3 winners and 3 losers in the ACC at the halfway point of the 2026 season

We are nearly at the midpoint of the season, and the Miami Hurricanes are taking care of business much like we expected. However, the rest of the ACC is still slagging behind without another team that we can truly say is Miami's equal. And make no mistake about it — Miami is the big winner in this conference, so we'll skip the Hurricanes on this list and discuss which of the other 16 teams have thrived or faltered. 

It's not all bad for the conference, but Week 6 was pretty disappointing with Duke, Virginia Tech, and Pitt — three teams on Miami's upcoming schedule — all losing. Pitt dropped from the AP Top 25 Poll and Duke suffered its first loss of the season.

There are a few good stories in the ACC and a couple of teams that could be in position to meet Miami in the conference championship game. Here are the winners and losers in the ACC as we hit the halfway point of the season:

Winner: Wake Forest is finally getting the credit it deserves

The Demon Deacons gave Miami its toughest game of the season thus far, showing some resiliency in the second half of a 33-20 loss that seemed to give them confidence. Since then, Wake has won three straight, including a road win at Louisville. The road win over Purdue in Week 2 also looks better in hindsight. 

Wake won nine games last season, so the Demon Deacons aren't new to this. Upcoming games against SMU and Duke will likely determine one of the teams in the conference championship game.

Loser: Louisville has stumbled in too many close games

The Cardinals entered the season ranked in the top 25 and showed a lot of fight in a 41-38 loss to Ole Miss in the opening week. But two more losses, each by a field goal, have Louisville as a .500 team. The Cardinals continue to be a talented group of underachievers that will look great one week just to shoot themselves in the foot the following week. 

On the bright side, Louisville did rush for about a million yards against FSU in a 44-20 victory last week. Is a 9-3 finish possible? Absolutely. The Cardinals will be favored in at least their next five games, but they have to commit to being consistent week in and week out.

Mild Winner: SMU is still hanging on as a threat

The Mustangs are 4-1, but they haven't looked especially dominant in any game. They survived against FSU, despite going minus-4 in the turnover battle, and were held to just 218 yards in a win over lowly Boston College. SMU is No. 24 in the polls, and I believe the Mustangs have better football in them, but they have to pick up the pace before the three-game stretch against Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, and Notre Dame in November.

Loser: Pitt's offense won't be the same without Mason Heintschel

The Panthers let this season ride on the arm of Heintschel, and for four and a half games, it was working, but his injury against Virginia Tech required surgery for a torn ACL that ended his season. Pitt backup Holden Geriner threw two interceptions in a 21-17 loss to North Carolina. The Panthers looked like they could be a 10-win team, but the loss of Heintschel changes everything. 

Winner: Duke is still formidable behind Nate Sheppard

Unfortunately, the Blue Devils left the ranks of the unbeaten after an injury to their starting kicker resulted in a missed field goal that would have sent the game with Georgia Tech to overtime. Despite that result, Duke has established itself as a consistently tough team, winning at least eight games in each of the previous four seasons. Sheppard is one of the rushing leaders in the nation and will receive first-team All-ACC honors.

Losers: Mike Norvell, Dave Doeren, Fran Brown and Bill O'Brien

These four represent the hottest of the hot-seat coaches in the ACC. We've gone through Norvell's issues repeatedly, but Doeren's run of mediocrity with the Wolfpack seems to be running dry. Brown and O'Brien were already teetering on the edge and losing seasons would surely spell doom for both of them.

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