One of the wildest conference championship races gained some much-needed clarity on Saturday night.
No. 17 Virginia (10-2, 7-1 ACC) earned its spot with a decisive 27-7 victory over rival Virginia Tech on Saturday, Nov. 29. The win sends coach Tony Elliott to his first ACC Championship in four seasons at Virginia and gives the Cavaliers an outside track to a College Football Playoff berth. A stunning turnaround for a program that had cycled through late-season turmoil and disappointment in recent years.
Their opponent will be equally improbable.
Duke (7-5, 6-2 ACC) punched its ticket by virtue of a 49-32 win over Wake Forest earlier Saturday, leaping over SMU in the final week of the regular season. The Mustangs faced a win-and-in scenario against Cal, and fell 38-35, which opened a path few expected the Blue Devils to walk.
Second-year Duke coach Manny Diaz will lead a team picked near the middle of the ACC preseason pack into Charlotte. Duke’s late push was fueled by a high-octane showing against Wake Forest, where QB Darian Mensha threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns.
The result upended league projections and closed a final-week scramble that had stretched from Dallas to Berkeley.
The ACC Championship is set for Saturday, Dec. 6, at 8 p.m. ET at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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