Will the ACC be left out of the playoff?
By: Ethan Hu
It’s been a crazy college football season. As we head towards the homestretch of 2025, it’s not too early to start looking at the College Football Playoff picture. As it stands, the entire ACC would be shut out in the 12-team field.
As a reminder, the No. 12 seed is reserved for the highest-ranked Group of Five team, which is currently held by James Madison. The CFP committee moved away from giving a bye to the top four conference champions, instead giving the top four teams a bye.
So where does that leave the ACC? Not in a great spot
Based on the current projection, the highest ACC team is Miami at No. 14. Georgia Tech follows a spot behind them at No. 15. If we follow the bracket, the matchups would be as follows:
Byes:
No. 1- Ohio State
No. 2- Indiana
No. 3- Texas A&M
No. 4- Georgia
On campus games:
No. 5 vs No. 12- Ole Miss vs James Madison
No. 6 vs No. 11- Oregon vs BYU
No. 7 vs No. 10- Texas Tech vs Alabama
No. 8 vs No. 9- Oklahoma vs Notre Dame
First teams out:
No. 12 Vanderbilt
No. 13 Utah
As you can see, the ACC misses the cut.
The conference has been chaotic from Day 1. From Clemson’s disappointing season to Virginia’s unexpected rise, every Saturday seems to bring a different look in the conference standings. The top two teams in the conference are No. 15 Georgia Tech and No. 18 Virginia, both of which have a 6-1 conference record. Georgia Tech still has to play No. 4 Georgia at Mercedes-Benz Stadium this year, which will feel like a Bulldogs home game.
Don’t overlook SMU and No. 22 Pittsburgh, both sitting at 5-1 in conference play. If either team wins out, chaos could unfold heading into the ACC Championship Game.
Pittsburgh travels to Georgia Tech this week and finishes the season at home against No. 14 Miami, while SMU hosts No. 20 Louisville at home before wrapping up the regular season on a west coast trip to Cal.
The ACC’s best chance of representation in the playoff would be Georgia Tech. Winning a conference championship may not be enough, but with help and the right losses around them, they could squeeze into the top 10.
Buckle up, folks, the ACC finish is one to keep an eye on.
