This Week in ACC Men’s Soccer: Schedule, news and notes for Week 4

Schedule

Thursday, Oct. 1

• No. 3 Clemson at South Carolina | 7 p.m.

Friday, Oct. 2

• Notre Dame at Louisville | 7 p.m. | ACCNX
• North Carolina at Duke | 7 p.m. | ACCNX

Saturday, Oct. 3

• No. 5 Virginia at Virginia Tech | 6 p.m. | ACCNX
• NC State at No. 1 Wake Forest | 7 p.m. | ACCNX

Monday, Oct. 5

• UAB at No. 3 Clemson | 6 p.m. | ACCN

Tuesday, Oct. 6

• No. 2 Pitt at Syracuse | 7 p.m. | ACCNX

News and Notes

• Four ACC teams open their 2020 seasons this weekend: Clemson, North Carolina, Virginia and Virginia Tech.
• ACC teams hold four of the five spots in the second United Soccer Coaches national rankings this week: Wake Forest (1), Pitt (2), Clemson (3) and Virginia (5).
• Clemson has been tabbed as the preseason favorite to win the 2020 ACC Men’s Soccer Championship following a vote of the league’s head coaches.
• Clemson edged out Wake Forest by one vote as the overall conference favorite and by one point as the South Region favorite.
• Receiving first-place votes from nine of 11 coaches, Virginia was picked as the favorite in the North Region ahead of Pitt.
• Sixteen members of the 2019 All-ACC Team return this season, including four first-teamers: 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year Philip Mayaka of Clemson, senior forward Kimarni Smith (Clemson), senior forward Edward Kizza (Pitt) and senior goalkeeper Colin Shutler (Virginia).
• All 11 members of the 2019 All-Freshman Team returned to school this season.
• Six ACC head coaches rank among the top 35 in NCAA Division I in winning percentage by active head coaches: UNC’s Carlos Somoano (second, .738), Virginia’s George Gelnovatch (ninth, .696), Wake Forest’s Bobby Muuss (16th, .669), Pitt’s Jay Vidovich (26th, .633), Notre Dame’s Chad Riley (31st, .618) and NC State’s George Kiefer (32nd, .617).
• ACC teams have captured 17 NCAA men’s soccer titles, including seven of the last 15. The ACC’s streak of 17 straight years with at least one team in the NCAA Men’s College Cup was snapped in 2018.
• 10 ACC teams earned bids to the 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship, the most ever for one league in the tournament. It broke the ACC’s NCAA record of nine bids, set in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
• Eight ACC players were selected in the first round of the 2020 MLS SuperDraft, matching a league record, set in 2016 and 2018. In all 16 ACC players were picked in the draft.