The ACC is making some key adjustments to its football tiebreaker system for the 2026 season - and it's not hard to see why. After a chaotic five-way tie for second place this past season, the league found itself in an awkward spot: its conference champion was left out of the College Football Playoff. That’s the kind of outcome that forces a league to reevaluate how it crowns its best.
While the ACC hasn’t yet announced the specifics of the new tiebreaker format, change is officially on the way. And it’s coming at a time when the league is already in the middle of a major scheduling transition.
What Went Wrong in 2025?
Let’s rewind for a second. Duke emerged from a five-team logjam thanks to a tiebreaker based on opponents’ conference winning percentage.
They then knocked off regular-season champ Virginia in the ACC title game. But with five regular-season losses on their resume, the Blue Devils didn’t make the cut for the 12-team College Football Playoff.
Instead, Miami - one of the teams tied with Duke for second - was selected as the final at-large team in the playoff field. That left the ACC with a conference champion on the outside looking in, and a whole lot of questions about how to prevent that from happening again.
The Scheduling Shift: Uneven Ground in 2026
Next season brings a new twist. The ACC is phasing in a nine-game conference schedule, but not every team will play the same number of league games in 2026.
Twelve of the ACC’s 17 football-playing members will play nine conference games. The remaining five - including North Carolina - will play eight.
That uneven playing field makes tiebreakers even trickier. It’s hard enough sorting out a multi-team tie when everyone plays the same schedule. When some teams play more league games than others, the math (and the fairness) gets complicated fast.
To further complicate things, NC State will play only three true road games in ACC play - five at home and one neutral-site matchup in Brazil against Virginia to open the season. Duke, meanwhile, has a more traditional split with four home games and five on the road. These kinds of quirks in the schedule can have real implications for how the standings shake out.
The ACC’s Vision: Competitive Equity and Power Four Alignment
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips emphasized that the move to nine conference games is about more than just logistics - it’s about keeping pace with the rest of the Power Four. The SEC and Big 12 are also transitioning to nine-game conference slates in 2026, and the ACC wants to ensure its teams are playing a comparable schedule.
“All league teams will have to play 10 games against Power Four opponents,” Phillips said, pointing to a scheduling standard that includes independent Notre Dame. That means more marquee matchups and fewer soft spots on the calendar - a win for fans and a test for teams.
UNC, for example, will face TCU and Notre Dame in 2026. Duke visits Illinois, and NC State goes on the road to face Vanderbilt. These non-conference battles will carry real weight in the eyes of the CFP selection committee.
Looking Ahead: Permanent Changes Coming in 2027
The ACC’s long-term plan is to have all but one team play nine conference games starting in 2027. With 17 football-playing members, it’s mathematically impossible for every team to play nine league games each year. So beginning in 2027, one team will rotate into an eight-game schedule each season.
It's a logistical puzzle, but the ACC is trying to solve it in a way that balances fairness, flexibility, and competitive integrity.
2026 ACC Conference Schedules: Who Plays Who?
Here’s a breakdown of each team’s conference slate for 2026, separated by those playing nine games and those playing eight.
Nine-Game ACC Schedules
California
Home: Clemson, Pitt, Stanford, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Away: NC State, SMU, Syracuse, Virginia
Duke
Home: Boston College, Clemson, North Carolina, Stanford
Away: Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, Virginia, Wake Forest
Louisville
Home: Florida State, Pitt, SMU, Stanford, Wake Forest
Away: Georgia Tech, North Carolina, NC State, Syracuse
Miami
Home: Boston College, Duke, Florida State, Pitt, Virginia Tech
Away: Clemson, North Carolina, Stanford, Wake Forest
NC State
Home: California, Duke, Louisville, Syracuse, Wake Forest
Away: Florida State, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia (in Brazil)
Pitt
Home: Florida State, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Syracuse
Away: Boston College, California, Louisville, Miami, Virginia Tech
SMU
Home: Boston College, California, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Away: Florida State, Louisville, Stanford, Syracuse
Stanford
Home: Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, SMU
Away: California, Duke, Louisville, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Syracuse
Home: California, Clemson, Louisville, SMU
Away: Boston College, North Carolina, NC State, Pitt, Virginia
Virginia
Home: California, Duke, North Carolina, NC State (Brazil), Syracuse
Away: Florida State, SMU, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest
Virginia Tech
Home: Georgia Tech, Pitt, Stanford, Virginia
Away: Boston College, California, Clemson, Miami, SMU
Wake Forest
Home: Duke, Miami, Stanford, Virginia
Away: California, Georgia Tech, Louisville, NC State, SMU
Eight-Game ACC Schedules
Boston College
Home: Florida State, Pitt, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
Away: Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, SMU
Clemson
Home: Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia Tech
Away: California, Duke, Florida State, Syracuse
Florida State
Home: Clemson, NC State, SMU, Virginia
Away: Boston College, Louisville, Miami, Pitt
Georgia Tech
Home: Boston College, Duke, Louisville, Wake Forest
Away: Clemson, Pitt, Stanford, Virginia Tech
North Carolina
Home: Louisville, Miami, NC State, Syracuse
Away: Clemson, Duke, Pitt, Virginia
The ACC is clearly trying to thread the needle - embracing expansion and innovation while keeping the competition fair and the product top-tier. With a new tiebreaker system on the horizon and a more demanding schedule structure taking shape, 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for the conference.
And after what happened in 2025, the stakes are higher than ever.