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ESPN staff
The ACC is ditching divisions for 2023, and that has set up a schedule that looks a good bit different from years past.
The league released its 2023 schedule for all 14 teams Monday, highlighted by a showdown between defending champion Clemson and upstart Duke on Labor Day and a September matchup between Clemson and Florida State.
The league announced last year it would cease divisional play in 2023, waving goodbye to the familiar Atlantic and Coastal divisions in favor of a 3-5-5 system that will pit each team against three annual rivals and alternate home-and-home series vs. five other league opponents every two years.
The new approach means rivalry games like Florida State-Miami (Nov. 11 in Tallahassee), NC State-North Carolina (Nov. 25 in Raleigh) and Virginia-Virginia Tech (Nov. 25 in Charlottesville) remain at the forefront, but Georgia Tech will also travel to Wake Forest for the first time since 2010, Louisville will play Virginia Tech for just the second time since joining the ACC in 2014, and Miami and Boston College, once Big East rivals, will play for just the second time since 2012.
The ACC’s nonconference slate gets off to a rollicking start, too, with North Carolina taking on South Carolina, Virginia facing off against Tennessee, Florida State playing LSU and, in what figures to be one of the most confusing games of the year, Miami (Ohio) travels to Miami (Florida).
ACC teams will go on the road to face off against teams outside the Power 5 six times in 2023. The league played 10 road games outside the Power 5 last year, losing three. Commissioner Jim Phillips has strongly recommended league teams cease this scheduling philosophy, as the reputational risk doesn’t outweigh the money saved.
The ACC continues its annual showcase games against Notre Dame as well. The Irish will head to NC State on Sept. 9, play at Duke on Sept. 30 and Louisville on Oct. 7, host Pitt on Oct. 28, travel to Clemson on Nov. 4 and host Wake Forest on Nov. 18. The Irish typically play five games per year against the ACC, but played just four last season and have an extra date in 2023 as a result.
Below you’ll find the schedule for all 14 ACC teams as well as analysis from ESPN reporters David Hale and Andrea Adelson.
Game you’re most looking forward to?
Hale: Florida State and Clemson should both be highly ranked when they face off, which makes that the obvious answer, but I’m more excited about a few games that come with huge storylines and have nothing to do with the standings. Thanks to the transfer portal, there are some, shall we say … awkward dates on the calendar at a few places. Boston College goes to Pitt on Nov. 16, where the Eagles will likely face off against their former QB, Phil Jurkovec. Virginia hosts former QB Brennan Armstrong when NC State comes to town on Sept. 22. But, of course, none of those portal-related grudge matches looms larger than Wake Forest’s trip to South Bend to take on Sam Hartman and the Fighting Irish on Nov. 18. Hartman took Wake to an ACC championship game in 2021 and left the school after five years as the ACC’s all-time leader in passing touchdowns. He has been synonymous with Wake Forest, and a date with the Deacons will no doubt be incredibly emotional for both parties.
Adelson: Florida State-Clemson is the obvious answer because far more should be at stake when they play this year with expectations they will be the conference’s top-ranked teams. The game comes in Week 4 — Sept. 23 — the first time these teams will play in September since 2014. That also happens to be the last time Florida State beat Clemson. Conference championship game implications (and the College Football Playoff) could be on the line, but remember there are no more divisions. So these two teams could play again in December in the conference title game, which, perhaps is part of the appeal in scheduling this game so early in the season.
Toughest stretch
Adelson: You could say Virginia has the toughest schedule of any ACC team, but let’s look at the first four games in particular. The Cavaliers have two difficult Power 5 nonconference games, the opener against Tennessee and a road game against Maryland. Sandwiched in between is James Madison, which went 8-3 a year ago. After that, Virginia opens ACC play against NC State on a Friday night. So, in total, the first four opponents on the schedule went a combined 35-15. North Carolina does not have it easy to start the season, either, with games against South Carolina, Appalachian State, Minnesota and Pitt. Then there is Syracuse, which hosts Clemson on Sept. 30 before going on the road to play North Carolina and Florida State.
