The ACC opens Saturday with North Carolina, N.C. State, Virginia and FSU all in action in Week Zero, and the league begins the year exactly the way Mario Cristobal likes to frame it: everybody at 0-0.
That clean slate still doesn’t hide the shape of the race. Miami sits atop the board as the betting favorite to win the conference, and the Hurricanes have the kind of roster that makes that feel deserved.
They’re not just the team to beat - they’re the clear front-runner, with the pressure that comes with that label after winning 13 games last season and reaching the CFP Championship game. For Miami, anything short of the program’s first ACC football championship would land as a letdown.
Behind the Hurricanes, the next group has real teeth. SMU is back in the mix after playing in the ACC championship game in 2024, and Kevin Jennings returns for his third season as the starting quarterback.
There’s a growing belief that Rhett Lashlee is closing in on turning the Mustangs into a true power in this league. Louisville belongs in that same conversation too.
Since Jeff Brohm arrived, the Cardinals have been as steady as anyone in the conference, stacking nine-win seasons in each of the past three years.
N.C. State and Pitt round out that tier of teams with enough upside to make this thing interesting.
The Wolfpack have long been built on a reliable baseline under Dave Doeren, and with CJ Bailey at quarterback, they look like a team ready to take another step. Pitt is harder to pin down, which is almost the point with the Panthers.
They tend to surge when nobody expects it and slip when things seem to be lining up. Still, Mason Heintschel gives them a real chance to climb into the nine-win range.
Then comes the big, crowded middle, where the ACC feels like a league packed with teams that could end up anywhere from 8-4 to 5-7. Clemson, FSU, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Duke, Wake Forest and Cal all sit in that band, and the range says plenty about how unsettled the conference looks beyond the top few teams.
Georgia Tech, Virginia and Virginia Tech should all have a shot to finish on the right side of the ledger. FSU, Duke and Wake Forest are the swing teams here, especially Wake Forest after a nine-win season with a bad offense.
Cal is the one that jumps off the page. Tosh Lupoi is expected to do some good things out on the North Bay, and the Bears are viewed as a team that could be better than most people think.
Clemson also lands in the wild-card bucket. Dabo Swinney has taken plenty of heat, and it wouldn’t be shocking if the Tigers catch some people early.
The real question is whether they can hold that level into October and November.
At the other end, UNC, Stanford, Boston College and Syracuse make up the league’s bottom tier. Syracuse is the most fascinating team in that group because one injury changed everything.
The Orange won 10 games in 2024 and were 3-1 last season before Steve Angeli got hurt, and the losses started piling up after that. Angeli is back this year, which gives Syracuse the best chance to break out of this group.
UNC is the most unstable name in the bunch, especially with Bill Belichick entering his second season with the Tar Heels. And it would be a major surprise if Stanford or Boston College won more than four games.
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Miami Legend Xavier Restrepo Is Fighting For His NFL Future
Xavier Restrepo has turned the late summer runway into a real chance to stick in Tennessee. The former Miami standout is in his second season with the Titans after going undrafted in 2025, and he has helped himself with a stronger preseason showing, tying for the team lead in receptions through two games and finding the end zone twice in a recent joint practice.
Restrepo still has work to do before the final roster is set, but he has at least made the conversation interesting in a camp that often leaves little room for margin. If he does not land on Tennessees 53-man roster, the next stop could be the practice squad, which would keep his NFL opportunity alive and give him another path to prove he belongs. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Put A Former Receivers Exit Into NCAA Limbo
Cam Vaughns Miami tenure never got as far as a snap, but the paperwork around his exit has become its own story. The former wide receiver transferred in from West Virginia in January, then wound up in a dispute with the university after he alleged the school canceled his scholarship without explanation and would not initially submit the waiver needed for him to move on.
Now Miami has filed the legislative relief waiver with the NCAA, and Vaughn has dropped the lawsuit he had brought against the school. Even with that step taken, his next move is still stuck in the leagues hands, because the NCAA must process the waiver before he can sign with another program. [Read more 🡒]
Mario Cristobal Could Get A 2027 Change Miami Will Love
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For Mario Cristobal, the most meaningful ripple may come in how much cleaner the offseason becomes for a program that has leaned hard into recruiting, retention and development. Instead of the old spring model, teams would work through two NFL-style offseason practice periods with a combined 21 on-field sessions, giving staffs a different kind of control while also tightening the transfer calendar in a way that could make every roster decision feel a little more urgent. [Read more 🡒]