Ranking Best ACC Football Matchups of Week 1
College football's Week 1 slate features some of the most marquee matchups we'll see all year, and in the ACC, it's no different.
Several games could make or break seasons.
Three of the top showdowns feature ACC participants, including perhaps the biggest game in the Labor Day night tilt between Florida State and Ole Miss.
Everybody is looking forward to that game, which features a pair of Top 15 teams that could find themselves in the national title picture by the end of the season.
Other games that are out-of-conference showdowns drawing national attention are Georgia vs. North Carolina as well as Clemson going on the road to Jordan-Hare Stadium to play a talented Auburn team with several major questions.
Throw in a conference tilt between Georgia Tech and Boston College, and you'll understand why it's a busy—and important—week in the ACC. Let's rank the top several games in the conference.
6. Charlotte at Louisville
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No. 19 Louisville isn't expected to have any real issue with a Charlotte team entering its second full season in FBS.
But all eyes will be on head coach Bobby Petrino's Cardinals as many will want to know if they're the real deal. Considering Louisville plays Clemson and Florida State during the first five weeks, we won't have to wait long to find out.
That's why every tune-up game prior to those games is vital.
Potentially elite dual-threat quarterback Lamar Jackson returns, and the Cardinals' experienced defense should give folks in Louisville reason to be excited, too.
This is a team that got off to an awful start a season ago until Jackson emerged, but Petrino led the Cardinals to a 6-1 record over the season's final seven games, including a win over Texas A&M in the Music City Bowl. That's why there's ample hype surrounding the team this year.
The Louisville Cardinal student newspaper's Matt Bradshaw referred to Jackson as the "new face of Louisville football" and outlined why everybody is so eager to see him start a full season's worth of games:
"Many consider Michael Vick the most dangerous dual-threat quarterback the game has ever seen. Vick earned this respect due to his video game speed and agility mixed with his ability to throw ball 60+ yards with a simple flick of the wrist. The future No. 1 NFL draft pick only had three games of at least 100 yards passing and rushing during his two-season college career. Jackson had five last year.
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Charlotte's Kevin Olsen could wind up being a steal for the 49ers after transferring from Miami, but he'll be facing one of the ACC's top defenses, and it'll be tough for him to find many open windows. This game will be about seeing Louisville's potential, and that alone is worth watching.
5. Richmond at Virginia
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From the don't-just-assume-victory pages, one potential upset alert to watch may be Virginia's game against in-state FCS power Richmond.
The Spiders are up there in the rankings every year in the former Division I-AA, and this could be a big year again under the helm of quarterback Kyle Lauletta. Do they have enough firepower to spoil Bronco Mendenhall's Hoos debut?
Speaking of Mendenhall, there is considerable excitement in Charlottesville after the Cavaliers somehow plucked their new head coach away from BYU after firing Mike London. Mendenhall was the portrait of consistency in Provo, leading the Cougars to a bowl game in all 11 seasons at the top.
The Daily Press on Mendenhall:
"He's quirky, he's meticulous and he's been to an awful lot of bowls — one in all 11 seasons he coached at BYU. Mendenhall is transforming U.Va. into a go-fast, no-huddle spread operation on offense, while implementing a 3-4 primary defensive look. Kickstarting program that's been on life support for most of the last decade qualifies as the greatest challenge of Mendenhall's career.
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It is a new, huge challenge ahead at UVA, and Mendenhall has a lot to turn around. This is a total rebuild in Charlottesville, and there will be few games in the conference in which the Cavaliers are favored.
Richmond's stout defense could make this a low-scoring game as Virginia looks to iron out some deficiencies on offense. Leading the charge for the Hoos will be first-year transfer quarterback Kurt Benkert, who beat out former Texas and Arizona quarterback Connor Brewer and Matt Johns for the job.
Despite all the defensive talent London assembled, led by safety Quin Blanding, this is an even matchup. Richmond's offense is going to be hard to stop, and while Virginia's offense should have better talent, this will be a closer game than many expect.
4. Georgia Tech vs. Boston College (Dublin)
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What happened to Georgia Tech a season ago?
A season after finishing 11-3, the Yellow Jackets fell off the face of the college football map a season ago as their option offense fell flat. They sank to a 3-9 record as 16 players missed action with injuries and lost six games by eight points or fewer.
The forgettable season marked just the second time in head coach Paul Johnson's 20-year coaching career that he finished with a losing record. But with GT returning 16 starters, including dual-threat quarterback Justin Thomas, it could return to a bowl game.
Now, Tech will start the season in an unconventional way against Boston College in a game that will be played in Dublin. Interestingly enough, it won't be the first time Johnson has coached in the country.
He also led Navy in a game against Notre Dame there in 1996.
"It was really kind of weird," Johnson told the Associated Press' Charles Odum (h/t NCAA.com). "We were over there for a couple of days, and it was all 'How could a tiny school like Notre Dame play the whole Navy?' Fans thought they were the big underdog. It was kind of funny."
Boston College also finished a disappointing 3-9 a season ago, but head coach Steve Addazio assembled a defense whose front seven could be among the ACC's best. The unit is ideal to stop Tech's option.
Toss in Kentucky transfer quarterback Patrick Towles, and the Eagles could get a jolt in the win column, too. Addazio hasn't named a starting signal-caller yet, but it would be a surprise if it isn't the talented Towles.
