NC/ACC Week Three CFB Previews & Schedules:
UNC-Clemson, NC State-Vandy Among Highlights
As App State, Duke, Wake Forest Seek 3-0 Starts
(DG’s Weekly CFB YouTube Show = Below)
By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
(last updated Sept. 16, 2026)
The 2026 college football season continues Thursday through Saturday with a compelling Week Three schedule that includes all seven North Carolina-based Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams in action, plus two out-of-state Power Four teams going head-to-head in Charlotte.
The most prominent games nationally include #5 Miami (2-0) visiting Wake Forest (2-0) in a prime-time Friday matchup (7:30 p.m., ESPN), #16 SMU (2-0) visiting #23 Louisville (1-1) in a battle of Atlantic Coast Conference contenders (Sat., 3:30 p.m., ESPN2), and the so-called “Lane Kiffin Bowl,” with #7 LSU (2-0) traveling to #8 Ole Miss (2-0) in a battle between the provocative coach’s current program and the one he left in controversial fashion last November.
Meanwhile, from the wide-ranging schedule (please see at bottom) involving teams from the Bold North State, below are more details from this week’s “Three To See” in-state selections, plus brief notes on three other compelling Week Three matchups.
NC/ACC “Three To See,” Game One
UNC (2-0) at Clemson (1-1), Sat., noon (ESPN/Disney+)
As a starting point for this one, it’s important to remember that, just as Clemson rarely beats UNC in men’s basketball (especially in Chapel Hill), UNC rarely beats Clemson in football (especially in Death Valley).
In fact, the Tar Heels’ most recent victory over the Tigers on the gridiron came in 2010, meaning 16 years ago, and their last win over the Tigers in Death Valley — where this week’s game is being played — came in 2001.
Back then, a full quarter-century ago, UNC coach Bill Belichick was in the process of winning the first of his six Super Bowl championships with the New England Patriots, and Clemson coach Dabo Swinney was temporarily selling real estate, while between assistant coaching jobs at Alabama and Clemson. Seriously.
Last year, when Belichick and Swinney faced each other head-to-head for the first time, it wasn’t much of a game, with Clemson posting a dominant 38-10 victory in Chapel Hill.
This year, though, the 2-0 Tar Heels appear to be a much more competitive squad than they were in 2025, and the Tigers are both coming off a difficult 1-1 start and in the process of pulling the trigger on an early season quarterback change. Veteran Christopher Vizzina is giving way to true freshman Tait Reynolds, who will get his first college start on Saturday against a Carolina defense that has more playmakers — and more confidence — than it did a year ago.
A 6-foot-2, 215-pound four-star prospect from Arizona, Reynolds missed most of his senior season in high school with a hamstring injury, but he’s healthy now, and he enrolled at Clemson in January, so he’s had eight-plus months with new coordinator Chad Morris at this point.
The Clemson fan base is extremely restless right now, because the Tigers were only 7-6 last year, and they’ve opened this season with an embarrassing 51-10 loss at LSU and, last week, a less-than-dazzling 22-7 home win over Georgia Southern.
Clemson still has a solid number of NFL-caliber talents, including wide receiver TJ Moore, wide receiver Bryant Wesco, defensive end Will Heldt, linebacker Sammy Brown and cornerback Ashton Hampton, but the Tigers don’t appear nearly as dominant — at either the line of scrimmage or the most important skill positions — as they were during their glory days from 2015-20.
Carolina was able to beat TCU in Ireland with a combination of intelligent defense that kept the Horned Frogs’ new quarterback off-balance and “good-enough” offense, with sixth-year QB Billy Edwards Jr. — a former starter at Maryland and Wisconsin — minimizing his mistakes while utilizing weapons such as Ohio State transfer Jelani Thurman at tight end, All-ACC returnee Jordan Shipp at wide receiver, and three running backs who average 225 pounds and know how to move a pile.
It likely will take a similar game plan, with even better execution against a more talented opponent, for Carolina (a four-point underdog) to post another memorable victory in Death Valley.
NC/ACC “Three To See,” Game Two NC State (1-1) at Vanderbilt (2-0), Sat., 12:45 p.m. (SECN) As a starting point for this one, it’s important to remember that it’s extremely hard to win consistently in football at Vanderbilt, the only private university in the Southeastern Conference.
As with Boston College, Duke, Stanford and Wake Forest in the ACC, Vandy’s very high academic standards and uncommon transfer rules both narrow the pool of high school prospects its coaches can sign and severely limit the types of transfers they can sign, and that’s a brutal double-whammy right now in major college football.
Vandy’s extreme gridiron woes go way back, though. If you think that’s an exaggeration, consider that the Commodores have never won the SEC football championship despite being members of that league for 94 years, and — in conference play — they’ve posted only three winning SEC records in the past 66 seasons.