Hale: Wake Forest has had a habit of getting off to hot starts only to struggle to the finish line, and the 2023 schedule certainly sets up for more of the same. Yes, there’s the big road trip to Clemson that provides the year’s biggest hurdle on Oct. 7, but it’s the final stretch that really raises some alarms. Wake hosts Pitt and Florida State, travels to Duke on short rest for a Thursday night affair, hosts NC State and then goes to Notre Dame. That’s five straight opponents who won at least eight games last season. The good news for Wake is it’ll have a soft open to the schedule to get a new QB ready for the grind ahead. The bad news is, there’s really nowhere to hide once the calendar turns to October.
Who needs a fast start?
Hale: Miami’s first five games set up nicely. The Hurricanes get Miami (Ohio), Texas A&M and Bethune-Cookman at home, then go on the road to face Temple before an off week and a home game against Georgia Tech. Of that group, only the Redhawks made a bowl last season. If the Hurricanes are going to blossom into a real contender under coach Mario Cristobal, they’ll need to be at least 4-1 — and their fans are probably thinking 5-0 — heading into a Week 7 trip to Chapel Hill. But that might be easier said than done. It was just a year ago when Miami laid an egg against the inept Aggies before getting blown out at home by Middle Tennessee. The shine hasn’t worn off the Cristobal hire just yet, but after serious changes to both the staff and roster, it’s unlikely Miami fans will tolerate another bad start.
Adelson: Miami is the easy answer here, but I will go with another second-year coach in Brent Pry at Virginia Tech. No one was thrilled in Blacksburg a year ago with a 3-8 record. The open to the schedule will offer opportunities to show things are different, though, starting with Old Dominion, a team that beat Virginia Tech a year ago. Then come two Big Ten teams, Purdue, under a new coaching staff, and Rutgers. Perhaps even bigger is going on the road against Marshall, because if anything, Pry must show this team can go on the road and beat a Group of 5 team after what happened in 2022.
Sept. 2: Northern Illinois
Sept. 9: Holy Cross
Sept. 16: Florida State
Sept. 23: at Louisville
Sept. 30: Virginia
Oct. 7: at Army
Oct. 14: Open
Oct. 21: at Georgia Tech
Oct. 28: UConn
Nov. 3: at Syracuse
Nov. 11: Virginia Tech
Nov. 16: at Pitt
Nov. 24: Miami
Sept. 4: at Duke
Sept. 9: Charleston Southern
Sept. 16: Florida Atlantic
Sept. 23: Florida State
Sept. 30: at Syracuse
Oct. 7: Wake Forest
Oct. 14: Open
Oct. 21: at Miami
Nov. 4: Notre Dame
Nov. 11: Georgia Tech
Nov. 18: North Carolina
Nov. 25: at South Carolina
Sept. 4: Clemson
Sept. 9: Lafayette
Sept. 16: Northwestern
Sept. 23: at UConn
Sept. 30: Notre Dame
Oct. 7: Open
Oct. 14: NC State
Oct. 21: at Florida State
Oct. 28: at Louisville
Nov. 2: Wake Forest
Nov. 11: at North Carolina
Nov. 18: at Virginia
Nov. 25: Pitt
Sept. 3: vs. LSU in Orlando
