ACC Football Week 8: Preview and Scoreboard

Previews and score updates for every ACC football game this week

Matt Newton | Oct 22, 2021

Of the five ACC games that took place in week seven, two were decided by three points and the other three games were lopsided blowouts. Clemson escaped Syracuse with a 17-14 win and North Carolina defeated Miami at home 45-42. NC State made a statement in the Atlantic Division with a crushing 33-7 victory at Boston College and the Pitt Panthers asserted themselves at the top of the ACC Coastal with a 28-7 win over Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. Virginia won its third straight ACC contest with a shutout 48-0 win at home against Duke.

There are seven ACC games this weekend, five of which are matchups between conference opponents. Duke and North Carolina are idle this week.

Read on for a preview of each ACC football game taking place in week eight and make sure to come back to this page for updates on all the action from around the conference.

Saturday, 12pm: No. 16 Wake Forest (6-0, 4-0 ACC) at Army (4-2), CBSSN

Result: Wake Forest 70, Army 56

Preview: The Demon Deacons put their undefeated record to the test with a tough non-conference road game at Army. After starting 4-0, the Black Knights have lost two in a row, including a 20-14 loss at Wisconsin last week. An undefeated season is still in play for Wake Forest, but the Demon Deacons cannot afford to look past Army to their big games against Atlantic rivals in the second half of their schedule.

Prediction: Wake Forest 38, Army 28

Saturday, 12pm: UMass (1-5) at Florida State (2-4, 2-2 ACC), ACC Network

Result: UMass 3, Florida State 59

Preview: After an 0-4 start to the season, some were wondering if the Seminoles would ever win a game this season. Florida State finally got in the win column with a 33-30 victory at home over Syracuse and followed that up with an impressive 35-25 win at North Carolina. The season is far from saved, but things are definitely heading in a more positive direction for the Seminoles. FSU will look to build on its momentum with what should be a fairly manageable game at home against 1-5 UMass.

Prediction: UMass 6, Florida State 37

Saturday, 12:30pm: Syracuse (2-4, 0-3 ACC) at Virginia Tech (3-3, 1-1 ACC), ESPN3

Result: Syracuse 41, Virginia Tech 36

Preview: Both the Orange and the Hokies started their seasons off by winning three out of their first four games and seemed headed in the right direction to be players in their respective division title races. Since then, the two teams have a combined 0-5 record and enter this matchup desperate to snap their own losing streaks.

Prediction: Syracuse 23, Virginia Tech 28

Saturday, 3:30pm: Clemson (4-2, 3-1 ACC) at No. 23 Pittsburgh (5-1, 2-0 ACC), ESPN

Result: Clemson 17, Pittsburgh 27

Preview: The Tigers have continued to scrape by with close, low-scoring victories in each of the last two weeks and find themselves 3-1 in ACC play midway through the season. Clemson will likely need to score much more than its average of 20.5 points per game in order to take down the Panthers, who average 48.3 points per game. Pittsburgh looks to take down Clemson and remain undefeated in ACC play at the top of the Coastal standings.

Prediction: Clemson 20, Pittsburgh 27

Saturday, 4pm: Boston College (4-2, 0-2 ACC) at Louisville (3-3, 1-2 ACC), ACC Network

Result: Boston College 14, Louisville 28

Preview: Both the Eagles and the Cardinals come into this matchup on two-game losing streaks to conference opponents. Louisville lost its last two games to Wake Forest and Virginia by a combined four points and the Cards are hopeful that the bye week will help them get back to their winning ways at home against the Eagles. Boston College began the season 4-0 and fell just short of a victory at Clemson, before getting thrashed 33-7 at home by NC State last week. Both teams will be desperate for a win in this one to pull themselves out of the bottom of the Atlantic standings.

Prediction: Boston College 24, Louisville 28

Saturday, 7:30pm: No. 18 NC State (5-1, 2-0 ACC) at Miami (2-4, 0-2 ACC), ESPN2

Result: NC State 30, Miami 31

Preview: A promising Miami season has turned into a disaster as the Hurricanes remain winless in the ACC and sit at 2-4 on the season. Miami has lost three out of its last four games and the Canes lost their last two games by a combined five points. Things do not exactly get easier this week, as Miami welcomes an NC State team that just crushed Boston College 33-7 in Chestnut Hill. The Wolf Pack have their sights set on the Atlantic title, but will need to come away with the win at Hard Rock Stadium against a talented Miami team.

Prediction: NC State 42, Miami 34

Saturday, 7:30pm: Georgia Tech (3-3, 2-2 ACC) at Virginia (5-2, 3-2 ACC), ACC Network

Result: Georgia Tech 40, Virginia 48

Preview: The Cavaliers look to extend their three-game ACC winning streak as they welcome the Yellow Jackets to Scott Stadium on Saturday night. Georgia Tech has been hot and cold, alternating wins and losses each week through the first half of the season. The Yellow Jackets looked vulnerable in their losses to Northern Illinois and Pittsburgh, but delivered solid performances in wins over North Carolina and Duke. Georgia Tech will need to play more like the latter in order to take down Virginia and the NCAA’s leading passer, Brennan Armstrong, in Charlottesville.

Prediction: Georgia Tech 26, Virginia 41