The ACC has placed a team in the national semifinals in each of the two years since college football switched to a playoff system to determine its national champion, and with a handful of loaded teams, the league is hoping to making it a third season in a row in 2016.
Clemson and Florida State will likely enter this fall as preseason Top 10 teams, while North Carolina and Louisville have plenty of talent on their rosters.
The potential is there for the conference to produce a playoff squad, but chaos at the top of the league could prevent that from happening. Here are five games that could ultimately spoil the ACC’s chances at putting a team in the College Football Playoff:
5. North Carolina at Miami, Oct. 15
With an offense that returns eight starters and a defense that brings back three All-ACC players, North Carolina appears to be in position to make a run at repeating as a Coastal Division champion. If the Tar Heels win the league title and avoid losing more than one regular-season game, they could very well find themselves in the conversation for a playoff spot.
Miami is among the teams that could prevent that from happening.
Think the Hurricanes would have trouble topping UNC after leaving Chapel Hill with a 59-21 loss last November? Consider that Miami pounded the Heels 47-20 in Coral Gables in 2014.
Brad Kaaya is one of the three best quarterbacks in the conference, and there’s a new energy in the program under head coach Mark Richt. UNC could be on upset alert in this one. Get access to the rest of this article and unlimited access to the rest of ACCSports.com when you upgrade to Premium Access! Click on the button below to view all the benefits of becoming a Premium Access member.Get the rest of the story right now with Premium Access!
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