One of those extremely rare special campaigns at Vanderbilt did happen just last year, under fifth-year coach Clark Lea, a former Vandy player whose coaching mentors include long-time Wake Forest coach Dave Clawson (now with the ACC Network) and former Duke coach Mike Elko (now at Texas A&M). However, last year’s Vandy success was built largely on the shoulders of All-SEC quarterback Diego Pavia, a sixth-year senior and Heisman Trophy finalist who’s now out of eligibility.
This year’s Commodores already have shuffled quarterbacks in Pavia’s absence, with five-star true freshman Jared Curtis — a Nashville product who had originally pledged to Georgia — “saving the day” last week against recent FBS convert Delaware, which actually led Vandy 17-14 at halftime before falling 35-26.
For perspective, not a single Vandy player made the SEC coaches’ preseason all-conference team, which included more than 80 honorees, although senior running back Sedrick Alexander and senior wide receiver Junior Sherrill are both accomplished returnees for the Commodores.
Although NC State is considered a three-point underdog in Nashville, this is exactly the type of game the Wolfpack must win if this team is going to live up to its considerable hype, with much of that hype self-generated by the likes of 14th-year head coach Dave Doeren and third-year starting quarterback CJ Bailey, among many others.
Vanderbilt is well-coached, the Commodores are at home, and they have a very talented young quarterback in Curtis. However, that QB is brand-new to college football, and he’s surrounded by one of the least talented teams in the SEC, a group picked to finish 13th in that 16-team league this season.
The Wolfpack has plenty of talented and accomplished veterans, including Bailey, left tackle Jimarion McCrimon, wide receiver Keenan Jackson, running back Duke Scott, defensive end Harvey Dyson III and pretty much its entire corps of defensive backs.
It likely will be up to that very experienced group to lead the way if the Pack is going to come back from SEC country with an uplifting road victory.
NC/ACC “Three To See,” Game Three
Stanford (1-1) at Duke (2-0), Sat., 4 p.m. (The CW)
Beyond the football, of course, these are two of the top 10 universities for elite-level academics in the United States. They’re also two of the wealthiest private universities in the country, with endowments of $12 billion-plus at Duke and an incredible $40 billion-plus at Stanford.
Nevertheless, neither school has been consistently good in football in most college football fans’ lifetimes.
The Cardinal did have an awesome run under head coaches Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw from 2009-18 that included three conference championships in the old Pac-12 and five top-10 finishes in the national polls.
Duke, meanwhile, is in the midst of its best five-year run since the 1950s, with a combined record of 37-18 under Elko and now Year Three of Manny Diaz, who — yes, say it aloud again, just for emphasis — led the Blue Devils to their first ACC football title since 1989 just last year.
Duke should have the edge this year over the Cardinal, mainly because of superstar running back Nate Sheppard and one of the most well-coached defensive units in the ACC.
Stanford is breaking in 39-year-old, first-time head coach Tavita Pritchard, a former Stanford quarterback who spent more than a decade as an offensive assistant coach in Palo Alto, then worked with the NFL’s Washington Commanders as their QB coach for three seasons, and now is back at his alma mater as the head coach.
The Cardinal’s starting quarterback this season is sixth-year senior Davis Warren, who was Michigan’s starter back in 2024 but has never been an above-average player at the Power Four level, a description that also might apply to Duke’s new starting QB, San Jose State transfer Walker Eget, another sixth-year senior.
Stanford’s most outstanding talents this year include running back Micah Ford, offensive tackle Niki Prongos, tight end Benji Blackburn and linebacker Matt Rose, but Duke (a nine-point favorite) has even more standouts — starting with the super-slippery and hard-running Sheppard, but also including tight end Jeremiah Hasley, wide receiver Jonah Burton, defensive end Bryce Davis and linebackers Nick Morris and Luke Mergott.
Quick-Hitters Involving Other NC Teams/Angles
Charlotte (0-2) at App State (2-0), Sat., 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
This game is relevant for several reasons. #1-Second-year App State head coach Dowell Loggains, who needed a significant step forward after last season’s 5-8 debut, has a very good chance to start this season 3-0, given that the Mountaineers are a 17-point favorite over the struggling 49ers. #2-These are two of the seven FBS-level programs in our state, and it’s always a big deal to us here at the North Carolina Sports Network when they play head-to-head games. #3-With #2 in mind, we’re bringing our Bold North State Tailgate Tour & Traveling Sports Circus back to Boone this week, so please look for us in the tailgating lots near Kidd Brewer Stadium in the hours leading up to this 6 p.m. kickoff.
