In the age of the expanded College Football Playoffs, winning your conference is very important.
The top four conference champions receive a bye into the second round of the 12-team postseason. With only four power conferences remaining after the Pac-12 ends, a conference title is practically guaranteed after just one week.
With the 2024 season fast approaching, we take a look at the ACC. Will anyone other than Florida State or Clemson make a run at the title?
—by BetMGM
A clear top three?
Will the ACC be won again by Clemson or Florida State in 2024? Since Virginia Tech won the conference in 2010, Pittsburgh (2021) is the only team other than Clemson and FSU to win an ACC title. In the last 13 seasons, Clemson has won eight titles, while the Seminoles won their fourth a season ago.
FSU’s title last season came as the ACC moved away from its divisional format. The Seminoles did not play the Tigers in the title game, however. Clemson finished just 4-4 in the conference and Louisville finished second to FSU.
The Seminoles are favorites to defend their title after signing DJ Uiagalelei to replace Jordan Travis at quarterback. The former Clemson and Oregon State quarterback is in his final season of college football and will have plenty to do at FSU, even as players like Keon Coleman, Johnny Wilson and Trey Benson need to be replaced.
Florida State’s defense should be very strong again after allowing fewer than 20 points per game and recording 46 sacks in 2023. The unit has signed defensive end Marvin Jones Jr. from Georgia, and LB Shawn Murphy and DB Earl Little are two of five total transfers from Alabama.
Clemson, meanwhile, remained quiet in the transfer portal as usual. Dabo Swinney was against additional transfers and expects an improved offensive game in coordinator Garrett Riley’s second season.
The Tigers scored fewer points and averaged fewer yards per game in 2023 than in 2022, as the change in offensive scheme was not a smooth transition. Cade Klubnik struggled, throwing for fewer than 3,000 yards. He is hoping for a comeback year and will need some help from his receivers. No Tiger receiver has cracked the 1,000-yard mark since Amari Rodgers in 2020, and the highest total during that time period is Antonio Williams’ 604 yards in 2022. He only played in five games in 2023.
Miami is hoping to crash the two teams’ party with a series of transfers after a disappointing 2023. The Hurricanes signed former Washington State QB Cam Ward and former Oregon State RB Damien Martinez through the transfer portal. The hope is that the Hurricanes will have a top-notch offense pairing them with wide receivers Xavier Restrepo and Jacolby George.
The defense has been augmented with the addition of former Washington DB Mishael Powell and former Tennessee DL Tyler Baron. Powell will replace Kam Kinchens in the Miami secondary. Baron bolsters a defensive line that returns Rueben Bain (7.5 sacks). Last season, he was tied for the team leader in sacks with LB Francisco Mauigoa. Mauigoa returns to lead the linebackers after also having 10.5 tackles for loss.
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The teams that also have title hopes
NC State signed former Coastal Carolina QB Grayson McCall in the offseason. McCall was phenomenal in Jamey Caldwell’s offense with the Chanticleers, but took a step back in 2023 before suffering a concussion and missing several games. Having Kevin Concepcion as a faceoff partner is a huge plus. Concepcion was the team’s second-best runner and best receiver as a 2023 freshman.
The Wolf Pack must replace Payton Wilson and Jaylon Scott on defense, but linebackers Sean Brown and Caden Fordham are both back.
Virginia Tech returns its entire starting offense from 2023 after a major step forward. The Hokies averaged just 19.3 points per game and 4.7 yards per play in 2022. Last season, Virginia Tech improved to 29.5 points per game and 6 yards per play. QB Kyron Drones threw just three interceptions and rushed for over 800 yards while throwing for over 2,000 yards.
The Hokies also have a manageable schedule. They avoid both SMU and NC State and face Clemson at home in November. Their toughest game may be a trip to Miami in late September.
SMU has a good chance of winning the ACC in its first season if it can rebuild its offensive line. QB Preston Stone, RB Jaylan Knighton, WR Jake Bailey and TE RJ Maryland are all back, but the line must replace both tackles and three starters in total.
After Louisville reached the ACC title game last season, the team has former Oregon and Texas Tech QB Tyler Shough at quarterback to replace Jack Plummer. That could be an improvement, but Shough has never played in more than seven games in a single season. Can he stay healthy in his seventh season of college football?
How will Cal and Stanford adjust to their new cross-country reality?
When the Big Ten and Big 12 added teams from what was left of the Pac-12, Cal and Stanford were forced to enter into a union of convenience with the ACC. The Bears will travel to Florida State, Pittsburgh and Wake Forest in 2024, while Stanford will go to Syracuse, Clemson and NC State. Trips to Seattle and Boulder will feel like 15-minute bus rides by comparison.
As the above odds suggest, Cal is in a much better position to have a solid season than the Cardinal. The Bears travel to Auburn as part of their non-conference schedule, but should contend for a bowl berth for the second year in a row. The Bears bring back RB Jaydn Ott (1,315 rushing yards in 2023) and have added former North Texas QB Chandler Rogers in the transfer portal. Rogers threw for over 3,300 yards in 2023.
The defense is loaded with seniors, including Xavier Carlton and David Reese, who combined for 11 of the Bears’ 24 sacks last season.
Stanford is still in the early stages of a rebuild in Troy Taylor’s second season. And it doesn’t help that the Cardinal face a very tough schedule. Stanford continues its annual rivalry with Notre Dame and also has Virginia Tech, SMU and Louisville on the schedule.
WR Elic Ayomanor is back after his breakout game against Colorado in 2023. He had 62 catches for 1,013 yards last season. The entire offensive line is back, and Stanford is looking to run the ball much better than it has recently. It seems hard to believe, but Stanford hasn’t averaged more than four yards per carry since 2017.