With all the talk about offense, however, this game should wind up a slogging, defensive slugfest. The winner of this one will have a nice start toward having a solid rebound season.
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3. Clemson at Auburn
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The Deshaun Watson hype train gets chugging this weekend as many of the nation's eyes will be on Clemson to see if Dabo Swinney's Tigers can finish what they almost accomplished a season ago.
The Tigers fell just short of Alabama in the national championship game in what was the culmination of a special sophomore season for signal-caller Watson. Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban went on to say that Watson was the best college football player since Cam Newton, according to ESPN.com's Travis Haney.
Clemson needs to capitalize on his generational talent with a national championship.
Watson will get to traipse around on Newton's old stomping grounds this weekend as Clemson travels to Jordan-Hare Stadium to take on Auburn in a game that looks one-sided on paper.
Even so, this isn't one to overlook.
Yes, AU coach Gus Malzahn has some issues at quarterback and depth concerns in the running game, but the other set of Tigers has assembled some quality players on defense and has enough talent at other positions if they can get the skill positions straight.
Clemson, meanwhile, should be loaded on offense, especially with the return of Watson and receiver Mike Williams, but the defense is rebuilding. Just four starters return, and that's an obstacle for Swinney and company.
Take into consideration Clemson hasn't won at Auburn since 1950, and facing a hostile, sellout crowd on the Plains isn't an easy task.
"You're kind of down when you get off the bus there," Swinney said, according to 247Sports' Brandon Marcello.
While it may seem like Auburn and Clemson shouldn't play each other so much, it's actually a renewal of an old rivalry. Saturday will mark the 50th meeting between the two programs.
So, Saturday's showdown should be interesting. If Clemson handles business easily, it may march right through the ACC and back into the College Football Playoff.
2. North Carolina vs. Georgia (Georgia Dome, Atlanta)
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One of the biggest toss-up games should be North Carolina facing Georgia and first-year coach Kirby Smart.
The Bulldogs assembled a ton of talent under Mark Richt, who is now at Miami. Inheriting that is former Alabama defensive coordinator Smart, and the big question is how will he fare at the head of his own program?
UGA will have its bell cow in running back Nick Chubb, who was cleared following a knee injury suffered in the Tennessee game a season ago. He apparently won't be limited.
"We feel good about Nick, he feels great and is ready to go," Smart told the Atlanta Journal Constitution's Seth Emerson. "He won’t be on a pitch count by any means."
The Tar Heels return 14 starters from a season where they won the Coastal Division with an 8-0 record before taking Clemson to the brink in the conference championship game.
While UNC had a breakout season under Fedora, this is an opportunity to win a national-stage game, and Fedora knows it, telling the media, per DawgNation.com:
"It's a big game. It's against a great opponent who has a great tradition. They are well known. It is a good measuring stick for where we are with this program right now. Everyone knows — win or lose — it doesn't make or break our season one way or the other because it doesn’t affect our goals we have for this football team.
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The Dawgs have questions on defense, and they must face a Heels team that has seven starters back from an offense that averaged 486.9 yards. Perhaps the biggest star is leading rusher Elijah Hood (1,463 YDS, 17 TDs).
Mitch Trubisky will replace Marquise Williams at quarterback, but he's a capable signal-caller, and this won't be his first college action. This is an intriguing game that may wind up as one of the best games of the opening week.
1. Florida State vs. Ole Miss (Orlando, Florida)
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As if this weekend's games weren't fulfilling enough, you'll have one last huge game to enjoy on Labor Day night before heading back to work on Tuesday.
It may just be Week 1's biggest game with Ole Miss and Florida State squaring off in Orlando, Florida.
The Seminoles have high hopes of returning back to the College Football Playoff after falling short against Oregon in the 2015 Rose Bowl. Head coach Jimbo Fisher's team is loaded and led by Heisman Trophy hopeful running back Dalvin Cook.
He will have ample opportunities this season to show everybody just how good he is.
That's because the Noles must break in a new quarterback in talented Deondre Francois. Junior receiver Travis Rudolph isn't worried because he sees similarities between the redshirt freshman and the last great FSU quarterback, according to the Tallahassee Democrat's Jordan Culver.
"I feel like Deondre and Jameis have similar swagger to them," Rudolph said, referring, of course, to former FSU quarterback and current Tampa Bay signal-caller Jameis Winston. "You can tell they have confidence."
Another quarterback who has plenty of confidence is Ole Miss senior Chad Kelly. With all the talent surrounding him at receiver, this could be the year when Kelly is at the top of the list of collegiate quarterbacks.
It's been a forgettable offseason for the Rebels with the Laremy Tunsil draft-night debacle and the NCAA vultures swirling around the program, but they'll try to put all that behind them.
If the Rebels and coach Hugh Freeze can adopt an "us-against-the-world" mentality, the talent is in place to have a monster season. If they let the outside issues in, everything could fall apart.
There's an element of unknown around Ole Miss, but what can't be questioned is all the talent Freeze has assembled. Is it all good enough to go toe-to-toe with Fisher and one of college football's elite programs?
We'll find out on Monday.
All information gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. All recruiting information gathered from 247Sports unless otherwise noted. All stats gathered at CFBStats.com unless otherwise noted.
Brad Shepard covers ACC and SEC football and is the Tennessee lead writer for Bleacher Report. Follow Brad on Twitter @Brad_Shepard.
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