East Carolina (0-2) at ODU (1-1), Sat., 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Here’s the bottom line for the Pirates. ODU is a Sun Belt Conference program that won 10 games last year, and the Monarchs are expected to have a stingy defense again this year. Yes, Virginia Tech beat ODU 44-21 in Blacksburg last week, but the Hokies put those numbers up only because they threw it all over the place when their running game got stuffed. With that in mind, either ECU will get better quarterback play from seventh-year senior Mitch Griffis or his backup, Miami transfer Emory Williams, or the Pirates (a three-point underdog) will come back to Greenville with a very unsettling 0-3 record.
#25 UVa (2-0) vs. WVU (2-0) in Charlotte, Sat., 7:30 p.m. (ACCN)
This is a matchup of out-of-state teams, obviously, but we’re mentioning it as part of our “In-State Previews” this week because the game is being played right here in the Bold North State. This is the annual “Duke’s Mayo Classic,” and as always it’s being played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. Both Virginia and West Virginia put up some impressive offensive numbers in their 2-0 starts, albeit mostly against lesser competition. The Mountaineers’ top priority will be trying to slow the Cavaliers’ running game and forcing new UVa quarterback Beau Pribula (a Missouri transfer) to try to beat them through the air. Meanwhile, coach Rich Rodriguez’s offense at WVU is led by another dual-threat QB, Michael Hawkins Jr., an Oklahoma transfer who leads the Mountaineers in both passing yards and rushing yards. The Wahoos, perhaps the most experienced team in college football this season, are a 10-point favorite in the Queen City.
NOTE: For the national edition of our Week Three college football preview, including analysis on the highest-profile games, please click HERE.
NC Football Bowl Subdivision (Seven Teams)
(Games Saturday Unless Otherwise Indicated)
#5 Miami (2-0) at Wake Forest (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) — Friday
North Carolina (2-0) at Clemson (1-1), noon (ESPN/Disney+)
NC State (1-1) at Vanderbilt (2-0), 12:45 p.m. (SECN)
Stanford (1-1) at Duke (2-0), 4 p.m. (The CW)
East Carolina (0-2) at Old Dominion (1-1), 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Charlotte (0-2) at Appalachian State (2-0), 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Open Week: none
Atlantic Coast Conference (17 Teams)
Syracuse (1-1) at Pittsburgh (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) — Thursday
#5 Miami (2-0) at Wake Forest (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) — Friday
North Carolina (2-0) at Clemson (1-1), noon (ESPN/Disney+)
FCS #22 Mercer (2-1) at Georgia Tech (0-2), noon (ACCN)
NC State (1-1) at Vanderbilt (2-0), 12:45 p.m. (SECN)
Maine (1-2) at Boston College (1-1), 2 p.m. (ACCNX)
#16 SMU (2-0) at #23 Louisville (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Florida State (1-1) at #10 Alabama (2-0), 3:30 p.m. (ABC)
Wagner (1-2) at California (1-1), 3:30 p.m. (ACCN)
Stanford (1-1) at Duke (2-0), 4 p.m. (The CW)
Virginia Tech (2-0) at Maryland (2-0), 7:30 p.m. (FS1)
#25 Virginia (2-0) vs. West Virginia (2-0), Charlotte, 7:30 p.m. (ACCN)
Open Week: none
NC Football Championship Subdivision (Seven Teams)
VMI (0-3) at Davidson (1-2), 1 p.m. (ESPN+)
Presbyterian (1-1) at Western Carolina (1-2), 2:30 p.m. (ESPN+)
North Carolina A&T (0-3) at Campbell (2-1), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
Sacred Heart (0-2) at Elon (2-1), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
NC Central (2-1) at Gardner-Webb (0-3), 6 p.m. (ESPN+)
Open Week: none
NC Division Two (13 Teams)
Virginia State (2-1) at Elizabeth City State (0-2), 1 p.m. (CIAA)
Lincoln-PA (0-2) at Shaw (2-1), 1 p.m. (CIAA)
Fayetteville State (2-1) at Johnson C Smith (2-1), 1 p.m. (CIAA)
#13 Valdosta State (3-0) at UNC Pembroke (2-1), 1 p.m. (CCDN)
Winston-Salem State (0-3) at Livingstone (1-2), 6 p.m. (CIAA)
Barton (1-2) at Chowan (1-2), 6 p.m. (CCDN)
Emory & Henry (1-2) at Catawba (1-2), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
Mars Hill (2-0) at Lenoir-Rhyne (2-1), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
#21 Newberry (1-1) at Wingate (1-2), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
Open Week: none
NC Division Three (Five Teams)
North Carolina Wesleyan (2-0) at Sewanee (0-2), 2 p.m. (FloCollege)
Brevard (1-0) at Erskine (2-0), 3 p.m. (FloCollege)
Bluefield (0-3) at Greensboro (1-1), 6 p.m. (FloCollege)
Open Week: Guilford (1-1), Methodist (0-2)