Sept. 9: Southern Miss
Sept. 16: at Boston College
Sept. 23: at Clemson
Sept. 30: Open
Oct. 7: Virginia Tech
Oct. 14: Syracuse
Oct. 21: Duke
Oct. 28: at Wake Forest
Nov. 4: at Pitt
Nov. 11: Miami
Nov. 18: North Alabama
Nov. 25: at Florida
Sept. 1: vs. Louisville in Atlanta
Sept. 9: SC State
Sept. 16: at Ole Miss
Sept. 23: at Wake Forest
Sept. 30: Bowling Green
Oct. 7: at Miami
Oct. 14: Open
Oct. 21: Boston College
Oct. 28: North Carolina
Nov. 4: at Virginia
Nov. 11: at Clemson
Nov. 18: Syracuse
Nov. 25: Georgia
Sept. 1: vs. Georgia Tech in Atlanta
Sept. 7: Murray State
Sept. 16: at Indiana
Sept. 23: Boston College
Sept. 29: at NC State
Oct. 7: Notre Dame
Oct. 14: at Pitt
Oct. 21: Open
Oct. 28: Duke
Nov. 4: Virginia Tech
Nov. 9: Virginia
Nov. 18: at Miami
Nov. 25: Kentucky
Sept. 1: Miami (Ohio)
Sept. 9: Texas A&M
Sept. 14: Bethune-Cookman
Sept. 23: at Temple
Sept. 30: Open
Oct. 7: Georgia Tech
Oct. 14: at North Carolina
Oct. 21: Clemson
Oct. 28: Virginia
Nov. 4: at NC State
Nov. 11: at Florida State
Nov. 18: Louisville
Nov. 24: at Boston College
Sept. 2: vs. South Carolina in Charlotte
Sept. 9: Appalachian State
Sept. 16: Minnesota
Sept. 23: at Pitt
Sept. 30: Open
Oct. 7: Syracuse
Oct. 14: Miami
Oct. 21: Virginia
Oct. 28: at Georgia Tech
Nov. 4: Campbell
Nov. 11: Duke
Nov. 18: at Clemson
Nov. 25: at NC State
Sept. 2: at UConn
Sept. 9: Notre Dame
Sept. 16: VMI
Sept. 22: at Virginia
Sept. 29: Louisville
Oct. 7: Marshall
Oct. 14: at Duke
Oct. 21: Open
Oct. 28: Clemson
Nov. 4: Miami
Nov. 11: at Wake Forest
Nov. 18: at Virginia Tech
Nov. 25: North Carolina
Sept. 2: Wofford
Sept. 9: Cincinnati
Sept. 16: at West Virginia
Sept. 23: North Carolina
Sept. 30: at Virginia Tech
Oct. 7: Open
Oct. 14: Louisville
Oct. 21: at Wake Forest
Oct. 28: at Notre Dame
Nov. 4: Florida State
Nov. 11: vs. Syracuse in New York
Nov. 16: Boston College
Nov. 25: at Duke
Sept. 2: Colgate
Sept. 9: Western Michigan
Sept. 16: at Purdue
Sept. 23: Army
Sept. 30: Clemson
Oct. 7: at North Carolina
Oct. 14: at Florida State
Oct. 21: Open
Oct. 26: at Virginia Tech
Nov. 3: Boston College
Nov. 11: vs. Pitt in New York
Nov. 18: at Georgia Tech
Nov. 25: Wake Forest
Sept. 2: vs. Tennessee in Nashville
Sept. 9: James Madison
Sept. 16: at Maryland
Sept. 22: NC State
Sept. 30: at Boston College
Oct. 7: William & Mary
Oct. 14: Open
Oct. 21: at North Carolina
Oct. 28: at Miami
Nov. 4: Georgia Tech
Nov. 9: at Louisville
Nov. 18: Duke
Nov. 25: Virginia Tech
Sept. 2: Old Dominion
Sept. 9: Purdue
Sept. 16: at Rutgers
Sept. 23: at Marshall
Sept. 30: Pitt
Oct. 7: at Florida State
Oct. 14: Wake Forest
Oct. 21: Open
Oct. 26: Syracuse
Nov. 4: at Louisville
Nov. 11: at Boston College
Nov. 18: NC State
Nov. 25: at Virginia
Aug. 31: Elon
Sept. 9: Vanderbilt
Sept. 16: at Old Dominion
Sept. 23: Georgia Tech
Sept. 30: Open
Oct. 7: at Clemson
Oct. 14: at Virginia Tech
Oct. 21: Pitt
Oct. 28: Florida State
Nov. 2: at Duke
Nov. 11: NC State
Nov. 18: at Notre Dame
Nov. 25: at Syracuse