Miami is ranked #3, and according to many national publications, it has already secured a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Except for one small detail: the Hurricanes have yet to play their first conference game of the season.
The ACC opener for Miami comes on Saturday in Tallahassee against #18 Florida State, which, after its loss to #24 Virginia last week, has no margin for error to reach the CFP.
So, if Miami is the cream of the crop in the ACC, who’s following next?
Here are a few contenders:
- Georgia Tech: Ranked 17th, the Yellow Jackets are relentless and have had Miami’s number lately. Quarterback Haynes King is among the league’s best. At 5-0, Georgia Tech is one of only four teams that have recorded multiple Power 4 wins (Wake, Colorado, Clemson).
- Virginia: If the ‘Hoos, now 2-0 in conference play, can win at Louisville on Saturday, a very favorable remaining schedule could have the Cavaliers in the ACC Championship Game for only the second time.
- FSU: A huge challenge and tremendous opportunity awaits the Seminoles Saturday as Miami comes to town. A win over the Hurricanes, and FSU is right back in contention.
- Louisville: The same opportunity is there for the Cardinals. A win over Virginia gives Louisville a 2-0 conference record.
Jam-packed Week 6 of ACC Football
Some pivotal early-season matchups highlight this weekend in the conference.
The headliner is the Top 20 primetime showdown between #3 Miami and #18 Florida State, scheduled for Saturday night on ABC.
ACC unbeatens Virginia and Louisville face off at 3:30 p.m. ET, while Duke travels across country to face Cal.
Who would have thought that the Clemson-UNC game would be a noon kickoff?
Yet, Dabo Swinney and Bill Belichick take center stage in a game that only the curiosity seekers will be tuned to.
UVA’s Tony Elliott on ‘The Jim Rome Show’
Virginia head coach Tony Elliott appeared on “The Jim Rome Show” on Wednesday and was asked by Rome how long after the Friday night FSU win it took for him to flip the switch to Louisville.
“Me personally, I flipped the script the next morning, as Louisville was playing Pitt on TV. But I told the staff and the players they could enjoy the win Saturday, but on Sunday, we had to get right back to football.”
Rome asked Elliott how much the team showed him about their resilience. Elliott responded, saying, “They’ve been showing me this all the way back to January, with all the new players coming together, they’ve been showing a willingness to win and do the work.”
Rome also questioned the crowd’s impact on the victory. “It was huge, we felt the energy, the intensity, and moving forward, we were going to need that to continue winning,” said Elliott.
Private equity coming to college football?
ESPN has reported that the Big Ten is about to vote on allowing private entities to invest approximately $2 billion in the conference to cover various (football-basketball) expenses incurred by member schools.
If the Big Ten is considering this, then obviously so are the other Power 4 conferences.
The article implies that the Big Ten would receive a $2 billion infusion of money, while retaining a significant percentage of control.
I’m not sure what the incentive would be for private equity firms in such a case.
Something to keep an eye on.
Support AFP
Share
