In lackluster Week 1 for ACC football, signs that maybe Miami is really for real this time

We’ll start with the good news for the ACC from Week 1, and for a while there it didn’t look like there would be much of any. But we’ll get to that — the bad — momentarily.

The good: Miami, for once, looked ... legitimate? Worthy of the hype?

Far more like a contender, finally, than a pretender? About time, indeed.

This is the Hurricanes’ 21st season in the ACC, and the previous 20 have all been mostly forgettable. Can you believe that Miami has never finished a season ranked among the top 10, since joining in the ACC? It’s true. Former ACC Commissioner John Swofford thought he was buying a Ferrari when Miami joined the league 20 years ago, only to open the hood the discover the engine of a Ford Taurus.

Not that there’s anything wrong with a Taurus. They’re solid. Mostly dependable. But they’re not winning national titles. And forget top 10s, the Hurricanes have only finished as a ranked team, period, six times since joining the conference — and they haven’t even done that since 2020.

But (!), and stop me if you’ve heard this before, maybe this is the year for Miami. No, really. Cam Ward and the Hurricanes looked that good during a 41-17 dismantling of Florida on Saturday in The Swamp. For once — and that can be taken literally, as this might be the only time it has ever happened — Miami saved the ACC from an otherwise lackluster-to-bad opening week.

It wasn’t a total embarrassment, at least. There were no losses against FCS teams. Conference teams took care of business, as they should, against overmatched opponents from lesser FBS conferences, too.

The ACC can build on that, sure.

Still, by around 3:30 Saturday afternoon, Week 1 was shaping up to be something of a disaster.

Clemson, at that point, was stumbling toward a humiliating 34-3 defeat against Georgia in Atlanta — a loss that reaffirmed, again, that the Tigers are no longer among the national elite. To be clear, there’s no shame in losing against Georgia, or even losing handily ... but losing by 31, as a supposed favorite to win the ACC? Not a good look.

Even worse for the conference, though, was what transpired in Nashville. Virginia Tech was nearly a two-touchdown favorite at Vanderbilt, yet got off to a miserable start. The Hokies rallied, raising hopes that they’d find a way to avoid catastrophe, only to lose in overtime. In a vacuum, there’s no huge shame in losing a season opener on the road against a power conference opponent. It happens.

But to refresh: Virginia Tech entered this season as a trendy pick to compete for (and win) the ACC, while Vanderbilt was picked last — and by a wide margin! — in the new 16-team SEC. The ACC has been desperate, for years, to change the so-called narrative surrounding its football.

And at times, it really does feel like a lost cause: the league rarely gets the credit it deserves, when it deserves it. But stuff like this — Virginia Tech losing at Vanderbilt — is debilitating. The ACC can amp up the marketing (as it has). It can ask ESPN to do a better job of promoting the conference on the mothership, and through the ACC Network. Jim Phillips can be more vocal and aggressive with his talking points. All those things help, and matter.

But Phillips can’t go out and put on a helmet and pads (well, that’s a humorous vision, at least). The league office can’t play the games. Conference members have to go out and perform. That’s the only way the so-called narrative will ever change, if it ever does. (Last year, remember, the ACC did perform quite well out of conference, and yet it still fought a perception problem.)

Clemson proved to be an enormous disappointment in Week 1. Virginia Tech was arguably worse.

But hey: Miami came to the rescue. When was the last time we could say that about the Hurricanes, as it relates to raising the ACC’s football profile? (Answer: never.)

ONE BIG THING

It’s bad enough that Florida State and Clemson are trying to destroy the ACC in court — but to do it on the field, too? The biggest too-early takeaway in the ACC has to be this: maybe the Seminoles and Tigers just aren’t that good. Florida State was a Week 0 laughingstock after falling flat against Georgia Tech in Ireland. Then came Clemson’s embarrassment on Saturday.

It’s human nature to take some joy in the struggles of both. These are schools that clearly think they’re too good for the ACC; schools that have assembled an army of lawyers to try to sue their way to greener (literally, as in money, and metaphorically) pastures. And here FSU and Clemson sit early in this college football season, with a big ol’ serving of humble pie. How’s it taste?

THREE TO LIKE

1. Noah Burnette’s golden foot.

It has been a real journey for Burnette, North Carolina’s senior kicker. Almost two years ago, he suffered the anguish of a costly overtime miss against N.C. State, which allowed the Wolfpack to win. But since then, Burnette has quietly morphed into one of the country’s best kickers. His four field goals at Minnesota (three of those were more than 40 yards, and one was more than 50) gave UNC its first season-opening road victory against a major conference opponent since 1992.

