With the latest round of conference realignment and the dissolution of divisions in every power league, we’re in store for some crazy-good games in the 2024 season.
The non-conference slate is littered with marquee matchups, but fans are in store for some fantastic new league games and several rivalries renewed. The SEC slate is so loaded this season that the Iron Bowl — which had an all-time finish in 2023 — just missed my Top 10 list for best conference games this season.
So what’s in store for the ACC this fall? The bi-coastal league now has 17 members, and a once prolific program like Miami is eying its first conference championship.
Here are my Top 10 ACC conference games in the 2024 season:
1. Florida State at Miami (Oct. 26)
The last time these two in-state rivals squared off in Hard Rock Stadium, FSU whipped Miami 45-3. The Noles have won four straight in the series, and they’ll have a couple extra days to prepare for the matchup coming off a Thursday night game the week prior.
These two programs are among the most aggressive teams in the transfer portal, and this is a prime opportunity for quarterback Cam Ward (and ‘Canes head coach Mario Cristobal) to score a signature win. We should get a strength-on-strength matchup, too, featuring FSU’s pass rush (Patrick Payton, Joshua Farmer and Marvin Jones Jr.) against Miami’s massive offensive line.
2. Clemson at Florida State (Oct. 5)
If Cade Klubnick could’ve identified a backside blitz and held onto the football, the Tigers might’ve upset the undefeated Seminoles last season. They didn’t, though, losing in overtime and ceding the conference crown to FSU. But Dabo Swinney insists his program remains elite and to “buy stock” in Clemson.
Will he be spreading the same gospel if he loses to Florida State for the second straight year for the first time in a decade? This is also obviously a huge revenge spot for former Tigers quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, who has been public about his displeasure at Clemson and was Mike Norvell’s hand-picked replacement for Jordan Travis.
3. NC State at Clemson (Sept. 21)
Dave Doeren is the model for consistency, steadily churning out 8-9 win seasons. But for NC State’s program to crash through its ceiling and make the ACC Championship Game for the first time in program history, it needs to win an upset like this.
The Wolfpack haven’t won in Death Valley since 2003, and Doeren is 0-4 at Clemson. Still, NC State did beat Clemson last season, leading Dabo Swinney to rip into Tyler from Spartanburg on “Tiger Calls” the next week. Clemson then won five straight to end the year.
While the Tigers once again ignored the transfer portal for OL and WR help, their defense remains legit and could be one of the top units in the country, so we’ll find out if NC State’s retooled offense is up to snuff after a slew of portal additions.
4. Clemson at Virginia Tech (Nov. 9)
The Tigers cap a tricky two-week stretch where they host a spunky Louisville team and then turn around and play in Blacksburg against a Va. Tech team eyeing a darkhorse run to the ACC title game with quarterback Kyron Drones.
In his lone year as a starter, Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnick struggled against top-flight defenses, so it will be interesting to see where his confidence stands after the Tigers will have already faced the likes of Georgia, NC State and Florida State and then plays in a hostile environment against the Hokies’ Top 25 unit.
5. Louisville at Clemson (Nov. 2)
The Cardinals don’t quite have the cupcake schedule they did in 2023, but it’s still a manageable slate to return to the title game for the second straight season — that is if Jeff Brohm is able to go on the road and beat the Tigers.
Clemson has never lost to Louisville (8-0 all-time) and should be at least a touchdown favorite at home. Among ACC teams, this might be the starkest contrast in program-building styles for any game this season. On one side, there’s Louisville, which has brought in 58 transfers the last two seasons. Then there’s Clemson, which was the only power conference school to sign zero transfers this year.
6. Miami at Louisville (10/19)
The Cards won in Miami in 2023 on a late touchdown in a 38-31 seesaw affair, helping clinch the program’s first trip to the ACC Championship. Can the Hurricanes get a little payback with similar hopes this fall?
The Canes will be coming off a bye week, so Mario Cristobal’s team should have a better defensive gameplan for Brohm & Co., after they were gashed for nearly 500 yards last season. The winner of this game could hold a key tiebreaker card for later in the season.
7. Virginia Tech at Miami (Sept. 27)
Nothing like a Friday primetime game in Hard Rock Stadium, right!?! But seriously, this is an enticing late September matchup between potentially two undefeated (4-0) teams. The Hurricanes expect to be ACC title contenders, while the Hokies could play spoiler (or more) in Brent Pry’s third season.
This should be a nice early-season test for Ward and Miami’s high-powered offense, as Va. Tech quietly had the No. 2 defense in the ACC in 2023.
8. Florida State at SMU (Sept. 28)
The Mustangs ACC debut is a spicy one, hosting the reigning champion Seminoles in Week 5. SMU will be coming off an emotional rivalry game against TCU the week prior, but this will still be a very interesting data point in where Rhett Lashlee’s program stands in Year 1 in the ACC.
If the Mustangs are able to measure up against Mike Norvell’s squad, then even in a loss, it could be very encouraged by how the rest of the season might unfold. Get housed at home though and it could spell a season’s worth of growing pains.
9. North Carolina at NC State (Nov. 30)
NC State has dominated the recent series between the two in-state rivals off Tobacco Road, winning three straight including a 39-20 beatdown playing multiple quarterbacks last season.
This game has been emblematic of the Mack Brown 2.0 era at North Carolina — late-season losses against the better teams in the conference. Can the veteran coach flip the script this fall? The regular-season finale could have conference title implications.
10. Duke at Miami (Nov. 2)
The Manny Diaz Homecoming Showcase should be an interesting game for the former Hurricanes’ head coach, who was unceremoniously fired while on a recruiting trip as Miami was openly recruiting Mario Cristobal.
Diaz wasn’t terrible at Miami (21-15), especially when you consider the lack of support and alignment for the now head coach at Duke. But he didn’t leave the roster in great shape, something Cristobal has been very transparent about in his first two seasons back in Coral Gables. The Blue Devils have won two straight in Miami, including beating Cristobal in his first season in 2022. Can Diaz make it three in a row and exact a bit of revenge on The U?
Honorable Mention: Florida State vs. Georgia Tech, Stanford at Cal, Miami at Georgia Tech
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