Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech meet as unbeaten teams in a coaching reunion as part of ACC’s weekly slate
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Things to watch this weekend in the Atlantic Coast Conference:
Game of the week
Pittsburgh (4-0, 1-0 ACC) at Virginia Tech (4-0, 1-0), Friday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
This is James Franklin’s first run through the ACC as the Hokies’ coach, but it won’t be the first time he’ll match up with longtime Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi. The two met four times from 2016-19 when Franklin was in the midst of a 12-year run at Penn State.
Pitt took the first meeting in 2016, which was the first between the Panthers and Nittany Lions since 2000. Penn State won the next three.
This time, they leading unbeaten teams hovering outside the AP Top 25 poll.
The undercard
No. 4 Miami (4-0, 2-0) at Clemson (3-1, 2-0), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
The Hurricanes are rolling as the league’s preseason favorite, though they’ve been a bit battered by injuries going back to a win at Wake Forest on Sept. 18. They blew out Central Michigan last weekend with the latest high-efficiency showing from an offense led by quarterback Darian Mensah — leading the country in completion percentage at 88.7% — and top receiver Malachi Toney (No. 3 in the Bowl Subdivision at 141 yards per game).
The Tigers have won three straight since the disastrous opening-night showing at LSU, rallying past North Carolina and then winning at California last week in the program’s first cross-country trip for a league game.
Louisville (2-2, 1-1) at N.C. State (2-2, 0-1), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ACC Network)
The Cardinals fell out of the AP Top 25 after losing at home to Wake Forest, and coach Jeff Brohm said Monday that quarterback Lincoln Kienholz will be a game-time decision due to an unspecified injury. They visit a Wolfpack team that regrouped from a shocking last-second loss at Vanderbilt by beating Appalachian State, though N.C. State blew a 28-7 lead in that one and had to re-assert control in the final minutes.
Impact players
— North Carolina QB Billy Edwards Jr. The former Maryland and Wisconsin passer got off to a good start by leading the Tar Heels past TCU to open the season in Ireland and an easy home win against East Tennessee State. But Edwards threw for just 135 yards while completing 13 of 30 passes (43.3%) in the loss at Clemson and the Tar Heels haven’t been connecting consistently for downfield gains. Now comes a test with Saturday’s visit from No. 3 Notre Dame.
— Stanford QB Davis Warren. The senior who played previously at Michigan threw for a career-best 396 yards and three touchdowns in the Cardinal’s comeback win against Georgia Tech last week that marked new coach Tavita Pritchard’s first league win. Warren has thrown five TD passes with no interceptions entering Saturday’s trip to Wake Forest.
Inside the numbers
No. 21 SMU hosts Boston College on Saturday as the league’s only other AP Top 25 team. The Mustangs are 15-3 in ACC regular-season play since joining the league for the 2024 season. … Virginia visits Florida State on Saturday for its second league game. The Cavaliers’ first once came five weeks earlier, beating N.C. State in Week Zero. … Syracuse visits UConn on Saturday having won the last six meetings, including in each of the past two seasons. … Duke and Georgia Tech have open weeks.
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