2. The Tar Heels show some grit.

And what’s this — UNC winning with special teams, defense and some toughness? Yes, indeed. Let’s face it: the Tar Heels haven’t been the toughest bunch around during Mack Brown’s second tenure. But they played with some fortitude in that close win at Minnesota, gutting out a victory despite losing starting quarterback Max Johnson to injury.

3. KC Concepcion: still good.

Breaking news: Concepcion, N.C. State’s sophomore do-it-all receiver, remains quite good at football. And maybe even better than he was as a freshman? With nine catches for 131 yards and three touchdowns, Concepcion was by far the brightest bright spot in an otherwise not-great season-opening performance for the Wolfpack against Western Carolina.

THREE TO ... NOT LIKE AS MUCH

1. Slow starts for all the Triangle teams.

N.C. State entered the fourth quarter trailing against Western Carolina. UNC easily could’ve lost at Minnesota, which missed a field goal that would’ve won it as time expired. Duke took a while to get going against Elon — and the running game never got going at all. Let’s be real: the competition was not particularly good for any of these teams (especially State and Duke), and every Triangle team still struggled at times. Not the best of omens.

2. Max Johnson’s season ends barely after it begins.

It always makes for a heartbreaking scene when a player has to be carted off the field, as Johnson was early in the second half of UNC’s victory at Minnesota. But somehow it always feels sadder to see it happen in Week 1. Johnson, who transferred to UNC to be the Tar Heels’ starter at quarterback, will miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken leg. Brutal news for a player who has already endured a lot.

3. The devolution of ESPN’s College GameDay

College GameDay always used to hit different on the first full college football Saturday of the year. Its return was always a cause for celebration, an official sign that the season had arrived. But now, it’s just a sad reminder of what was. The show continues its devolution toward the sort of lowest-common-denominator bro-tent that now sadly defines a lot of sports media. Nick Saban was a good addition, but he can’t save it.

THIS WEEK’S BEST PROGRAM IN THE STATE

North Carolina’s 19-17 victory against Minnesota will not be studied for its aesthetic beauty, but it was more than worthy of delivering the Tar Heels the coveted weekly “Best Program in the State” Award. (That time-honored distinction, along with $3, can get you a nice cup of coffee.) UNC is this week’s Best Program in the State somewhat by default but that shouldn’t spoil the bragging rights. While State and Duke were laboring to put away FCS opponents, the Tar Heels went on the road against a decent team and won a game they had to have.

CAROLINAS RANKING

1. North Carolina (is UNC the “best” team in the Carolinas? Very likely not, but who else should go here? Clemson!?); 2. N.C. State (maybe the Wolfpack was saving it all for Tennessee); 3. Clemson (should probably be lower, after that dud in Atlanta); 4. Duke (Manny Diaz era off to a good start defensively, at least); 5. Appalachian State; 6. South Carolina (an ugly, ugly win against Old Dominion); 7. Wake Forest; 8. Coastal Carolina; 9. ECU; 10. Charlotte.

FINAL THOUGHTS, IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER

•I think you can’t take a ton away from Week 1 but still: UNC’s defense looked much improved, and new coordinator Geoff Collins seems to have a better understanding of how to use the Tar Heels’ talent than Gene Chizik did. Some guys we’ve been waiting to see break out look ready to do so in Collins’ more aggressive scheme (like Travis Shaw).

•I think the first three quarters went about as poorly as possible for N.C. State against Western Carolina. And maybe that’s not the worst thing, to get something like that out of the way early? Maybe. Outside of Concepcion, though, the offense struggled to find a rhythm. The defense was “fine,” but it’s going to take some time to adjust to life without Payton Wilson.

•I think Mr. and Mrs. Wuf, State’s charming mascot couple, need some more reps riding the helmet mobile. Mrs. Wuf took a pregame spill off the mobile Thursday night, and Mr. Wuf seemed oblivious. I bet he heard about that later back at the den. It was Week 1 for mascots, too.

•I think Mack Brown’s postgame habit of giving the opposing head coach an uncomfortable hug/head grasp is one of the more unintentionally humorous things in college football right now. Did you see Brown grab the back of P.J. Fleck’s noggin and pull it close during their handshake the other night? Fleck looked like he wanted to be anywhere else, but couldn’t escape Brown’s iron grip. Good stuff.