Could Complex New ACC Football Rule Have Affect on Syracuse?

Could Complex New ACC Football Rule Have Affect on Syracuse?

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Could Complex New ACC Football Rule Have Affect on Syracuse?

The ACC Football Kickoff is officially underway and the countdown to the 2026 season is on.

All of the ACC schools have gathered in Charlotte, N.C. for the three-day event, which concludes on Friday.

The event traditionally includes interviews with players and coaches, along with the revelation of preseason awards and all-conference teams. This year's gathering also featured an announcement that could have a massive impact during the upcoming football season. 

What is the new ACC Football conference championship tiebreaker?

According to an announcement made on the ACC's website, a change has been made to the tiebreakers involved in the football championship game. 

-"When head-to-head competition cannot separate tied teams, the team with the strongest overall body of work will earn the opportunity to compete for the ACC Championship and the conference's automatic qualifier to the College Football Playoff. 

–Head-to-head results will always matter most. 

–No team will be overly rewarded or penalized based on the number of conference games it played. "

This year's title game is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 5, at 12:00 p.m. ET in Charlotte. 

Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown talks to his team during a time out in the fourth quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Jeff Romance-Imagn Images
Syracuse Orange head coach Fran Brown talks to his team during a time out in the fourth quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Jeff Romance-Imagn Images

Why was a change made?

Last season, the Duke Blue Devils won the ACC title game over Virginia, 27-20, in overtime. If Virginia had won, the Cavaliers were projected to be the conference's automatic representative in the college football playoff.

Following the Duke victory, the Blue Devils did not rank as one of the top five highest conference champions at the FBS level, which resulted in the ACC not having a conference champion in the tournament. The Miami Hurricanes, however, did represent the conference as an at-large bid and made it all the way to the national championship game before losing to Indiana. 

The adjusted tiebreaker is in an effort to have the two best teams in the conference competing for the championship and a likely College Football Playoff berth. 

It's also a response to the new ACC schedule that is in (partial) affect this year. Some ACC schools are playing eight conference games, while some are playing nine. As a result, it's possible for one team to finish 6-3 and another to finish 6-2. If that happens, the 6-3 team could earn a trip to the conference title game, because it may have the stronger overall resume.

Furthermore, because there are 17 teams in the conference, it is not possible for each school to play nine league games each season. Beginning in 2027, 16 of the 17 schools will play nine games per year, with one rotating school each year only playing eight. 

As a result, this same record issue could come up every year. The new tiebreaker policy is a way to answer those questions in advance. But the situation could get sticky when you start getting 5-4 teams selected over 5-3 teams or 7-2 teams selected over 7-1 teams.

How can this affect Syracuse football?

Syracuse officially joined the ACC during the 2013 season. The Orange have still yet to qualify for the ACC championship game.

In 2018, the Orange finished in second place in the Atlantic Division. A first place finish would have qualified Syracuse for that year's championship game. Since 2023, the ACC has eliminated both the Coastal and Atlantic division format. All ACC teams now compete in one division with the first and second place teams advancing to the title game. 

Again, because of the uneven number of games played, Syracuse could be involved in either side of a controversy in the future.

What to expect from Syracuse football during ACC Football Kickoff on Friday

Fran Brown, along with three players, will represent the team. Brown will be joined by Steve Angeli, Antonio Deslauriers and Demetres Samuel Jr. Roundtable will have you covered with the biggest takeaways, answers and more.

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