, while No. 22 SMU welcomes Missouri State at 9 p.m. ET on ACC Network.

The Week 4 schedule also features five additional non-conference contests. Bucknell visits undefeated Pitt at noon ET on ACCNX, followed by Central Arkansas at Florida State at 3 p.m. ET on ACC Network and William & Mary at undefeated Duke at 3:30 p.m. ET on ACCNX. Delaware visits Virginia at 6 p.m. ET on ACC Network before App State travels to NC State for a 7:30 p.m. ET matchup on ESPNU.

ACC players lead the FBS in 20 individual statistical categories through Week 3, while 12 different ACC programs feature at least one player ranked among the top five nationally.
Duke RB Nate Sheppard leads the nation in rushing yards (528), rushing yards per game (176.0), all-purpose yards per game (196.7), total touchdowns (8) and scoring (16.0 ppg).
Miami WR Malachi Toney ranks among the nation's top two in receiving yards (444), receiving yards per game (148.0), receptions per game (9.33) and total receptions (28).
Cal DB Kingston Lopa leads the nation with five interceptions.
North Carolina DL Xavier Lewis leads the FBS in sacks (6.0) and tackles-for-loss (8.5).
Duke P Kade Reynoldson leads the nation at 50.9 yards per punt.
Clemson K Nolan Hauser leads the FBS with nine made field goals.
Georgia Tech's Rahkeem Smith leads the nation at 51.8 yards per kickoff return.

The Conference of QBs

ACC quarterbacks have produced an FBS-high 14 300-yard passing games, including four 400-yard performances — more 400-yard games than all other FBS conferences combined.
Those four 400-yard performances have come from four different ACC quarterbacks.
Seven ACC quarterbacks rank among the FBS top 30 in passing yards per game, the most of any conference.
Three ACC quarterbacks rank in the FBS top 10 in total offense per game, also the most of any conference.
Four ACC quarterbacks rank among the top 15 nationally in passing efficiency, tied for the most of any conference.
Six ACC quarterbacks have already surpassed 800 passing yards, while seven have thrown at least seven touchdown passes.

Mensah Making ACC History

Miami QB Darian Mensah leads the FBS with an 89.9 completion percentage, completing 71-of-79 passes for 873 yards, 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Mensah has more touchdown passes (11) than incompletions (8) through three games.
He completed an ACC-record 35 consecutive passes across Weeks 2 and 3 — one shy of the NCAA record.
Mensah has completed at least 85 percent of his passes in each of Miami's first three games — the first FBS quarterback in more than 30 years to do so, according to the AP.
Five of the last six FBS quarterbacks to begin a season with at least 11 touchdown passes and zero interceptions became top-15 NFL Draft selections.

Sheppard Leading the Nation

Duke RB Nate Sheppard leads the FBS with 528 rushing yards and 176.0 rushing yards per game.
Sheppard has rushed for at least 150 yards in each of Duke's first three games this season.
Counting his 170 rushing yards in the Sun Bowl last year, Sheppard has rushed for at least 150 yards in each of Duke’s last four games.
He has scored eight total touchdowns through three games.
Sheppard is one of only three ACC underclassmen this century with eight scrimmage touchdowns through three team games, joining James Conner (2014) and Lamar Jackson (2016).

ACC Playmakers Producing Big Numbers

No conference has produced more 300-yard passing games (14) or 400-yard passing games (4) than the ACC.
ACC players have produced 21 100-yard rushing performances, tied for the most among FBS conferences, with an FBS-high 18 different players reaching the century mark.
Those 18 different 100-yard rushers are the ACC's most through Week 3 of a season in the last 30 years.
ACC teams have produced 22 runs of 40+ yards, tied for the most among FBS conferences.
The ACC is the only Power Four conference to produce both a 200-yard rushing performance and a 200-yard receiving performance this season.

ACC Offenses Among the Nation’s Best

Miami leads the FBS in total offense at 594.3 yards per game, while SMU ranks fifth at 537.0.
SMU ranks second nationally in passing offense (368.7 ypg), with Miami fifth (358.0).
Miami leads the nation in completion percentage (88.8) and ranks second in passing efficiency.
Miami and Virginia Tech rank third and fourth nationally in scoring offense, respectively.
Eight different ACC teams have scored at least 56 points in a game this season, already surpassing the conference's total for the entire 2025 season (six).
Four ACC teams are averaging at least 40 points per game: Miami (51.7), Virginia Tech (50.7), Louisville (46.0) and Virginia (40.0).
Florida State, Louisville and Virginia Tech remain perfect in the red zone, while Louisville has yet to commit a turnover and owns a +6 turnover margin.

ACC Defenses Making an Impact

Virginia Tech leads the nation with 14 sacks, 4.67 sacks per game and 12.0 tackles-for-loss per game.
Miami ranks tied for third nationally in rushing defense, allowing just 45.7 yards per game.
SMU ranks third nationally in third-down defense, allowing opponents to convert just 18.4 percent of their attempts.
Five ACC teams rank among the top 35 nationally in total defense: Miami, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Pitt.

ACC Tested Against One of Nation’s Toughest Schedules

The ACC owns the toughest strength of schedule among all Power Four conferences through Week 3 (51.60) and ranks third nationally. (BCS Formula by SportSource Analytics)
ACC opponents are a combined 75-71 (.514), making the ACC the only Power Four conference whose opponents own a winning record.
The ACC also leads the Power Four in opponents’ opponents winning percentage (.521).
Despite that schedule strength, the ACC has posted six Power Four non-conference wins, including a 4-1 record against the Big Ten.

ACC Getting an Early Start on Conference Play

The ACC has played an FBS-high nine conference games through Week 3.
Four more ACC matchups are scheduled for Week 4, bringing the season total to 13 conference games.

Enhanced Replay Access Expands

The ACC continues to expand Enhanced Replay Access in 2026, giving audiences greater access to real-time replay discussions during broadcasts.
The initiative was utilized for 22 games across Weeks 0-3, up from five over the same span in 2025. Eight more games will feature Enhanced Replay Access in Week 4, including a record seven on Saturday.
Enhanced Replay Access provides live audio and video among the referee, stadium replay official and ACC Collaborative Instant Replay Official in Charlotte, while four new cameras inside the Game Day Operations Center provide ESPN and ACCN audiences another look inside the conference's replay operations.

ACC Football Fridays

ACC Football Fridays continue this week when Clemson visits California at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The ACC will play a record 15 Friday games in 2026, including nine over the season's first six weeks.
Friday night football continues throughout October and November, culminating with Florida at Florida State on Black Friday.

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Atlantic Coast Conference

Schedule

ACC Football Heads into Week 4 With Four Conference Matchups